Thank You!

The brother’s of Gamma Pi wish to thank all those who have supported the 3^rd Annual Trip to the Dominican Republic. The following are reflections of three questions the brother’s were given upon their return. Without the generous support of so many this trip and the impact of it would not have been possible. While we hoped to build more laterine’s it became impossible because of logistical reasons. The end result was being able to paint the homes of some 10 families. These homes were in complete disrepair. It is not a stretch of the imagination to say that a paint brush caused the wall to move and the wood to crumble. They had never been painted. Our work provided not only some relief from the elements but also gave the homeowners a sense of identity and pride. Additionally, we spent two days painting a world map on a school wall. Many of the children (and adults) had never seen an atlas and had little to no understanding of countries around the world. The experience was highlighted by not only the learning and work but in many ways the interaction between brother’s and our host families (where we stayed) and the neighbors who came out to volunteer with us each day!

Again, many thanks for your support!

Fr. Brian Cool

Greg McKay

Jonathan Fricke

Tim Felong

Dave Abplanalp

Vinny Alleluia

1) What was one or two memorable experiences/encounters or learning experiences you had in the Dominican Republic?

2) How do you see yourself or the brother’s you went with differently?

3) What impact do you think your service/presence made in the lives of those you served?

Jonathan Fricke:

1)

While in the Dominican Republic, we stayed in a small town that we thought was pretty impoverished. We walked about a mile down a rocky dirt road that is notoriously dangerous at night to a village called, "La Guasumita" to paint some houses. I will never forget the first time that I saw that village. There will little children with nothing but rags for shorts running around, teenage boys and girls not more that 14 performing duties that mothers and fathers would usually do, and lots of people simply sitting around passing time. These people live the simplest lives yet still manage to survive. They do not solely live for pleasure, but still are intact with the basic principles of survival.

2)

I see myself in a different sort of light after returning from this trip. I have a better understanding for how the majority of the world lives, an understanding that one cannot understand unless first hand involved in such an experience. My brothers that went on the trip with me share this bond of knowledge, simply having the exposure to the lifestyle of these people.

3)

I distinctly remember that one of the people whose house we painted said, "I used to have to tell people that my house was the one with no color, but now I can tell them, my house is the blue and white house." Even just painting their houses meant the world to them and more so, our presence there meant even more. Showing these people that others do, in fact, care about them and they are not forgotten by any means.

Timothy Felong:

1)

My host family was awesome; Greg and I were both fortunate to live with them for a week. Roseangela – funny, outgoing, and larger-than-life – was the mother to toddlers Beba and Chi-Chi. Beba was a ball of energy with therapeutic laughter, while Chi-Chi was timid but compassionate all the same. Chi-Chi and Beba have different fathers, neither of which come around more than once a week. Roseangela, who was unemployed at the time we were there, basically has to provide for her children on her own. Roseangela’s familial composition was not unique; mother and children under a roof with little or no presence of a father was commonplace in the villages where we stayed and worked. One experience really brought the consequences of this societal issue to life for Greg and I. On the night before we left, as Beba and Chi-Chi were sleeping, Greg and I brought parting gifts to Roseangela. After she thanked us, she broke down into tears. Knowing some Spanish, I was able to comprehend that Roseangela really appreciated our presence in their home and was sad to see us go. She said how grateful she was for the gifts we gave to her children on Three Kings’ Day. But, more importantly, she said that it meant a lot for them to have positive, male, adult role models in the house. And then she discussed concerns about Beba and Chi-Chi growing up without a father. It was during this moment – when Roseangela opened up to Greg and I – that I became aware of how serious a problem their living situation was. Although Roseangela is strong-willed, independent and has a kind heart, I could not help but be worried about Beba and Chi-Chi’s future without a father to teach them so many things about life. This invaluable moment of human interaction, across language and culture, really allowed me to reflect on how blessed my life has been. Not only can I live comfortably, without having to worry about enough food or water, and have access to an education, but I have a strong family whose love and support has molded me into the person I am today. And, from this trip and that moment, I learned that a strong and complete family must never be taken for granted.

