I recently [January 2009] returned from an 8-day stay in the Dominican Republic, with the primary intention of checking on the current parish-sponsored project of building a house for the Mayi family.Accompanied by Fr. John for 3 days and hosted by parishioner Leocadia DeLeon and her husband Diogenes, we traveled to the poor community of La Enea to visit St. Joseph chapel (restored last year) and Nidia’s house build which is progressing incredibly well with each day of labor.
On our second day we traveled to an orphanage, Casa Hogar Divino Nino Jesus, in Salcedo. The children there are truly God’s special little creatures and the love that we felt from them was unforgettable and absolutley amazing! They so enjoyed me taking their photo and they seemed to never tire of another one here or there! Food is their primary need and so we hope to sponsor fundraising at St. John’s soon.
Pat Adam
On Saturday evening, January 11 [,2009], I arrived at Santiago in the DR (Dominican Republic), a city not known to many tourists but well known to many native Dominicans in our parish. When I stepped out of the terminal into the 78 degree weather and the sight of lush plants and flowers, I had to remind myself of why I came. This was our ongoing mission of faith and love to link our community in Peabody with people in a very different part of the world. Greeting me at the airport were Pat Adam who had flown in after a vacation with her son Chris, and Leocadia De Leon, a parishioner of Saint John’s who also lives in Santiago with her husband Diogenes. Leocadia and Diogenes have been an absolutely essential part of our mission. They have supervised so much of the work that we have sponsored in the DR, spending countless hours on the road, on sites, and in the Dominican equivalent of Home Depot. Let me share some photos and stories.
On Sunday morning we visited Leocadia’s parish of San Bartolome, crammed with people gathered for Mass, and then headed southeast to our sister parish, San Pablo, in the community of La Enea. There I celebrated Mass with the people of San Jose chapel, which we had helped to 
renovate last year. The inside and outside of the chapel looked terrific, with added decoration and abundant flora everywhere. What a joyful reunion with many of the people we had met last year. How I wish that all of you who contributed to the San Jose project could see how much these people appreciated their church. And I would say the same thing to all who gave to Nidia’s Fund, because after Mass we visited Nidia and her family and saw the work done to build her a new home. The cinder block walls of her new house were rising and, as simple as they might appear to us, to the Mayi family this was like 
watching Extreme Makeover: Home Edition! For the $7500 we have collected thus far they will have a small but solid five room home with floor, walls and roof. We still need money for furnishings so I ask you to look at the new photos in the back of our church and see the “wish list” of items. Is there something you might want to give?
Monday was a busy day with visits to two orphanages. We met so many children who, after being abandoned or abused, found a refuge of love and kindness. They are truly beautiful young people but our hearts were broken to realize why they were there and what needs to be done to make the building they 
live in a home. Pat later spoke to Father Hipolito, the pastor of our sister parish, to see if some of his parishioners can help, and certainly we will explore some ways to bring light and love to these children. Thank God for the amazing work done by one layman, Tino Tavares, who founded one of these orphanages. His second orphanage near the Haitian border was the recipient of the drums full of baseball equipment from our parish and the Peabody High baseball team.
My last stop on Tuesday was a visit to a chapel in Hababa, a very rural area near the city of Moca. We came here to view the progress of a project that we agreed to undertake for parishioners of the former parish of Saint Alfonsus in Beverly. They too had a sister parish but had not used all of their appropriated funds when their parish closed. When they heard about our mission, they asked if we could find some way to use their money to help a needy community. When we finally arrived (after a painful journey of all ruts and no road!) we were delighted to see the cinder block walls rising and people smiling. The people there gave us such happiness when we prayed with them and shared the Eucharist in a neighbor’s home, which is all they have for a church right now. Every time I visit the DR I come back so much more aware of how blessed we are with what we have, even in a recession economy, and I am reminded how much faith and love means to all of us, in good times or bad.