By Jamie Lasorsa
First Church of Sterling Mission Trip to La Romana by Jamie Lasorsa
This year will mark the 27th year that the First Church of Sterling will be traveling to La Romana, Dominican Republic on a medical mission trip to bring much needed medical care, nutrition, construction volunteers, and the gift of education to the villages.
First invited by a neighboring church back in 1994, the First Church of Sterling has made the trip to La Romana an annual event, some years also managing to juggle some volunteers to visit Hati as well.
Jennifer Colburn, one of the organizers of the mission, explains that those the mission serves, the workers of the sugarcane fields and their families who live in the small villages referred to as bateyes, desperately need each set of hands and every medical component which can be brought to them via these annual visits.
The people who live in this area of the Dominican Republic are living in impoverished conditions with little to no access to medical care, proper housing, proper nutrition, or sanitation services. This mission works together with The Good Samaritan Hospital of La Romana to bring these much-needed services to these villages.
The 10-day trip will take place next year (2022) from February 25th through March 6th. Generally being a group of 25-30 people and consists of a mixture of those who are medically trained as well as those who may not have medical training but are there to lend a helping hand wherever they can. The mission will set out to distribute as much medical treatment, including exams and medication, food, and clothing as it can, as well as lend capable hands to contribute to the ongoing construction of homes and the local hospital.
A part of the mission which has been developed and welcomed with much support from all ends, is the Days For Girls program. DfG is an organization which partners with social educators and volunteers within global communities to not only create reusable, cloth feminine hygiene kits for young women who do not otherwise have access to these services, but also education to help increase body literacy and remove the stigma and shame which is so often associated with menstruation.
With much misinformation and many girls and young women not understanding how their body works, the program provides education sessions which provide basic knowledge of what is happening with their body, options for birth control, how to make informed decisions about personal care and family planning as well as offering nutritional information. The women of La Romana are very excited to be educated in this area and because of the high demand for these educational sessions, more and more educators and visits to villages are essential. The support for the program by the local hospital administration and those working within the local healthcare system has been astounding. The confidence and opportunities that the program brings to the women of these villages is overwhelming.
Due to Covid, the trip was unable to happen in 2021 and fundraising efforts for the upcoming 2022 trip have been severely impacted. Some of the normal fundraising events are having to be cancelled due to social distancing guidelines. However, there will an online auction/raffle starting in December which will carry through until February, concluding with a special Super Bowl edition basket raffle which will feature “Superbowl boxed lunch” party packs and “Anti-football” packs too! This will be an online event and promises to have some amazing prizes. Keep an eye on the church facebook page for more information coming soon! Any local business whom wishes to participate by donating gift cards, merchandise or other items should reach out to Jennifer Colburn. This being the large fundraising effort this year, any help is appreciated.
If the concept of this mission, the efforts of the team, and the thought of helping those in need sounds like something you would want to be a part of, please reach out to Jennifer Colburn at jenncolburn2@gmail.com for more information.