It was an honor being on the 2016 4-H
service trip to the Dominican Republic. This was my first experience traveling
abroad without my family more so being the new kid in a group of seasoned 4-H
teenage travelers. However, since
meeting the group at the airport, and after a few minutes of breaking the ice, I
knew this was a program that was going to impact my life. From day one I was able to use my Spanish
speaking and translating abilities and to see and live in a completely
different culture than I am used to. Last time I was in the Dominican Republic
I was in one of the touristic areas but this time I got to see the true
Dominican Republic. Thanks to this 4-H
trip I learned that in the Dominican Republic many of its villages do not have schools
big enough to teach all the school age kids, nor do they have running water,
drinking water and/or electricity. While I was in the village of Domingo Maiz
seeing schools and houses without the amenities that we have in the United
States, made me feel thankful for what I have in both my school and my house in
Reston/Herndon Virginia. I also learned and experienced that the Dominican people were
extremely nice and helpful, they were involved and caring participants with the
4-H local camp and our service project activities. Most of all, they were thankful
and grateful for the school supplies and services shared with them.
On this trip I learned about myself
too! I learned that it takes me longer to get into my comfort zone with new
people. Also, that I am a very likable
person and am able to make friends with people with diverse backgrounds. When I
first arrived at the airport and the first day of camp I was often silent
because I didn’t know what to say, did not know how to talk to my peers or the
campers. However, after an hour or two I
got into my comfort zone by engaging in conversation with them. My life and leadership skills were greatly improved
from this program and so were my attention span and organizational skills. Since
I have ADHD and thus have problems paying attention, by having the daily
demands from both Americans and Dominicans kids needing me for frequent and
quick translation services, helped me
stay focused with the tasks at hand.
This was also my first experience with roommates. I hope that Wyatt and Garrett had as much fun
with me as I did with them. I can say I
made long life friends in them and the rest of the group (including the
Dominican teens)!
Next summer I would love to have the
opportunity to participate in this 4-H group trip again. I think this program
gave the Dominican campers and teens an opportunity to introduce people from a
different background into their country, environment, music, food and overall culture.
They showed us how resourceful,
ingenious, happy and vibrant they are.
The local communities and school age children benefited from the
resources we donated, were grateful for them, and quickly put them to good use. During the entire program they showed us how
much they all enjoyed the camp activities we organized for them. I would strongly recommend this program to
other 4-Hers because it will give them an opportunity to experience, live and
provide needed community services in a completely different culture. This
program should continue so that we can provide aid to those that are in need
and for us to grow as citizens of the world.
Thank you.
Danny Cayelli, Shenandoah/Fairfax Counties
No comments:
Post a Comment