Hi! This is Drew Grossman and Emilie Amadi, today’s Lideres Del Dia (Leaders of the Day). Today began with an early 6:00 am wakeup. We spent an hour and a half picking up trash and weeding the grounds of La Fundacion. Understandably, the energy and morale were low, but we were able to pick ourselves up and do a great job.
Next, we ate breakfast before getting on the bus to head to Bejuco Aplastado to work on our CAP project. When we got there, the project was nearly done. The work that we did included leveling the floor inside the structure and building benches for the baseball field. The community will finish putting the roof on the concessions stand, smoothing out the walls with cement, and painting. The painting will include some of the designs that we created, incorporating the Global Glimpse logo with baseball players. They might also include the team name on the side of the building. The mood and sentimental overall was positive. We were focused on the fact that the people there were really open and welcoming to us, even though we were inexperienced with this type of work. There was a sad moment at the end when we had to leave, especially because many of us formed bonds with the kids by playing games and spending time with them. We said our “Big Love” to the community and said our goodbyes. We wrapped up in an emotional way.
We then went home and showered to prepare for the English Tutoring Graduation. We viewed and participated in a beautiful graduation ceremony which included a talent show for all of the students, certificates, and special honors for the top students. A lot of goodbyes happened after the ceremony. We shared cupcakes with the students and took pictures while exchanging contact information. It was sad because everyone is leaving, but also exciting because the students were happy to celebrate their success.
For dinner we had a special dinner of Freddy’s Empanadas, which we shared with the local ambassadors. During dinner was a really good chance for us to say goodbye to the ambassadors. Many of us formed strong bonds throughout the trip, so it was emotional to say goodbye. After dinner, everyone went in front of the common area to take pictures and share a few last moments together.
The nightly meeting was a wrap up of the day and an overview of tomorrow. The ambassadors presented us with some beautiful handmade gifts, which were red, white, and blue bracelets (Dominican colors and American colors). People were in tears as we wrapped up. For our unity clap tonight, we chose the word “Family.” This word was really fitting and meaningful for the trip. It’s hard to believe that today is the last day of the trip. It’s bittersweet because a lot of us are ready to come home, but we’ve made great friends, memories, and experiences that we will cherish for the rest of our lives