2)

When I took the time to think about why I wanted to go on this trip, I realized that it was because I wanted to go out of my comfort zone and experience a different culture firsthand. I wanted to go to a developing country, see some of its problems with my own eyes, and do what I could to help fix those problems. And that’s exactly what I did. In a discussion about poverty or different cultures, I no longer have to reference statistics or a text book, I can tell stories from this trip. I think that there’s a huge difference between reading or hearing about and experiencing different things in this world. And after this trip I can now say that I have immersed myself within and fully experienced another culture. This trip has allowed me to bear witness to the fact that American culture, with its unique issues, is only one of a seemingly countless number of cultures on this planet. I can only hope to experience more cultures in my future. Because my brothers who went on this trip also left their comfortable homes in favor of this unbelievable experience, I can say that I have gained much respect for them. But also, I can say that, after constant interaction with one another over this week, I know them so much better than I did before the trip. We undoubtedly bolstered the elevated friendship that we learned about when we joined a fraternity.

3)

Church is a big deal in the Dominican Republic. This is not only due to the fact that the people there are very pious (which they are), but also because they are very community-oriented. In a society without the technology or privacy that oftentimes secludes families from neighbors, the people in Don Juan pass the time by opening their doors and engaging in conversation, thus truly getting to know others in their community. So, for them, Church is a place to not only worship but is also a place to be with their friends in the community. Needless to say, many people go to Church. When we went to Sunday Church in Don Juan, we were shocked by the volume of people listening to the service from outside in addition to the amount in the packed building. Amidst our attempts to take-in our surroundings and understand the priest’s passionate lecture, we were told by Alycia – the local Peace Corps worker – that we had to go to the front of the church. Facing the congregation while a nun briefly discussed our work, we recognized a lot of faces in the crowd: people we helped, neighbors of those whom we helped, and people we simply interacted with or said ‘hola’ to. When the nun stopped speaking, their faces lit-up as they gave us a warm round of applause. For the brothers and I, this meant a great deal to us. Because the people there could not speak English, that was probably the most direct way that the community could have said ‘thank you.’ From that simple act of appreciation, we got the impression that the community truly valued our presence there and the work we did. That picture-in-my-head will forever be synonymous with the impact that we had on the lives of those whom we served. And, in convincing brothers to go to Don Juan in the future, I will do my best to describe this moment to prove how important the work we do there really is.

Vincent:

1)

Our service trip to the Dominican Republic proved memorable in many ways and experiences. One thing that stood out in particular to me was how excited the kids were to see us. Just being there for the kids, even though I was unable to actually communicate with these kids, was a great experience. They were ecstatic to involve us in all of their activities and games. Important to note is that most of the children's fathers have left when the children were young, so it was amazing for us to be there as role models for the children. The most memorable of my interactions with the kids was when I was walking to begin the workday, one of the kids I haven't seen before ran up to me and held my hand. Even with my rusty Spanish, I was able to connect with this child and he ended up hanging out with us the whole day.

2)

This trip proved as a great bonding experience with my brothers. Interacting with them in an academic environment is one thing, but when we pull together to achieve a common goal in a foreign environment, it really proved as an intense bonding experience. I got to know my brothers on a much deeper level as we shared this experience. It was also nice to see how well we were able to organize as a team, and effectively accomplish our objectives.

3)

From the moment we arrived at the village, we were greeted with great hospitality and appreciation. We did not even begin our service work, but they were appreciative that an outside group was visiting them. When we began painting houses and we saw the faces of the owners after we were done, we could tell that the work we had done will stick with the families throughout their lives. The owners could now take pride in their houses, instead of being ashamed to dub their house as the "unpainted house on the corner." Every year we will continue to make this trip, and the villagers truly look forward to that. The thought that our fraternity can make an impact a large group of people in such a way is truly amazing.

Greg McKay:

1)

The most memorable part of the trip happened on our last night. Tim and I decided that we would give some of our left over Dominican Pesos to our host mother. In my broken Spanish, we explained to Rosangela that we were very grateful for her hospitality, and we wanted to help her and her kids as much as possible. We gave her 1000 Pesos (the equivalent of a approximately $25) and a hug, and she burst into tears. To me it was a powerful moment. To us we had given her a relatively small amount of money, but to her it meant so much. She explained to us how hard it was to be a single mother of two, and how she really appreciated having good male role models in her home, even if it were for only one week.

