"Newborns and Dominican Hospitals"

"Newborns and Dominican Hospitals"

Elder Darrel L. Hammon

Los Snow and their family with Elder y Hermana Saint Hilaire

Now if you haven’t been to a Dominican hospital before, then entering the walls of the hospital may startle you. We went to two hospitals this week, one each Sunday: one in Boca Chica, a small hospital in a very poor part of town and one here in Santo Domingo, Centro Maternal Infantil San Lorenzo de Los Minas, located in the Los Minas part of town. Both hospitals have a maternity ward. We went with Elder and Sister Snow. Sister Snow’s almost 89-year-old mother made all of the kits. Sister Upia, a member and a former resident of Boca Chica, went with us.

The Boca Chica hospital was very humbling to us. The rooms were austere, and the young mothers were lying on their beds with their babies. A thin sheet covered the hospital beds. While the room was humble, the young mothers seemed happy with their new little infants. They were so adorable. I stopped to think about their futures, and the futures of their mothers. It saddened me to think that they were born poor but will they be able to rise from their poverty, go to school, get good grades, go to college, earn a college degree in some field that will allow them to earn a good living, which, in turn, might help them rise from their poverty? All these are questions yet to be answered.

Hermana Saint Hilaire with a young mother

We drove to the Centro Maternal Infantil San Lorenzo de Los Minas and parked in the parking lot, which was no more than a piece of grass mixed with dirt and rocks. We pulled the various suit cases the Snows had brought with them from the trunk of the car. Sister Snow’s mother had made about 170 of these kits. The Snows had been out to the Central Maternal before with the Saint-Hilaire, another missionary couple from the DR who are serving in the temple. Sister Saint Hilaire accompanies us this a.m.

               We began to trundle to the door to enter the hospital. Many eyes were on the missionaries in white shirts and ties and the sisters wearing skirts on a hot, humid day. Waiting for us was Danilo, one of the hospital workers. He had his cart and quickly loaded the two suitcases in the car and off we went. The mothers’ rooms were stark: three beds with a plastic-top mattress with no sheets unless you brought your own. María, the young woman who was taking us around, walked into the rooms to check on who was in the rooms and determined whether the baby was a boy or girl. Then she beckoned us in. As we walked in, we usually saw three mothers, lying on their beds, an IV in their arm, and their little tiny baby lying on a blanket on the bed next to her. Some of the babies had been born the night before; the others the day before.

               

Young mothers

We met four little mothers in the hallway who were ready to go home. It was hard to believe because their babies were so small. One of the young women had an especially small baby. When I asked her how much her baby weighed, she told me a little over four pounds. A little over four pounds! I suspect it should have been in an incubator. Whether there was one of those in the hospital, I do not know. The little mother with the small baby had it tucked inside of her shirt so she and the baby could share the warmth.

One mother had lost her baby. Fortunately, the Snows had brought along a hygiene kit we could give her so she didn’t feel left out. Oh, what sadness she wore on her face; and oh, what sadness we felt, knowing her baby was gone while others lived. When the Snows had visited this hospital before, they encountered more than one mother who had lost their babies. The mortality rate is high.

One of the mothers didn’t speak Spanish or English. She was a Haitian who had given birth the night before. We tried to communicate with her the best we could. We gave her a newborn kit and then waved. She waved back, a huge grin on her face. The other mothers were so appreciative. A couple of the mothers had their own mothers with them.

Sweet Angel

Sweet Angel 2

I reached out and gently touched one of the babies, placed my big index finger inside of her tiny little hand. For a moment, I thought she squeezed it. She won my heart immediately. So soft. So cherubic. So tiny. So incredibly beautiful. So serene. So, so innocent.

Sweet Angel 3

The Johnsons come to visit

"The Johnsons Come to Visit" 

By Elder Darrel L. Hammon

One of the great things about being senior missionaries is that your children can come visit and you can go to the beach with them. And that's exactly what we did when Anna Rose, Christiaan, and Emiline came to visit in January. We had a great time and visited a few spots along the way. 

