Field Note Category: San Juan, Dominican Republic

¡Hola a todos! My name is Sasha Baumann and I will be your Project Director this summer in San Juan, Dominican Republic. With a background in global public health and sport for development in Central America and sub-Saharan Africa, I am overjoyed to be returning to work with AMIGOS: the place where it all started … Read More

As a member of senior staff, I rarely have the opportunity to work in the field. My job involves managing our budget, collaborating with local providers, and risk assessment. This doesn’t always give me the opportunity to get to know the communities we work in. This week, as a change of pace, I accompanied Maren … Read More

After surviving their first week in community (and thriving, at that!), Session B volunteers are off to a great start this summer! They are all are busy leading campamentos (day camps) with the local kids, showing off their volleyball skills, working with the local volleyball team, and leading gender talks with the jovenes (youth) in their … Read More

After a very successful first session, the Dominican Republic project leadership team (the D.R.eam Team) was given a week to evaluate the state of the current communities, prepare individual communities for Session B, and even take a little bit of a breather! Within this gap-week of regrouping, objectives and goals were left up to each … Read More

After three weeks living with Dominican families, the participants of Session A were reunited in a convent in San Juan de la Maguana.  Leaving community had been bittersweet. As participants lugged their baggage in and out of vans, greeted old friends, and swapped stories about their summers, they experienced both excitement to see their families … Read More

For ten of the communities on our project, their last day was spent competing in San Juan in the second volleyball tournament. The hard work of our participants and their communities was obvious throughout the day. Hours of practice made the games competitive and exciting to watch. More importantly, hours of time spent together made … Read More

All participants on Session B of the San Juan, Dominican Republic project arrived safely last night. Project staff met them at the airport and this morning they are heading from Santo Domingo to San Juan to start their briefing activities! Bienvenidos!  

Hola Amigos! ¿Que lo que? Participants have been in community for a couple weeks now and they are still going strong! In collaboration with local youth, they’ve been leading volleyball practices and workshops related to educational themes, such as gender equality, youth leadership, and care for the environment. We are so proud of the participants … Read More

After a long but fulfilling day of traveling with participants to their communities on Friday, my fellow project supervisors and I returned to staff house that afternoon filled with pride and excitement. It’s an indescribable feeling leaving participants in the arms of their host families for the first time—you’re excited to see what they will … Read More

Last Tuesday night, my fellow project supervisors and I were jumping up and down in the airport, waving our AMIGOS flags and shouting with joy every time we saw a participant walk towards us. We were anxious to share our enthusiasm for AMIGOS and the Dominican Republic. After three jam-packed days of briefing, it is clear … Read More