Day 5 - Thursday, March 20

Our last work day in the DR started with an early 7am breakfast. Then, at 8:15, we got on the bus, headed to Mission Emanuel. From there we ventured to Alex P’s house, where we picked up where we left off working on Monday. Using an assembly line, we were able to move hundreds of blocks and buckets of sand up the stairs, to be used in construction of the house. We then worked in small groups, each laying blocks and mortar to construct the walls of Alex P’s house. Then lunch came around, ending our work day. We give our gratitude to Jorgito and his team for guiding us on the worksite and being patient with us throughout the week.

 

After lunch, we toured Mission Emanuel’s water purification facility. Carlos showed us how water is processed through osmosis, and from there it’s bottled and ready to distribute. Their facility generates 12,000 5-gallon bottles of water per month, totaling 60,000 gallons of purified water. 

 

After the tour, we headed to the Women’s Cooperative, a store founded by the women of Mission Emanuel to sell their hand-made crafts. They had a wide variety of jewelry, shirts, ornaments, and more, all made by the women of the store. I personally bought a bucket line t-shirt and a Christmas ornament. 

 

Before going back to the hotel, we stopped by the Chruch and Alex’s house to give our blessings upon the work we had accomplished and the work that is to come. At this time, we had to say goodbye to our beloved translators that have been with us throughout the week. We will miss the 3 amigas. We then ended our day with a group dinner at “Meats & More”, and a stop at “Bon” for some late night ice cream before heading back. 

 

Today was an amazing day!

- Owen Long