Education

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  • We have built 4 elementary schools (Centro San Pablo, Centro Sagrada Familia, Nuestra Senora de Altagracia, and Centro San Francisco de Asis) and one middle school (San Maximilian Kolbe Middle School) in the villages of Las Lomas.
  • 420 students receive top notch education in our schools
  • We offer a full curriculum including: Math, Science, Social Studies, Spanish, Art, Music, Physical Education, Computers, French and English
  • We have trained and currently employ 36 teachers
  • We sponsor 41 students for high school programs in the Dominican Republic and host 11 students at our own high schools: Bishop Moore, Fr. Lopez, Trinity Catholic, Melbourne Central Catholic, and Santa Fe.
  • These schools are ranked #66 out of 5,515 in the nation

This is all possible because of the generous donations of supplies, time and money from people across the diocese. Thanks to our parishes and schools, we are able to provide uniforms, shoes, backpacks, athletic equipment, musical instruments, school supplies, books for the new library and MUCH MORE.

The Mission Office thanks you for your generosity!

Construction

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Building for Success

  • In 2014, we built a high school residence in the town of Azua.  This facility will house 72 high school students and will offer vocational training for students with special needs. Presently, 42 students reside there, and continues to grow.
  • Dreams come true for our brothers and sisters in San Juan de la Maguana because of the hope which comes through the construction missions. Each year we send several construction teams to our sister diocese to build churches, schools, homes, mission houses and school cafeterias with the help of local workers.
  • This year, we plan to send several Construction Mission Teams to Las Lomas to build school addition, community aqueduct, errosion control, and security measures.
  • Each time a home is built for a family, the family participates in the building of the home and is taught how to maintain the home in the future.
  • Our teams have added solar panels to schools and homes which opens so many new possibilities to students and families.
  • For a schedule of upcoming construction missions, please email esapp@orlandodiocese.org or call 407-246-4894.

Medical

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Caring for the sick

  • Each year, our Medical and Surgical missions offer a variety of services to the sick in our Sister Diocese
  • We offer two weeks of surgical missions and need various doctors, medical professionals and interpreters to help make this happen
  • In the Spring, we invite doctors and nurses on a trip up the mountain to offer school physicals to over 425 children in our schools. For many of these children, this will be the only medical attention they receive.
  • We are always in need of dentists to travel with us for dental missions. Contact Us if you are interested in joining us for a week or two!

Participants in Mission trips to the Dominican Republic, deepen their sense of commitment to God’s people, both at home and abroad, and are able to respond to the call to be prophetic followers of Christ.

Medical, surgical, dental and ophthalmologic trips are scheduled annually by the Mission Office with the purpose of providing supplementary care to the Diocese of San Juan de la Maguana and promoting an ongoing medical relationship between health care personnel of both dioceses for mutual support and dialogue.

Needed for surgical missions:

Surgical missions usually cost around $85,000. Financial donations have helped us to significantly reduce this cost in the past.  Without these donations, it would not be possible to have the mission.

For more information on any medical missions, please contact the Director of the Mission Office, missionoffice@orlandodiocese.org. 

Nourishment & Water Filtration

Peanut Butter

  • Each year we ask our parishes to help collect peanut butter for our students in our schools.
  • Why peanut butter? It’s packed full of nutrients which help malnourished children to regain health. It’s an inexpensive way for us to offer healthy food to the children.
  • We provide students in our 5 schools in the mountains with two meals and two snacks a day. For many children, this will be the only food they eat.  Beacause of these meals, the parents allow the children to attend school instead of working in in the field.

Promotores de Salud

This project seeks to train men and women to provide first aid service in their communities. Those who are working on the project participate in monthly training and their responsibilities include serving the patients and keeping written records of each case.

Water

History: Since the first medical team traveled to our Sister Diocese in November of 1992, water-related illnesses have presented the most serious public health problem. Many of the people were malnourished not only because they lacked the resources for food, but additionally, parasites found in their water supply robbed them of the few nutrients they did eat.

Facts: According to a study conducted in 1994 by the Pan American Health Organization, more than 300,000 cases of diarrhea are reported each year in the Dominican Republic, and it is the leading cause of death for children from 1 to 4 years old. In a study released in 1995 study by the World Health Organization, a child younger than 5 years old dies every eight seconds from a diarrhea-related illness.

Research: In an effort to focus on the root cause, a study was conducted to investigate the public water supply in areas of our Sister Diocese.

The study found that there was no safe public source or natural source for water in the area.

Finding a solution: The best solution is a feasible, cost-effective water filtration system that each family could buy, maintain, and use to filter the water for cooking, cleaning and most importantly drinking. Water-borne related illnesses have been reduced by up to 85% in certain areas.

The current filters cost $35 and are provided to families for $10 while donors here in the US sponsor the remaining $25. There is a recurring cost of $4.50 to replace filtration materials per year. To date over 30,000 water filters have been placed in the homes of our brothers and sisters in the Dominican Republic, reducing illnesses and creating sustainable life for those who are in need.

How It Works:
  1. A family may purchase a water filtration system for the equivalent of $25 US dollars. The parts are made in the United States, the buckets in the Dominican Republic, and the filters are assembled in the Dominican Republic. These filters allow for households to have potable drinking water.
  2. The filter consists of two 5-gallon buckets that are made in the Dominican Republic. These are stacked on top of each other. Inside of each filter is a sediment filter that removes dirt and parasitic cysts. These filters need to be replaced approx. every eight months at a cost of $12 US dollars.
  3. The second filter in the lower bucket is an activated carbon filter that removes chlorine and organic contaminants. The carbon and screen are replaced approx. once a year at a cost of $1.00 US dollar.
  4. Water must be prepared ahead of time. One cc of bleach is added to every one gallon of water. This must sit for 45 minutes. The prepared water is poured into the top bucket. The water filters through the sediment and then the carbon filters.