A universal truth we have learned in the DR: all kids love Pizza! We had a wonderful donor who provided for a pizza party for our kids, and we were blessed to get enough pizza that each kid was able to have two slices, with some of the older kids sneaking three. They LOVE pizza! Here are pictures of the PreK3 and Kindergarten classes chowing down on their slices.
Put on your Christmas Spirit!
We had our Christmas party at school on December 9th. The purpose of our party is to reach out to the parents of our kids to show them some of what the students are learning, and the kids get to put on a skit or recite a bible verse for their parents. The kids LOVE party days because they get to dress up in their best party dresses and fancy clothes. We love to see all their finery, from the elaborately done hair to the princess dresses to fancy polo shirts. The kids also love to strut their stuff, and they feel so proud of their clothes.
Enjoy the photos!
Soccer, the universal sport
If there is one thing that draws people together around the world, it’s a good sporting event, and soccer here reigns supreme. No matter their age, race, or physical ability, our students love to get out and kick the “pelota” around. There isn’t much strategy to how they play, they just love to be on the field together, running after the ball.
The PreK3 and PreK4 classes tend to just kick the ball back and forth to each other. Their “games” tend to be everyone crowding around the ball at once.
Our older kids in Kinder, 1st and Second grades are very competitive in their games. The kids love it when the staff gets out to play with them. We have games every day during recess, and everyone always wants to be the goalie (portero), so we rotate that spot between different people multiple times each game.
Enjoy the photos!
Medical Team Success!
One of my Jobs as Health Care Administrator for Makarios is to organize the medical team that comes down each year. Comprised of health care workers from Ohio, Texas and Atlanta, this team has been coming for the past 5 years to provide medical care for our kids, and we are very blessed to have them. One of the basic needs that many people do not have met here is quality medical care, and it is a blessing to be able to provide for our students. As the Apostles went from village to village healing the sick, so did our medical team, serving the people of Montellano, Pancho Mateo and Chichigua.
We worked HARD from Monday through Thursday. The team was composed of Doctor Merrillee and PA Darren, who performed checkups on all of our kids and saw their families as well. We also had Nurses JoAnn, Pam, Denise, Laura and Becky, Respiratory Therapist Tonya, Paramedic Tyler and PCA Tanda, who did triage with heights/weights/vital signs, assisted Darren and Merrillee and ran to the pharmacy when we needed more meds.
In four days, we saw over 320 patients! This included our 80 students, their families, and others who live in the community that we were able to serve. Each student received a full physical exam The most common complaints included gripe (stuffy nose) and stomach problems. We dewormed all of our students and many of the other youngsters in the community.
We also took a trip out to Chichigua, a batey where many of our students come from, and were able to see over 50 patients there including younger siblings and other family members. We gave out antibiotics, asthma inhalers, vitamins, and a lot of love and support. The team selflessly poured out their hearts to serve those less fortunate than they were, and showed the love of Jesus to all who came to be seen.
At the end of the four days, the First grade class made thank you notes for all the medical team, and had a fun presentation to give them out.
We were so grateful to the medical team to come down. They provide such a service for our community, and we are thankful to have them.















