Back to work I was so happy to be a part of our team today. In the afternoon, we took a break from working and walked around the community of Villa Altagracia. We are the first people ever from the Lighthouse to work and walk around in that community. The people were so warm and welcoming to us. I can't wait to go back again and work tomorrow! -Brianna Today was a
Sunday Sabbath Iglesia Cristiano de la Communidad Today we went to a Dominican church and it was great. Not too different from our church (Mimico Baptist) good music and so great to sing in a different language and it didn't feel weird at all. We got to give out candy to kids in the community they were all chasing after us. It was great! -Jemma We went to
First Day of Work at Villa Altagracia We have been anticipating this day for years. A new property. A new challenge. A new opportunity to start duplicating what has been done in Los Alcarrizos. Words cannot express how amazing this moment was as we started bending re-bar, and mixing/pouring cement. The three church team hummed along like seasoned veterans as small members tried lifting cement bags as heavy as themselves,
Our team arrived at Pearson airport at 2:30am. Two flights, a plane de-icing in New York from too much snow, and a scenic view from above of the Dominican Republic, we've arrived at our destination! One of the youth noted "Since I had been here before, when we first came down to the Dominican it was like coming home again. It feels like we're at home." Here's some of the
Our team assembled at the Fairfield Marriott Hotel. After some time of worship, prayer and orientation (plus a Spanish lesson with Karla-Maria Ponce), they're (hopefully) getting some rest before our 6:10am flight. We'll see you from the DR in less than 24 hours!
UPDATE: As of Saturday morning at 2:30am, everyone from the team left Pearson Terminal 1 to return home for rest and a time to debrief in the weeks to come. Can someone tell me why sunrise has to be at 5:45 am? Yes we made it - it was dark. However I believe our 29 cboqyouth team members all made it to our fourth floor dorm roof to praise God in
Tonight we had a celebration night at the Open Walls Church compound which was one of our main work focuses all week. The celebration was all of the work teams, the locals and a group from Santo Domingo that is a sponsorship church. There was lots of singing in both English and Spanish. The team felt the Dominicans sang with so much more passion. And it was genuine passion for God
Team from Glen Acres Baptist Church Today was a tough but great day! Our team worked in 2 locations today: at a school in Los Alcarrizos this morning and at the Open Walls Church this afternoon. At the school, we had an amazing time with a group of 50 children doing outddoor and indoor activities: parachutes, face painting, stickers, colouring, blowing bubbles, stickers, popping balloons, making bracelets, stickers,
DR Day 4 Monday March 16/15 In the past three days, so much has happened. This is our perspective of how we have seen God moving in the DR. Earlier today we were privileged to visit the CBOQ school that began being built by our 2011 teams and now has over 100 students. We had a wonderful opportunity to interact with the children of the school, playing sports, making crafts
Last minute change by Cristian Santiago (Lighthouse Director) last night allowed (at least those who got the message) an extra 1/2 hour of sleep below our whirring room fans. Morning worship after a cold shower (roof top water tanks cool off overnight) began at 7:30 am followed by personal devotional time and prayer partner time. Breakfast at 8:30 am saw creative uses of peanut butter and bananas on pancakes with sausage and papaya. After
