What’s your goal in Life?

I’ve told some of my friends that this is the only year I’ve felt like my Lenten sacrifices were worth it. My work speaks for itself. It’s funny to call it a sacrifice because I love it so much. I think Mother Theresa once said that for true love to be true, there must be sacrifice… just like Jesus did for us in the Cross: the best love story ever told.

Living amongst the poor in Banica is both a blessing and a challenge. It is a blessing because you can understand poverty, as you are experiencing it yourself. You don’t have clean running water, a steady power source, a toilet, spare money to spend. You eat the same food every day (yep, rice and beans) and drink water because soda is too expensive. You can relate to the locals when they complain about paying too much for electricity and certainly not getting enough of it. You understand when they freak out about not getting water for 5 days. You share their joy when it rains for 48 hours because it’s good for farming. You share their pains when food and other material stuff is too expensive to get.

This year I didn’t give up as many things for Lent as I did last year; yet, I felt like I was sacrificing so much more. I miss my home, my family, my friends. I miss the unrepeatable deliciousness of my Peruvian food. I miss the comforts of a warm shower. I found myself offering everything up during Lent.. Oh, and it made it so much better! I LOVED spending time with Jesus in prayer…sometimes just complaining about my day to day. All of a sudden the discomforts didn’t seem so bad. Jesus reminded me of the real reason I am here: not to be comfortable, but to be uncomfortable enough to get up and do something for His glory, for Eternity.

My sister came to visit this year. She spent Holy Week in Banica. Everyone said we looked like twins. It was funny: This little girl, Marisol, came into the volunteer house and started asking Valeria all these questions about Easter Sunday thinking she was me. When she looked at her face, and then realized I was in the room as well, she let out this high pitched sound. We laughed so hard! Even though Valeria only spent a few days here, she loved it. The warm affection from people, daily Mass and prayer, the ribbon-dancing girls, all the events for Holy Thursday and Good Friday (not including the whip fighting, of course). When we left to the capital, I saw her crying on the review mirror. It’s hard not to love this place.



During Easter weekend, my dad and grandmother traveled from Peru to spend 5 days with me and my sister. We went to a nice resort in Punta Cana, about 4 hrs from Sto. Domingo’s airport. My dad said he wanted to show me the “vanities of life”.

On Easter Sunday, my sister, grandma and I went to Mass. To my disappointment, Mass was celebrated at a conference room. There was a cantor, and one lector. The attendees were 99% foreign-born, American or European. The Mass was celebrated in Spanish, so no one knew the responses. I was the only one singing along with the cantor. It just made me sad. I wished I was in Banica, celebrating Easter with my people, my students, my volunteer-family. I came out of Mass almost in tears. I couldn’t believe this multi-million resort did not build a decent chapel for its clients. I couldn’t believe they didn’t bring a bilingual priest knowing most of the Mass attendees do not speak Spanish. I was frustrated and disappointed at the lack of joy people had toward the fact that Christ had resurrected.

Serving in Banica for the past 8 months has changed the way I see a lot of things. Growing up in a Peru, a Third-World country, and then moving to the States taught me to be ambitious and to want a better lifestyle. People in the States are mostly self-centered and money-driven. I thought that was the norm. Yet, going back and living in a third-world country, amongst the poor, has showed that there’s more to life than just material riches we call “success”.

Even though the Baniqueros don’t have the financial means to build a cement house, or a bathroom, they have the time to talk to you, to ask you how you are, to care about your problems. They have the faith of a mustard seed, the kind of faith that moves mountains. Even though they can’t read or write, they compose love poems and tell stories that make you laugh til you hurt. They enjoy every bite of rice and beans and tell you to eat more or you’ll get sick.

Thinking back, all the sacrifices I’ve faced were worth it. I’ve learned comfort is only temporary, because humans have a tendency to get used to things (even if they’re not pretty). Even though when I go home I will strive to have a good life, I’m not focused on money, but rather quality-time. Value your friendships, the wisdom of an old person, the trust and faith of a child.

Last year, when Craig’s dad asked me what my goals were after graduation, I told him I wanted to be happy. I think I have accomplished it.




P.S. More on Spiritual vs. Material Riches, come to Theology on Tap this Monday, April 18th at 7pm. Fr. O'Hare and Samantha Kepler will be talking about our mission in Banica.

"How Far is Heaven?"

Once again, I apologize for not posting new blogs very often. I try to write whenever something meaningful has happened and I couldn’t quite remember if we had experienced anything of such nature since my last post… until today.
First: we have experienced over 5 funerals within the past month. I remember back in September, when I was sad I couldn't attend a funeral that Isaac told me not to worry because he would experience many more. Oh, he wasn't wrong.

The first one was the grandfather of two of the girls involved in our parish activities: Marlenis (Teresitas) and Rudylania (Magdalena's Bible Study). The second one was the grandfather/uncle of two Bible Study girls, Yoryina and Migueli. The third one was the brother of one of our parish leaders, Mora from Sabana Cruz. The fifth one was my neighbor and former pharmacy director, Berihuete. The sixth one and most recent one was the stepfather of my good friend and parish catechist, Kuky.