Dedication Site--Elder Ballard in 1978

Elder Ballard's Dedication Memorial--In 1978, Elder M. Russell Ballard came to the Dominican Republic and dedicated it for the preaching of the gospel. Since then, many Dominicans have joined the church. Currently, there are 18 stakes, several districts and a beautiful temple in the Dominican Republic. The dedication site is in a park along the street called Mirador, a beautiful place that overlooks Santo Domingo.

Emline by a really old cannon

El Conde--El Conde is in the Colonial Zone, a very historic site. It is where Santo Domingo originated in the early 1500s. Santo Domingo is the oldest city in the Americas. The Colonial Zone is an incredible array of historic buildings, including a home built for Diego Colon. Because we happened to go on a day classified as a holiday, many of the shops were closed; so, the Johnsons didn’t experience “El Conde” in all of its majesty. Thankfully, the traffic wasn’t as bad that day.

 

Tres Ojos--Tres Ojos is an underground series of little lakes that the Taino Indians, natives to the DR, participated in religious ceremonies. It is just beautiful inside with lots of rocks, hanging vines, and little lakes, which are also called cenotes. Tres Ojos is also famous because some parts of the Tarzan movies were filmed here.

Emiline at the beach in Juan Dolio

 Juan Dolio Beach--We spend two nights and three days at the Barceló, which is a wonderful hotel in Juan Dolio along one of the beautiful beaches in the Dominican Republic. We ate lots of good food, played on the beach, went snorkeling, swam in the pool, and just relaxed with our family. We ate mostly in the buffet restaurant, but we did eat in one of the restaurants onsite. Christiaan ordered fish and received quite a surprise.

 The Santo Domingo Temple--Anna Rose and Christiaan along with Hermana Hammon were able to attend a session. Ironically, they and two other couples were English-speakers so the session was done in English. But they had a wonderful experience in one of the more beautiful temples in the world. Elder Hammon (a.k.a. "Papa Hammon") stayed and played with Emiline, truly a enjoyable task.

Consuelo Branch

 

Consuelo Branch—Anna Rose’s favorite place we went while they were here was the Consuelo Branch, a little branch that we sometimes attend. Anna Rose played the piano/keyboard during Sacrament meeting. The children were fascinated with her playing. During Sunday School and Primary, all of the children were gathered around her while she taught them some of the rudiments of playing. Presidente Montero, the Branch President, thanked her then and later thanked us profusely for Anna Rose and her talent. They all wanted her to come back and be a part of the Branch. The sisters in Relief Society were fascinated with Emiline’s blonde hair. One of the sisters just stroked it the entire time during Relief Society. Her blonde, wispy hair is such a contrast to the thick, wiry black hair of most of the people here.

Emiline and her new friend at the Almacen

Bishops' Storehouse--Because we lived above the Bishops' Storehouse (a.k.a. "Almacén"), they were able to take a tour of the Almacén. While Anna Rose, Christiaan, and Hermana Hammon were in the temple, Elder Hammon and Emiline visited the Almacén where Emiline made a new little friend. Unfortunately, we had to leave, and the little girl began to cry. When Emiline and I were driving back to the temple, Emiline said, "Papa, we have to go find her." I tried to tell her I didn't know where she was, but Emiline wanted to go find this little girl. I wish we could have.

Overall, we had a wonderful time with them. It was so good to see them. It was especially fun to see Emiline and note how grown up she is becoming. We were amazed how huge her vocabulary and her speaking ability have become. We see and talk to her each week via Skype, but it is still amazing to have the “live Emiline” in front of us. We shared lots of hugs and kisses. She is definitely the sweetest.

"Kits de Cocina: Missionary Service Project in the Dominican Republic"

 "Kits de Cocina: Missionary Service Project in the Dominican Republic"

Elder Darrel L. Hammon

Here in the Dominican Republic we have a Centro de Capacitacion Misional (CCM), which is the Missionary Training Center (MTC) in the Caribbean Area. Missionaries who will be serving in the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Mexico, or perhaps another Spanish-speaking county may spend some of their time here. 

