9:07 a.m., Sept. 17, 2010----Karen Rhea, a senior in the Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics at the University of Delaware, spent two months in the Dominican Republic this summer working at orphanages near the towns of Monte Cristi and Jaibon.

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Classified as an intern by the length of her visit, Rhea worked with 25 other interns through a program called Orphanage Outreach.

Traveling nearly 2,000 miles, Rhea arrived at her Dominican home for the first month of her trip in a town 30 minutes from Monte Cristi. While in this town, Rhea and her fellow interns worked for orphanages by running camps that taught English, Bible, recreation, and arts and crafts. Although Rhea was there to help people in the Dominican, she noticed that they helped her as well through their joyous attitudes.

“Every morning, the children and adults met us with song as soon as our bus pulled up. The sound of their voices made me feel welcomed and loved, despite the fact that I was there to serve them,” said Rhea about her experience.

Rhea's second month was spent working at orphanages near Jaibon. One event she remembers from that month was a day trip to the beach that got cancelled. The children of the orphanage are only able to visit the beach once a year, making the trip's cancellation a major disappointment. Rhea and the other interns “banded together to plan the best day possible for the boys,” showing how the hopeful and positive attitudes of the Dominican people had influenced them.

Rhea spent her last week in Jaibon at a Haitian “batey,” which is “a village occupied by farmers.” She brought paper and crayons for the children there and while they were drawing, a little boy motioned for Rhea to hold him. She complied and did not set him down for over an hour.

“My arms hurt like crazy, but I couldn't [let go],” she recalls.

In the same way that Rhea refused to let go of the little boy, she found that the Dominican people refuse to let go of their dream for a better future, which demonstrates their feelings of hope that are reflected in their daily lives.

Rhea is an Honors Program student who is majoring in hotel, restaurant and institutional management.

Article by Kristin Zinsmeister
Photos courtesy of Karen Rhea