2)

As the only Junior on the trip, I had not spent a ton of time with the other brothers on the trip. Though we were only together for a week, we quickly became great friends. We shared personal stories and had the deepest of philosophical debates, as if we had been best friends for years. By the end of the week, I gained a tremendous amount of respect for the brothers on the trip, and I felt that I had almost another mini pledge class.

3)

At the beginning of the trip, I felt that painting houses served only for aesthetic purposes, and I thought we should be building more necessary utilities such as latrines. There were a couple of things that showed me I was wrong. From a physical standpoint, we learned that painting the brittle wood that comprised their homes serves to seal the wood and protect it to last longer. So, our service was definitely helpful in that it will help their homes stay standing through harsh weather longer. Also, in our trip we painted a mural of the world on the side of their school. An alarming number of kids there were under the impression that the entire United States consisted only of New York, and that the Dominican Republic was larger than ‘New York’. Our mural was a source of enlightenment for the community, and we were glad to help spread education. Besides the painting we did, we were told just our presence in the community made a difference. In the village of El’Elmo, we did no painting, but showed up one day to offer clothing, candy, and play a game of baseball. Though it is kind of hard for me to understand, and I wish we had done more for them, we were told that our presence in the town and the simple acknowledgement of their existence meant a lot to them. Another example of our presence making a difference was the story I previously told of having positive male role models for the children to look up to. It is difficult for me to know exactly how our presence made a difference, but I know we did good in the world for a week, and we are all better for it.

David Abplanalp:

1).

My favorite experience while serving in the Dominican was the opportunity to play with the young children and see how happy they are to have visitors come and just interact with them. Also the opportunity to live with a local family and experience how they live was a very eye opening experience and forced me to think about how much I take for granted.

2).

This trip really forced me to reevaluate how I manage my time and what kind of everyday luxuries I take for grated. I realized that I live a very privileged life to be able to go and take a hot shower or microwave a hot meal whenever I want. Going on this trip has helped me to realize what parts of life are truly important and hold meaning.

3).

I think that the biggest impact out trip had was to show the families we assisted that there are people out there that care about the well being of those less fortunate and are willing to help improve this situation in any way they can. One of the best parts of the trip for me was seeing all of the young children's faces light up whenever we played with them. Thus I feel that although the service provided helped to improve the standard of living, the fact that we were down their and interacting with them provided a more profound societal service and was a very large part of the impact we had.

“So if I asked you about art, you'd probably give me the skinny on every art book ever written. Michelangelo, you know a lot about him. Life's work, political aspirations, him and the pope, sexual orientations, the whole works, right? But I'll bet you can't tell me what it smells like in the Sistine Chapel. You've never actually stood there and looked up at that beautiful ceiling; seen that... And I'd ask you about war, you'd probably throw Shakespeare at me, right, ‘once more unto the breach dear friends.’ But you've never been near one. You've never held your best friend's head in your lap, watch him gasp his last breath looking to you for help.”

The above quote, taken from my favorite scene of the movie, Good Will Hunting, has a simple message. That message is that there is a fundamental difference between learning about something…talking about something, and actually experiencing something. Sure, I watched the news and saw that homelessness and poverty housing, amidst the housing crisis, were prominent issues in America. But, until I volunteered for Habitat for Humanity and helped cleanout and build-up deserted houses, those problems weren’t real to me. Those problems weren’t real to me until I met the delighted neighbors or, especially, the elated family whose days of not being able to find affordable housing had ended. In other words, until I am able to truly experience something – feel the onset emotions and see something with my own eyes – I know I will never fully comprehend that thing. In order to understand the world around me and what real-world problems are, therefore, I must be able to experience.

I’ve never been outside of the United States or Canada. While some may argue that wealth inequity are huge problems in these countries, it can be taken for granted that those at the bottom end of wealth inequity in a developing country, like the Dominican Republic, are far worse off than those here. It can also be assumed that the education available in a developing country is obviously not what it is here. I’m telling you this, however, based on what I’ve read online. Consequently, when I was given the opportunity to take a trip to the Dominican Republic to truly experience these problems and do something about them, I knew I had to take it. I knew that by teaching English and building latrines the problems of limited educational resources and inadequate plumbing would become real to me and that I would have a chance to combat them. I also knew I had to take this opportunity to be exposed to a different culture and lifestyle. So here I am, waiting anxiously to do something more than learning or talking: I am waiting to experience.