As in all MTCs or CCMs, missionaries need service projects. Here in the Bishops' Storehouse, we have several projects the missionaries can do--everything from dry packing food to stocking shelves to cleaning. One of the projects we needed done was "Kits de Cocina" or Kitchen Kits for emergency purposes. Here are the items in a "Kit de Cocina":

English                            Spanish

   big aluminum pot          Calderos de aluminio    (26 cms)

   bathroom tissue             rollos de papel de bano

   plastic bowl (big)           lebrillos plasticos (24 cms)

   candles                          paquetes de velas

   small lighter                  encenderdor (pequeno)

   plastic plates                 platos plasticos

   plastic glasses               vasos plasticos

   bowls                            tacitas plasticas

   stainer                           colador plastico

   ladle (no holes)              cucharon liso

   ladle (with holes)           curada con hoyos

   knife                              cuchillo #7

   silverware                      set de cubiertos

   can opener                     destapador multiuso

   metal cup (jug)              jarros de alumino #12

   

All of these items are place in a five-gallon plastic bucket and sealed. Yes, every item can be placed in a bucket. The missionaries found an organized way to place all of the items. 

The missionaries came the past two Mondays for about an hour or so. We had 250 buckets to fill. 

   1) one set to take off all of the place wrap from the cooking pot; 

   2) two sets of missionaries to verify what was in the buckets and make sure everything on the list was in the bucket; 

   3) two sets of missionaries to stack the buckets when they were finished; 

    4) a set of missionaries to put together one of the other pots we put in the bucket; and 

   5) the rest of the missionaries placing the items in a new bucket. One of the elders would place the items in the bucket, and the other elder would mark it off the list. This organization went very well. 

They completed over 200 Kits de cocina. Muchas gracias, Elderes!

Thanksgiving, November 24, 2011

Thanksgiving, November 24, 2011

Elder Darrel L. Hammon

This is our first Thanksgiving serving in the Dominican Republic, and I am so thankful for many things:

A beautiful wife who continues to look amazing.

Two gorgeous daughters, their husbands, our little sweet Emiline, and a future grandson on the way.

Beautiful weather every single day.

A mission call that allows us to serve some of God’s children on an island in the Caribbean.

The knowledge that the Book of Mormon, Another Testament of Christ, is true.

A Church that helps hundreds of thousands of people, if not millions, through its humanitarian projects throughout the world.

Good health.

Brothers and sisters

The privilege of attending the Santo Domingo Temple at least once per week.

Bon ice cream.   

Fresh fruit drinks every day, made from mango, blue berries, pineapples, bananas, and vanilla yogurt

Packages that come periodically with licorice and candy corns.

Skype that allows us to talk to our family.

Senior missionary rules that allow us to do things the young elders and sisters are not able to do.

Dominicanos who are incredibly faithful to the Church.

The Internet, email, and Facebook.

Delicious food, no matter where you eat.

The ability to read and write.

A good camera that can “click and shoot” like the best of them.

Photoshop to help with the pictures that aren’t quite up to specs.

La clase de Español that helps me keep up on my Spanish.

Air conditioning.

A gate and a guard.

Being able to speak a second language.

Scriptures, journals, missionaries.

Family Home Evening, fondly called FHE.

People who know red means stop.

Sharp senses to swerve just at the right time.

A GPS that works and Elder Snow, the GPS guru.

The Caribbean Ocean, clear blue skies, and white sandy beaches.

Samaná Penisula: An Incredible View

"Samaná Penisula: An Incredible View"

Elder Darrel L. Hammon

                The travel to the Samaná Penisula was incredible. The countryside was replete with foliage, green foliage. I wish I knew the names of all of the trees. We drove by rice fields—those just being planted, those growing, and those being harvested. The tractors that harvest it are pretty big and do not have tires, per se. Rather, they have big tracks in order to get through the mucky soil. Since rice fields are flooded in order to grow, the ground is always wet and soggy. We also passed by huge groves of coconuts. They had cut out the tops of them. The sign in the field said, “This is a field of coconuts being renovated.” Along side each topped tree was a new seedling about five or six feet tall. It was amazing to see how straight they had planted the original trees. To me, it seemed that they had stuck huge poles into the ground. Many of the topped coconut trees had vines growing up the entire trunk.

