Gira

This is Gira (Jee-ra). I know I'm not supposed to have favorites so I'll just say that I really love her. She used to have crossed eyes but was able to have surgery to fix them. During Easter Week, she got braids that were almost longer than she was tall. Her little voice makes me smile. She is best friends with Estefani and they hold hands and walk around school together. Her little brother is Melfy...yes, his name is Melfy and that makes me laugh each time I say it. I miss her and can't wait to see her this week as we enter back into classes.

Sunset

"Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths." -Etty Hillesum

Good-byes

Two of our friends from the group Makarios, who have a school here in Montellano, left this week. Weston was here for a year and Camille for two, both living in Montellano as well. They saw many changes and I'm sure go back different people...hopefully only to come back and visit us again!

More options

Another option is to donate through my name on the Kids Alive website using Paypal and direct debit. It's all become so easy, I don't know how missionaries ever did this in the "olden days"!!

Thank you

I write between my regular updates because of present needs. I want to start by thanking those who have already supported me through these past two years. It’s hard to believe that two years has gone by since first arriving on this amazing island.

This purpose of this entry is to officially ask for your support. As the years have gone by, I have been amazed to see how I have always been provided for and the amount of people willing to help in allowing me to stay here. .

For those who don’t know exactly what I do (I guess I don’t sometimes either!!) I am serving as a nurse and assistant director to a before/after school care center in the Dominican Republic. We serve both Dominicans as well as Haitians in a very poor area on the north coast of the island. As school nurse, I have plans to start a toothbrush program, daily vitamins, anti-worming, sex education, vaccinations, nutritional support and evaluation, as well as regular health assessments.

To be able to do these things, I need approximately $14,850/year to continue serving with Kids Alive. As it stands, I have a bit under half of that need coming in through monthly supporters. To continue here I would need approximately 29 people to commit to supporting me at $25/month. One-time donations are hugely appreciated as well. All money is tax-deductible when donated through Kids Alive International.

I will continue to keep you updated on what is happening in my life and with Kids Alive. There are constant changes to the Park Care Center as well as things in my own life, all of which I enjoy sharing with you.

You can send support marked for Jessi Mather to:

Kids Alive International
2507 Cumberland Drive
Valparaiso, IN 46383

With all of my heart I thank you.

Jessi

Last day

The last day of medical outreach we stayed at the school and opened the office clinic up to the families of our workers. Our construction workers have very few benefits and some are making only 250 pesos (8 dollars) a day, so we thought this would be a good way to give them something special. We found a lot of high blood pressure, did wound care, and treated coughs and colds. This was my favorite day because I got those that are normally working so hard, in a new light as they were caring for their kids and brought in their families. It really is an honor to be able to do things like this.

Beach stop

We went on Thurs night to the beach where we sang and talked about the week. It's a nice time to get everyone together and think through all that has happened over their time here.

It's also been a crash-course summer for Ariel into what my Dominican-American life is like...hopping between two worlds! I think it's been fun for him interacting with the groups, explaining what it's like to be Dominican, and trying out his English!

Candace has been busy all summer with sponsorship, talking with the groups and sharing the importance of Kids Alive continuing by sponsoring kids. She then makes sure the sponsor meets their child and even fits in a home visit if time allows.

Negro Melo

The next village we spent the day in was Negro Melo, a sweet village on the top of a hill in the middle of the sugar cane fields. We saw about 60 people in the day for baby care, sore necks and backs (which the doctor was able to adjust!), and regular check-ups. Thanks to all the donations we have received throughout the year we were able to fill prescriptions for a few days on meds that we had.

Severet

We started the medical outreach in the village of Severet where two of our teachers and some of our kids live. We saw probably 100 or so people over 2 days and treated everything from cuts and scrapes to asthma and high blood pressure.

Groups

Here's some pieces of our groups. The last group did medical outreaches in a few surrounding villages which was a big help.

Smiles

Why are these guys so sweet? Every now and again the smiles and braids and bright eyes remind me how blessed I am to get to hug on these guys everyday!

Vacation Bible School

Just some photos from VBS (EVDV in Spanish) which we had at church for a week. Apart from a fight between some big kids, the week went really smoothly for them.

Godparents

So this is little Alejandro and his family (mom, dad, big brother). Ariel and I became his Godparents a few weeks ago (or is it months now??). He was presented at church and the parents asked us to testify with them and stand alongside them in praying for him and watching him grow. Of course we said it would be and honor and privilege. He's also really cute, so that makes it easy!

Catching up

So it's been awhile, sorry. We've just finished our summer teams and now have a break for a few weeks. I got a little panicky cause I thought I hadn't posted photos since June, but it looks like I have. There are so many things missing though so I'll try and do some catching up, especially with photos. Thank you Julie, for conitinuing to check my blog twice daily, even when I slack!