Crown Council Humanitarian Blog

We are home! I want to apologize for the lack of posting. In Samana the internet is hard to come by and at both La Tambora where we stayed during the week and the resort where we were at during the weekend the internet wasn't working. I tried and tried to get a connection but it just didn't work. So this morning I'm going back through the week to post pictures. Better late than never right!?

Day 3

Sunday is always a much needed rest day! Many are sad to have missed daylight savings in America as that is one of the best weekends of the year, but thankfully the events of today more than made up for it. A group of us went to church this morning and to the LDS temple afterwards. The temperature was perfect and the scenery even better. Others had the morning off to walk around the city and sleep in. At 11:15 we reconvened and started the drive to Samana, the next part of the country we stayed and worked in. We ate lunch at the most delicious restaurant, Boca Marina. I had every intention of taking pictures of the dishes, but when mine arrived I completely forgot and dove into my fajitas immediately. THE BEST FAJITAS I HAVE EVER HAD! It was a piece of heaven on my plate. Muy Rico! Below are a few pictures we took on the pier, another exciting part of the lunch.

A group of us at the LDS Temple

The dress is questionable and many women were scattered about with the skimpiest bikini's ever made so the men respectfully covered their eyes………when the women were looking of course.

Our beloved Marybeth at the front of the restaurant

Dr. John Granados, his wife Elaine and son Nick

Mary and Paige from Dr. Granados Office

A couple of the dishes

We arrived at the hotel in Samana where we stayed Sunday to Thursday before heading to the resort for the last day and a half. This part of the country is so lush and beautiful. Roy Hammond said it is his favorite area in the Dominican Republic and he has traveled back and forth to and from every coast in this country.

Day 4-7

We set up clinics each day in a different community. Each day we were in a church and had the luxury of all being in the same room (apart from the last day when the hygienists worked outside under a tarp). The joys of working in the DR! It rained on and off these days, which made for really pleasant weather. As well as being joined by a handful of Dominican dentists and hygienists, we were also joined by Vicky Vale, the co-founder of Esperanza and her friends Maria and Stephanie. Maria and Vicky were such a huge help with translating and Steph helped up front with crowd control and filling the seats. We couldn't have imagined going through that week without them. They began a vital part of the group and could connect with the people on a deeper level. We are so grateful they came!

I am going to post a bunch of pictures from these days so everyone can get a feel of where we were and how our days went. Some of the funny, happy moments to the precious, life changing moments. Hope you enjoy them.