Samaná Bay

                Samaná is a typical seaside community, complete with boats, a gorgeous bay, five-star hotels, lots of touristy-like traffic with buses and such, and a host of people willing to take you in their boat or the boat they represent out to the island. During January-March, the whales come to Samaná to mate; so, there are even more people who come to watch the whales. This is something we would like to do. It would be fun.

                We drove up the road to a very nice hotel. The Glaziers and Atkinsons had stayed there, and we wanted to check it out. The name of it was the Vista Mare. We pulled up to the gate. I got out and asked the guard if we could visit with someone about the place and a possible tour. “Sí, Señor.” He quickly opened up the gate and pointed me to the Reception area. We parked, and we went in. We talked to the recepionista who walked us over to a room, which looked out over the ocean. The room was nice, too. When you walked in, you saw a dining room on the left side and a sitting room on the right. Two bedrooms anchored the suite. Also, a huge kitchen with all of the gadgetries you would ever need to cook were hidden behind cupboards and shelves. She showed us the dishwasher and a stackable washer and drier. Then, we walked out onto the balcony. Wow! It was an incredible vista. She told us we could watch the whales frolicking our in the bay during the whale season. I looked over to Joanne and said, “This is bigger than our apartment.”

                We then walked over to the pool area and the dining facilities. These were just as nice. As we walked out, she beckoned us to climb into the van, and she took us down to one of the beaches—well, almost down to the beach. She took us to a parking place, where we then walked down to the beach. The stairs were a bit steep, but we clung to the walkway and went down. The beach was tuck beneath steep walls. On the far side, an arroyito (little stream) dribbled into the ocean between crashing washes. The waves were a bit fierce, we thought, although the young woman said they were today, but usually, though, it was a big more calm.

                We climbed back up the stairs and motored back to the Reception area. We went in and picked up some brochures and visited a bit more. They charge just one rate for the room. You could have as many as you wanted stay there. Then we were off to the end of the road beach.

                We drove for about 20 minutes or so and ended up at the end of the road. Literally. The road ended at the beach. We parked. While Elder Snow talked to the one of the gentleman there at the beach, Sister Snow, Joanne, and I walked down to the beach. Just incredible! The waves crashed in the distance on the rocks while close to the beach, they crashed into much smaller waves and crawled up the beach. Soon, Sister Snow and Joanne had their shoes off and allowed the water to creep around their feet. I took a few pictures and just stared out into the massive ocean.

To my right, several young men heaved and pushed a boat out into the water. Several people from a tour van waded out into the water and climbed in. I don’t know where they were going because we learned from Elder Snow that the waves were too high for the boat to go to the la Playa Rincón, which is a playa about 3,000 feet long. We didn’t have time to do this although it would be something to do, for sure.

Then, it was time to head back to Samaná. We stopped at the place where we had gone to the restroom earlier in the day. The place was called: “La Mata Rosado.” It was very Dominican, I thought. But then Elder Snow and I ordered el plato del día. He asked me what I wanted with it. I told him arroz and what about habichuelas (beans). He just looked at me. I told him one of the Dominicans told me that if you have arroz (rice), you must have habichuelas with it. He said, “We are French. If you want to have habichuelas, you need to go next door to the Dominican place.” Lift my finger to my nose and push up. The food was very good. I think I could go back to this French-Dominican restaurante.

On the way, we had to stop to take some pictures of the topped coconut trees. They were under renovation or so said the sign. They had planted 5-6 ft little coconut trees along side of the big sticks now de-headed of its vast foliage. I would like to ask someone what will happen with the topped trees.

We headed home, not that we wanted to. Samaná is one of those places one needs to go and spend a few days. We just went to become acquainted. We would love to go and spend a few days there, visiting the various beaches, climbing up to see the waterfall at El Limón, walking around some of the quaint streets at the end of the road on the Samaná peninsula. Truly, it is one of those places one must just take time to enjoy.