26/05/2023
Twenty years ago I came to Cabarete to windsurf and stayed at the then new Windsurf Condos. One night getting out of the penthouse whirlpool bath I looked behind the condos and saw Barrio Blanco; a community of squatters as poor as any on earth.
The next day with my camera I went to explore.
Four little girls greeted me as I wandered in and let me take their picture. Then they insisted I come to meet Abuela (grandmother). Maybe I should have been scared, but I wasn't.
The conditions were awful. My dog lived better. I saw infants sleeping on soaked mattresses on the dirt. Their parents had nothing; they had nothing.
I met abuela Regina who was a year older than my 48 years. She was nice, but spoke only Spanish. For me, that meant remembering what little I could from high school. The afternoon before leaving Cabarete I had some vacation money left and stopped by and gave it to her. I didn't have any idea at the time that would be the beginning of an odessy for me.
Returning home to my going business, I slowly put Regina, the girls, and the poor barrio in the back corner of my mind as I dealt with "life".
My vacation had been fun, and on average I returned to Cabarete to vacation once each two years; stopping by the barrio on each visit (still, my Spanish was very rugged). On each visit I took more pictures in the barrio, still not venturing too far from the entry. One year, about 10 years after my first visit I took out my laptop in the barrio and showed my photos from the prior years for whoever came to see. A by dusk, a crowd of around 50 people gathered looking at their photos from over the years. It was a warm experience. Everyone loved seeing their grown children...small, and themselves younger.
I retired some years later at 59 years and was exhausted from 40 years of my career. I spent a year relaxing and eventually becoming receptive to finding the next chapter in my life. One evening I returned home to ask my wife Margo "What do you want to do with the rest of our lives?". Our children had left home to begin their lives. Margo responded that she wanted to teach English as a second language somewhere far away. Immediately I thought of Barrio Blanco.
A month later we came to Cabarete for a two week vacation to check things out. Margo for finding a teaching opportunity. And me? I wanted to see if I could "Help the people of Barrio Blanco". Oh my.
I went to the barrio and looked up Regina. Holding my hand, she took me door to door through the entire community of 350 residents. EVERYONE was welcoming and invited me into their shacks. I didn't know just how bad it was. A real eye-opener. I asked everyone "How can I be of help to you?"
Before leaving Cabarete and Barrio Blanco, I asked Regina if she could call a Community Meeting, which she did. A hundred people came. In broken Spanish I told the people attending that I was truly touched by how poorly they were living. I wanted to help. And, I told them that I thought that if people where I lived knew how badly they were living they would want to help. I gave my promise that I would Show the people where I lived and would create a way for us to help. I promised to return and pledged a year of my efforts for them.
It is now 8 years later.
In 2011 I founded a charity called Providing Opportunity for Self Improvement, Cabarete, Dominican Republic, and set it up legally as a 501(c)3 Corporation in Oregon, USA. I spent a year getting things ready and performing due diligence. As well, making a plan to help.
I had never, ever fundraised nor set up and administered a charity. I can tell you now that I had never built a home. Yet... my plan was well received "back home". I raised money for building materials with my committment to see the money used honestly and most productively. To donors, I promised that if they gave me money for the materials, I would show them "The happy homeowners moving into their new homes "Plastered and painted"... or I was a crook. I would be on site making sure. And, I gave my home address. As we were building I sent donors photos showing "their" homes being built by the community residents.
During these past 8 years we have built 48 Good New Homes for barrio families. We buy the materials, they do the labor. We also built a schoolhouse (The DREAM Project runs the barrio Montessori School ongoing with 54 kids daily), and a medical clinic called a consultorio. There's more... we are now completing our 4th year of full scholarships with 35 students attending Private School, University, or Medical School. In November we'll graduate the First University Graduate as an accountant, and she will be soon followed by 4 teachers with more on the way.
Barrio Blanco today is different. We've done LOTS more than homes and education. We are very much a part of the New Barrio Blanco. When we began, Barrio Blanco was a place of shame and despair. Today this is a community with Pride and Hope, tangible results, and a future. Go there. Ask. You'll see.
I write this because I want to share a couple of things please.
1) It may seem overwhelming when you see so much tough poverty. You can be intimidated into thinking you can do nothing. You can. In your own way, you can. We all have resources to help others in our own ways.
2) There ARE honest charities. Most surely, there are some that are not, but There are Honest Charities. I know. With Providing Opportunity, not one penny or peso has been paid or given to our (all volunteer) staff who are outside the community. ALL money goes into the neighborhood. All. I pay the organizational expenses (they are not that much) so that we can maintain the "ALL" pledge.
3) Maybe the biggest lesson I've learned is this: Over these past 8 years we have brought over $ 1 Million dollars into Barrio Blanco. The Donors who gave this money are not poorer today because they gave. They are richer, as I am. I have asked donors about this. The wealth we gain by giving is not going to be in our bank account. It is in our hearts.
When we help others in need, and we see that we've had good affect, we walk away feeling good inside. Inside. We carry this feeling with us in every step we take afterward. All of us have done things we regret. Bad things. We cannot change them. What we CAN do to be able to look inside ourselves and see a good person; the person we want to be, is to balance these past negatives with our good acts; and then some.
Many of the donors have come to visit the barrio. To meet the people they have helped and to see their affect. This is so very rewarding.
I know it sounds crazy, but giving a bit of our (money) wealth Gives the Giver a richness in your heart.
Be the person you want to be. Make a difference. You can.
Along the way we developed this expression "ORGULLO BARRIO BLANCO". (Pride Barrio Blanco). You can see it painted on the street entrance to the community. With Pride, I'm including a photo of some of our Barrio Family.
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