DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

There are over a million refugees from Haiti who live in the Dominican Republic. Haiti shares the same island with the Dominican Republic, but the cultures and languages are very different with one being a Spanish culture, and the other French. Over 95% of the Haitians were French slaves of African descent. But when Swamis' devotees go to work, the distincion barriers fall. In one community of Haitian refugees where the Sai devotees went to do service of giving food, they found a single mother with four children living in a cardboard covered hole. The devotees rallied together and personally built a home for this family. It took 3 months of working week ends to make a large one room dwelling, but the love which everyone experienced was beyond description. Many of the residents in this community came forward to offer something even though they themselves have nothing. When people see that someone is interested in them, they become interested in themselves.

Close by, there was a one room school which didn't function because there were no teachers, and there was no bathroom. There was no blackboard, the floor had holes in it and the roof was falling in. The Sai devotees got together and repaired and painted the school and built a bathroom. Some mothers from the community agreed to give classes up to 4th grade by rotation since the government didn't give any money for teachers in this school. The devotees take breakfast every morning to the school so that the children can get proper nutrition at least once a day. They also stay to give a human values class. They provide books, paper and pencils for the students. This is a humble start, but the community is becoming more self sufficient, and the children more loving. Devotees are also helping new mothers with gift baskets when they have a child. This community adoption program is taking on new dimensions each day.

The children who are born in this community are born at home. The mothers cannot get to the hospital as it is too far and too costly to get there by taxi. Thus all the children do not have birth certificates. This prevents them from enrolling in public schools, which as a matter of law, require a birth certificate. Members of the Sai Organization have taken up the difficult process of changing the authorities’ view of this problem. It remains to be resolved, but with Swamis Grace, all these children will someday be able to attend school.