This day could not have been any better. We went to a community, Bejuco Aplastado of multiple families to “help” out, and by that, I mean that the people there taught us everything about them and more. We did not expect the families to be this hospitable. I, as a leader, can truly tell how much fun and how many interesting facts every one of us took in that day.

We learned about the living on less than one dollar a day in the Dominican Republic. We all also felt very moved with how these families bonded so well with each other. It felt like they were all one huge family.

What surprised me the most of this day was how hospitable these families were to us. We expected very financially poor living conditions, but what we got was a very rich and caring experience for us all.

I am most proud of seeing my peers and I enjoying this wonderful opportunity. I saw smiling, laughing, playing – and with the people in the community, not just our delegation!

Doña Maxima was the most inspiring person in my opinion. She is one of the older ladies who miraculously beat the fight against cancer, had the aid of the whole community to help raise money for her husband’s heart surgery, and does almost all of the work in order to help her husband’s heart rate stay lowered.

Being El Lider Del Dia (ELDD) was tough, but it was a great opportunity to be even better in the future. Having so many responsibilities, such as the schedule of the day, health care, and bringing happiness to all, was only doable with the aid and support from my GG leaders and the rest of the delegation.

I learned that being a lone leader is difficult, but I also learned that the support of everyone is needed to stay calm and do your thing until the end. I say, “a teacher learns from his students equally – if not, more – as the students learn from their teacher.” In short, I learned that even a good leader of a group will need the most support from his peers to be a great leader.