December 30, 2008
Today I see Altagracia, whose family lives about 40 minutes from the center of Santiago, Dominican Rep. She is the same
age as Maria, but nearly twice her size. She's beautiful, athletic, and has some artistic talent to boot. No sooner do I exit
the van to greet her than I see her crying as we embrace. Then I meet her Mom, and she's got the water works going too.
My visit means a lot to them, which makes the airport hassles pale in comparison. Also there is her sister and grandfather.
Later, half the neighborhood stops by to say hello.
As with all my visits, they are gracious in inviting me into their home. I give her some jewelry, she gives me her painting. I
think I got the better deal. Off we go for some shopping. After selecting some fancy jeans and other clothes (her sister
gets a blouse too), we get what she really wants: a video game console. It goes for 400 DR pesos, which translates into $13
US. The best $13 investment I ever made. Altagracia is a happy girl. So is her sponsor.
We then play baseball, DR's national sport, in a vacant lot across the street from her house. It is probably the most
rewarding 15 minutes of baseball of my life.
Today I see Altagracia, whose family lives about 40 minutes from the center of Santiago, Dominican Rep. She is the same
age as Maria, but nearly twice her size. She's beautiful, athletic, and has some artistic talent to boot. No sooner do I exit
the van to greet her than I see her crying as we embrace. Then I meet her Mom, and she's got the water works going too.
My visit means a lot to them, which makes the airport hassles pale in comparison. Also there is her sister and grandfather.
Later, half the neighborhood stops by to say hello.
As with all my visits, they are gracious in inviting me into their home. I give her some jewelry, she gives me her painting. I
think I got the better deal. Off we go for some shopping. After selecting some fancy jeans and other clothes (her sister
gets a blouse too), we get what she really wants: a video game console. It goes for 400 DR pesos, which translates into $13
US. The best $13 investment I ever made. Altagracia is a happy girl. So is her sponsor.
We then play baseball, DR's national sport, in a vacant lot across the street from her house. It is probably the most
rewarding 15 minutes of baseball of my life.
She's still red-eyed from crying...
Trying on her new jewelry
Our driver, "Melo"
Everyone is flexing their muscles for me
My faithful translator, Jaseny.
And the social worker, Carmen
Believe it or not, the guy on the left is Altagracia's father. He's 76 (she's 11. You do the math.) The other guy is her
step-brother
step-brother