Victor Manuel!

Victor is just one tough cookie. Never causing trouble, but always showing off his muscles – which he does kind of have for such a young boy. He (and his sister Tania) are actually quite strong. He loves roughhousing and play-wrestling with his friends, but you can tell that he’s a softy on the inside ready with hugs whenever a class is over. He loves to ride his bike around and attends school regularly.

Dauri!

Dauri has a unique face with his gigantic smile but sad eyes. He’s an older brother to Tania and Victor and you can tell he watches out for them. A bit on the quiet side, but oh so friendly when you talk to him.

July - Victor Manuel!

Wow! What an amazing summer we've had! We can't believe how quickly the whole thing is shaping up! The kids are certainly enjoying their break from school, and we're loving spending so much time in the club:) We've moved to being there 5 days a week, we've added new classes, new teachers, volunteers from all over, and even more and more extra activities for an added bonus:) The kids are having a great time - we love summer!

Here's Victor just hanging out at the club one day - happy summering to you and yours!

July - Dauri!

Hola!

Wow! What an eventful summer it has been! It's July 15th and we cannot believe how fast time is flying by! We've had such a great summer spending 5 days plus in the club, hanging out with the kids, introducing more and more new classes for the kids, hosting volunteers from all over and even adding in special events for the kids (like pool time :) ) at the conclusion of successful weeks at the club. It's been wonderful!

We are so blessed to have the great kids that we do and we can't wait to see what the last few days of summer hold!

Here is a picture of Dauri just hanging out at the club one day with our volunteer coordinator, Melissa. We love summer!

Happy summering to you and yours! :)

October Photos

Tania working hard in the Club


Victor Manuel



Tania


Victor Manuel, on the left and Dauri (center)

Victor Manuel and Tania

Dauri's cousins, Tania and Victor Manuel, are now a part of the Boys and Girls Club. Victor Manuel is 10 years old and in grade 3 at Chocolatera School. His birthday is April 20th, 1999. His sister Tania is 9 years old and in grade 2 at Gregorio Luperon School. Her birthday is May 16, 2002. Like Dauri, they live in the house with her grandmother and grandfather. There are three other "kids" living in the house; aged 25, 27, and 29. None of them are working regularly. In this picture, Tania is working on a puppet project!

Their Grandmother, Aurelia

Dauri and Tania live with his grandmother, Aurelia. She is a very tough lady, and a unique person; anyone who meets her gets that impression immediately. This week she lost her balance and both her legs touched the muffler of the motorconcho. Now she needs money for medicine, and there is a risk of infection. She walked all the way to the club to tell Cathy that she wouldn't be able to help clean the club with the other mothers. This happens all the time, and shows just one of the many hardships for the people of Puerto Plata. If you don't like photos of cuts/blood, underneath the photo of Aurelia is a photo of her legs, so scroll down past that!

Dauri in September

More About Him...

The following was written by Crystal Fox, a woman who volunteered with DOVE for 2 weeks in July: I love Dauri! He was one of the first boys I met. Liz and I ran into him in Central Park and ended up taking him and seven other shoeshine boys for dinner.Dauri stayed with us for most of the day and I fell in love with him instantly:) He is such a sweetheart and wants to learn so badly. As we drove around the city we went over and over english words like left, right, straight etc...When I saw him the next day he runs up and hugs me and starts going over the words again. One day in english class Jenny and Jencen were doing colors. I was sitting by Dauri and he asked me how to say the one on his card.He wanted to get it right when they got to him and was so proud!I spent alot of time with Dauri and got to know him pretty well...I hate to pick favorites but if I was asked who really stood out to me, Dauri would be at the top of the list.

His Smile

Watch this video to see Dauri's adorable smile at the end. This is why everyone falls in love with him the minute they meet him! Liz is trying to work with him on not shoe shining on the Malecon. Many of the boys in the poor area have shoe shine kits. They go to the Malecon, a popular area along the water, and shine shoes for 10 pesos each. This is a way for kids to support their families, however, Dauri uses a lot of the money to go to a place downtown that charges kids to play video games. He ends up missing school and getting in trouble with the police while on the streets working, so we encourage the kids, if at all possible, not to shoe shine. The police prey on the young boys and will throw them in jail, sometimes for no reason other than the fact that they are shoe shining on the Malecon where the tourists can see, and the police don't want to be projecting that image of child labour to the tourists. It is also these shoe shine boys who are often targetted by pimps and child pedophiles. Dauri's grandmother had no idea that this was happening to young boys, so we educated her on the dangers of the boys going out on the streets along, working, and we hope that she will also encourage Dauri to stop.

Summer Photos

Dauri out shoe shining with his friends


Learning hemp jewelry making in class, with a friend, Almondo.


With a big group of boys after class.


With a friend, Seliel


Swimming with friends Luis Manuel and Richard.


Swimming, with friends Jose and Alberto.


Out for lunch with Liz and some friends.

Bench Building

A team from Minnesota came, and Dauri was able to take part in working with them. He got a lesson in wood working and helped to make benches for the new club building! This is a great opportunity because learning a trade can open up many opportunities for these kids.






*July 2009

Dauri's House