June 24, 2011

Today we heard from Wendy Keen and the DR group.  It was a great day as many of us have heard of the DR project, but didn't’t understand the extent of what our club has been involved in.  It was one of those days when you realize why you are in Rotary and feel proud.

Besides Wendy, we had lots of other guests today.  Wendy and Erin Martin were in from the DR team.  Also here to present was Heather Kent and her fiancé Ian, who have been doing great work in the DR as well.  In fact it was Heather who originally brought the DR project to the Rotary clubs in the area.  Hilary Taylor was also our guest but she wont’ be our guest for long as she will be inducted at out next meeting.  Jennifer Komar was also visiting as was Peter Davison.

Lots of Happy Bucks today!  Sharon is happy for many reasons; she changed jobs, just came back from Portugal, and is going to meet her granddaughter.  Paul Roy was happy because he recently spent Father’s Day with his father salmon fishing in New Brunswick.  Stella is happy because she finally has her husband home after he was salmon fishing with his father!  Clarke was happy that his wife’s flight was delayed so he had an extra 8 hours of cleaning.  Hilary was happy because her parents just announced that they are coming for a visit.

It was now time to hear from Wendy.  Wendy has been involved with the DR from the very beginning.  The place in the Dominican Republic where our project is in is a very impoverished area.  Haitians come over to work in the sugar fields and only make $3-$4 a day.

The team originally met with some nuns at a nearby convent to do a needs assessment.  They suggested building a community garden, which is where our group started.  One thing they wondered was “What happens the other 51 weeks of the year after we leave?”  Wendy feels the group was very fortunate because the community has great leadership.  We also have a great relationship with the Rotary club in the DR.  The second time that the group came down they wondered how everything was going to be managed.  When they arrived they realized that a committee was already formed in the community for this.  They have an especially strong community and great leadership.

Our team has also partnered with a company, Nutrilawn, which has been a great help.  This past year our very own Gerry Pierce went down with Nutrilawn to start an irrigation system.  The group has also planted 30 fruit trees and purchased 4 beds for a seniors place in the village.

            The clubs have also just received notice that a matching grant is coming and this will help finish refurbish the school that they have already started.

            We also heard from Heather Kent and her fiancé Ian about their work in the DR.  They spoke to us about Carlos, a young man who has worked with the DR team as an interpreter.  They feel that Carlos is the type of person who is going to be able to give back to us community even more in the future.  He has been accepted to Mount Allison next year and Heather is solicited clubs to help pay the cost of his education.  Heather and Ian have already generously agreed to house Carlos for the year.

We ended our day with a 50/50 draw that produced no winners.  But after the presentation today we all felt great to be Rotarians.