November 2006

As many of you know, I like to travel. The month of November was especially fun for me because I got to travel a bit.

The "Bateys" are communities where the families of those who work in the sugar cane fields live. The people who work in the sugar cane fields are usually Haitian or of Haitian descent. Fifty years ago the people who worked the fields were the slaves that Haiti sold to the Dominican. Now they are not considered slaves, but they are looked down upon almost as such and the wages they receive are shameful. The Bateys are possibly the poorest communities in the Dominican Republic. In my opinion they are more desolate than the mountain folk because at least in the mountains you can grow your own food and the rains supply fresh water. In the Bateys the water collects in canals that catch run off and are the source of bath, laundry, and even cooking water. Voodoo is still prevalent, as it is in Haiti, offering fear and false hope, but only for a price. We passed by a voodoo temple on our way to Batey Dos.

In Batey dos there was a woman with three children. The oldest who is about 6 years old obviously had some sort of mental disability. He didn't walk or talk, but I wondered that if he had the appropriate therapy, would he be able too? For now he crawls around in the dirt with no clothes on. The mom doesn't know what is wrong with him because she has never taken him to the doctor to find out.

Batey nueve is where we stayed with Pastor Wiliam who oversees GO Ministries to the Bateys. We are expanding and now have a Dormitory there. The Schwulzt family is planning on moving to the DR to help William host teams from the US. Being there I realized how much the people in Batey nueve rely on Wiliam by the way they respond to him when he walks by and how they come to him when they need things. He loves those people and knows first hand how life has tossed them around. Wiliam grew up in the Bateys in the Voodoo religion. I cannot wait to see what God will do down there as there are more and more opportunities for us to partner with Him for the people of the Bateys. This is a pic of a voodoo temple we passed.

I also Traveled to Haiti. It was a hot market day on the border of the Dominican and Haiti. There were people as far as the I could see carrying their weirs. I went there to see an orphanage there called "Hope for Haiti". It is a dream of mine to someday start an orphanage. I had a great time with the ladies who are running the school and orphanage. There are 47 kids in the Orphanage plus 500 kids in the school. It was very inspiring to me to be with women with similar ideas who are already doing it. A single woman founded the Orphanage and now three single ladies are facilitating the entire place. All of the staff is Haitian including the school directors. It was a wonderful visit, but I am confident that I am where God wants me for now... in Kentucky.

Just kidding although I really am in Kentucky. Every year, after the busy season, we all go on a staff retreat. This year we went to the Bahamas, which may sound exotic but remember it is not a far cry from the Caribbean, where I live. What made it so fun was all the people that I was with. The GO ministries crew can be a lot of fun... but don't believe any stories they tell you about me and karaoke.

So now I am in Kentucky preparing for our annual planning meetings that will be held all next week. Then I will spend Christmas in Oregon with my family and fly back home to the Dominican in January.

So The Month of November was alot of fun. Besides all the traveling there was alot of partying. At my house we had a Birthday party for my puppy Panther, a Happy Birthday Jesus party, a dinner party with the weekly discipleship ladies, and several other small bday partys and such. I just love ministry. There are alot of unorthodox ways we can make a difference to someone. Like inviting the kids to come play games and using your dog's birthday as an excuse.

I look foreward to planning for the upcoming year and will keep you all informed on the excitment awaiting.

Que Dios les bendigan mucho.

Jen