Gift idea for travelers

All the back to school ads running in the papers this time of year always reminds me of a need that travelers can help meet for just a few bucks. Stores like Walmart etc. sell #2 pencils at 20-24 ct for $1. For 5 or 10 bucks you can make alot of schoolchildren happy. They're cheap, pack easily and don't weigh much but are well appreciated by the kids. Take a package or two of cheap BIC pens, hi liters or red pens for the teachers to grade papers and you'll be a saint.

A couple years back we stopped at a small town north of Imbert on the way to la Isabela, called Vuelta Larga. What we thought would be a few minutes of us giving the school principal a simple gift turned into a more typical Dominican grand production. Why didn't we see this coming. She led us to each classroom and called each and every student by name to the front of the class and presented them with a pencil. "This is a #2 pencil. It is the best pencil in the world. It will help you with your classwork." On and on, student by student, the same message. So, if you're headed to the DR and want to make a tiny difference, grab some school supplies and stop at any ol' school in the campo. There's plenty to choose from.

This was hardly disruptive. Have you ever seen a Dominican school during the "normal" course of a day? This actually made the kids shut up, listen up and eager to receive our gift. The principal delighted in the giveaway to her students. And I don't need a bureaucracy to help me with a bit of kindness.

Carry on I will. I tire quickly with posters like yourself who without any knowledge of others, try to slam them with some adjectives they assume will apply. For nearly 37 years I've lived in, worked in, and visited the DR. As an ex Peace Corps volunteer living in the mountains near San Jose de las Matas w/o water or electricity for a couple years in the early 70's, I hardly qualify as "selfish" "rich" or "riding in on my white horse". We've returned many times since to work as translators on medical missions. We've brought down portable water purification systems for areas affected by weather. We always bring school and/or baseball gear to share with kids. Next you'll slam me for stopping baseball practice to donate some gear. Yikes, some Venezuelan kid will beat out a Dominican for shortstop cuz practice was interrupted! Reread my post. I didn't barge into classrooms. We took the supplies to the principal and she decided to make a presentation. I know nothing about you and your concern for whats best for the kids, but I think you can always make a point without making it personal.

Now we're both rowing in the same direction. We've both seen the "ugly american" that makes you taste vomit in your mouth. Keep caring for the kids. I like that. We usually try to keep our giving spontaneous and low key with those who aren't expecting it. You've probably run into the "que me traiste" types who take all the fun out of sharing.

In my original post I mentioned that we donated the supplies in Vuelta Larga. We were on the road trying to track down a solar water purification system that a chapter of Rotary had donated. When we got to town we were instructed to the school. The administrators were so kind with their time in answering all our questions, we wanted to give back. We had planned to take the school supplies to a different area but sometimes the situation just finds you, not the other way around.

BTW. The solar water purification system worked like a charm for a year or two. Then somebody tossed a rock and broke the glass over the exchangers. That had been several years before we rolled through. So, with no real ownership in the system and costs to repair it impossible to meet, the kids were back to Plan A.