-Tim Felong

Throughout high school, I have always had the yearning to embark on a community service trip. When this opportunity presented itself to me, I was at first hesitant to accept to traveling all the way to the Dominican Republic. However, I soon came to realize that every mile we travel, will make it that much more rewarding. The thought of helping build a community that is in the process of development, seemed greatly rewarding. It is one thing to contribute momentarily to a community in need, but this trip offers an opportunity to long lasting changes and improvements to the community. Such an opportunity, I could not pass up.

Realizing that we would make a significant, long-lasting impact on the community is a great incentive to go on such a trip. However, it is not that simple. Traveling over to a foreign country means that we will encounter not only a new way of life, but also the local hardships. There will likely be no running water, beds, or any other amenities that we consider necessities for any given home. Roughing it out will be a challenge, but the benefits that we could offer this community greatly outweigh whatever hardships we will have to adjust to.

After coming across this trip, making the decision to go seemed like an easy decision. However, the planning and preparations of this trip, will prove a difficult. We will have to undergo multiple vaccines, prepare the supplies for the trip, and purchase the plane tickets. This is one challenge we can not overcome by ourselves; this is why we are asking for your help. All contributions will be greatly appreciated by us, and the community we are serving. Without you, this would not be possible.

-Vincent Alleluia

Hi, my name is David Abplanalp and I'm a sophomore biomedical engineering major at the University of Rochester, and also a member of the Gamma Pi chapter of the Sigma Chi fraternity. I'm very interested in going on this trip because I view it as an opportunity for me to help those less fortunate than myself, and to learn about the cultures and customs of the people in another country. We will be building outhouses and tutoring children in an effort to assist the people in this underdeveloped country lead successful and fulfilling lives. I hope you will assist me in reaching our monetary goal so that we are able to go on this mission.

Sincerely,

David E. Abplanalp

Thoughts from Jonathan Fricke

The service trip to the Dominican Republic is an amazing opportunity for brothers to travel to a developing community in order to make a sizable and meaningful contribution to others. Our plan is to build latrines for the community and to setup a tutoring program to teach English to the children in the village. These projects may not come across as "flashy," but they will have a significant impact on the community.

My decision to go on this trip was actually a rather easy decision for me. I have been to other countries in the caribbean, including Belize, Guatemala, and Costa Rica, but have not first-hand experienced the living conditions of the local people. Traveling has always been an interest of mine but I think that you cannot fully experience another country until you have seen all of it, both the parts meant for tourists and the parts almost entirely comprised of locals. I realized that I would miss out on spending time with friends and family from home, but the experiences I will have on this trip will be we priceless. The organization of events like this, to go out into the world and help others, makes me proud to be a Sig. I hope we can raise enough money to go on this trip!

-Jonathan Fricke

Why go to the Dominican Republic?

The Sigma Chi service trip to the Dominican Republic is great opportunity to make a difference in an underdeveloped country, and gain a new perspective on a region of the world we may not have thought twice about before. Our current plan is to work on a tutoring program for the 300 young students in the village of El’Elmo, and work to build more latrines. Though the project we are pursuing may not seem thrilling, in a village where the students can go to school only three hours a day, and do not have enough places to go to the bathroom, our work will make a significant difference.

Our first challenge is reaching our fundraising goal of $10,000 in order to pay for the costs of our project and our airfare. We are each committing around $350 of our personal funds, and are hoping that our friends, family, and alumni will step up and help us with the rest. Our next step will be buying our airfare, getting immunizations, and plunging into a culture none of us have experienced before.

My decision to go was not easily made; nerves about travelling to a new part of the world without running water and electricity, and giving up a lot of time with my friends and family over winter break are two of the biggest reasons I was hesitant. However, I recognize the importance of the work we are doing, and this is the type of work that we as Sigma Chi Brothers can be proud of. We hope that we get enough donations so we can go!

-Greg McKay

A Photo Collage of our Work