Community Corner

Missioners Change Lives – Often Their Own – In D.R.

Teenagers and adults from St. Luke's have been traveling to a small village in the Dominican Republic for more than 10 years; the trips have left their mark.


The drive up the mountain to El Pedregal in the Dominican Republic is steep. We are in a large van and our luggage is hitched to a trailer that bumps along behind us. We are full of anticipation and excitement. For more than a few of us, this is a return to a place that has come to feel a bit like home. For others, it's a place we've heard about and seen in pictures for years.

The warm sunshine in February is enough for us New England refugees to feel grateful, but it is in fact the warmth of the people that has kept so many teenagers and adults from St. Luke's Church in EG coming back for more than a decade.

The expression "mission trip" conjures up images of do-gooders looking to better the lot of poorer people. But these days, people on mission trips are often the seekers, the ones looking for God's grace in a faraway land. Sometimes that's because, quite simply, that grace is easier to see when you are away from the distractions of your everyday life.

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So it is that St. Luke's found Mount Transfiguration, an Episcopal camp in El Pedregal, our destination this past February. The trip is part of the religious education of teenagers at St. Luke's. 

There are 11 teens (mainly 15 and 16 year olds) and 9 adults, although we are reunited with a fellow St. Luker upon arrival. Heather MacDonald is teaching in the D.R. now, after first traveling here as a teen missioner several years ago. She'd been back a couple times and, after full-time teaching jobs proved elusive in Rhode Island, she decided to sign on to a two-year teaching job in Jarabacoa, the town nearest El Pedregal. 

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For Ken and Susan MacDonald, the trip offers the chance to introduce another group of teens to El Pedregal, but it's also a reunion with their daughter.

The reunions with residents are heartfelt and – in Dominican fashion – hug-filled. Several on this trip have seen children grow up and take on responsibilities of motherhood (something that often happens early here) or providing for their family. 

The key is an education that has proved elusive for many here. To that end, St. Luke's (and other groups from the U.S.) has brought money down to help build parts of the school, as well as to help build a church and houses over the years. The money provides local construction jobs and more basic work can be done by the missioners – carting off debris, painting, carrying concrete blocks. 

In addition, another MacDonald, Brooke, started a scholarship program for children of the barrio for her EGHS senior project in 2010. A mere $250 a year will provide tuition for a child. There are many CHANCE scholars now. A missioner this year – Michael – collected 52 backpacks filled with school supplies for his Eagle Scout project. They were handed out the last day of our trip – one per family. 

The real work of the trip is getting to know or becoming reaquainted with the people of El Pedregal, who are constantly inviting us in for coffee (even if they have only a little) and conversation. You don't speak Spanish? No problema. Smiles go very far here.

The teens, without their cellphones, music and t.v., adapt quickly. There is time for play, especially with the young children of the village, who are thrilled with the extra attention. 

It's easy to think poverty in a place like El Pedregal isn't so bad. After all, everyone's seems so happy. But life is hard here. Children born with disabilities usually have to live with them. Parents have to struggle to get enough food for their families. The smiles and small kindnesses are a part of making the difficult bearable. 

And we, with our plenty, see a grace in that. For some of us, it's a trip we will recall for years to come. For others, like Heather, it's a trip that changes the way we live our lives. 


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