These events led me to think of the meaning of life, death and heaven. I’m sure the kids were wondering the same. Thus, for our last youth group meeting in Sabana Cruz, we had the teenagers think about death as a result of our fallen nature. We talked about Adam and Eve, their separation from God after they disobeyed him, and how their decision affects us today. Of course we brought Jesus into the picture! We told the kids that God didn’t stay angry at humanity; rather, He loved us SO much He sent us His only son to redeem us from our sins. Not only did Jesus forgive our sins, but He also opened the gates of heaven for us. So, now we are able to go to Heaven!

But what is Heaven? Their responses were what you would expect: a place where there is a lot of love, and peace; a place where you can rest, and meet those who have gone before you. If heaven is the ideal place to be, then what are we doing to be worthy of entering such a place? We asked them to think about all those things that are preventing them from going to heaven and to write them down in small pieces of paper. After a few minutes, I played a song called Te Extrañaré by Tercer Cielo which is a dialogue-like song between a guy who tells the girl that he misses her, and she tells him not to worry, that she is in a better place where she can finally rest (it’s a beautiful song, I recommend it!). We then made a fire where we burned the pieces of paper with those things preventing us from going to heaven. It was one of my favorite youth group meetings!

Second: It was DR’s Independence Day on February 27th. Mairin and I have been working on a Ribbon Dancing Club since late January (with no previous experience!). I had the privilege to pick our first song which is called El Amor by Tito el Bambino.



The girls worked so hard for about a month, which paid off during their performance on February 26th. Everyone loved it! Mairin and I were so proud of our girls! Here are a few pictures and a short video of their performance :)










Finally: We have hosted three college groups so far: Marymount, Christendom, and Coast Guard. Marymount and Coast Guard spent their week up in the mountains with Fr. Murphy’s parish. Between both groups, they were able to build and paint chapels. Christendom, on the other hand, made latrines for one of our communities called Mamoncito. They did an amazing job, and now 7 families get to use a bathroom! It’s really neat seeing college students serve during their Spring Breaks. I now it first-hand it is a rewarding experience.

Please pray for those girls who have experienced the loss of a loved one, especially Marlenis, Rudilania, Yoryina, Migueli, and Kuky.

Also, pray for our future team of volunteers. We currently have two people who have expressed interest in serving within the next year, but they need our prayers and support!

Banica's Newest Volunteer Coordinator... Me!

A New Semester: Primavera en Bánica

We arrived to Bánica on January 4th 2010 after a two-week vacation in our beloved U.S. Like Fr. O’Hare would say “we didn’t arrive alone”, we came with two new volunteers: Laura Folse and Nicky Bell. Although Samantha and Brendan returned to the States this past December to continue with their studies and professional careers, our team of volunteers remains the same number-wise. Please continue to pray for Isaac, Mairin, John, and now Laura and Nicky.



This semester, we will be teaching in two public schools: Higuerito and Los Memisos. Fr. O’Hare wanted all volunteers to teach in the same schools, so Isaac and Laura will be teaching 2nd grade, Mairin and Nicky will be 3rd Grade and John and I will be teaching 4th grade in Higuerito. We are blessed to have new students who care about their catechesis and are interested in knowing about God (I think they also see us as really cool teachers!)



Los Memisos is a different story. Ever since we sent our catechesis to that school, we’ve encountered all sorts of problems. Their class schedule is interrupted almost every week. Their teachers are not responsible enough to have classes on a daily basis. The students’ attention span is short to non-existent. Finally, we can’t keep track of their Mass attendance because they only have Mass once a month. I always get butterflies in my stomach when we’re on our way to that school. I don’t think it’s because I’m nervous… I’m just expecting the worse.

After talking with Father about this last school, we came to the conclusion that we can’t give up on them. Instead, we’re “joining efforts” with a young catechist named Kuky (pronounced cookie) who lived in the campo for a short while and does a really good job motivating the kids. She just recently began to come to that school and the results—although not excellent—were better than I expected. She had the kids talking, participating and learning their catechism against all odds! Now, her teaching technique is different from mine: she raises her voice to the point of yelling and she is not afraid to tell it like it is, whereas I only raise my voice until they can hear me, and I try to be condescending of their slow learning process.

I’m not sure how much progress Los Memisos will make, but I do ask you to continue praying for them, especially the 6th and 7th graders.


Confirmation of Faith 2010: Sabana Cruz and Hato Viejo

After four long months of preparation, my catechesis students from Sabana Cruz and Hato Viejo received their Holy Sacraments of Confirmation and First Communion. The ceremony was held on Wednesday, January 13th in their respective campos. We counted with the presence of Bishop Jose Grullón, who made his yearly pastoral visit to our parish in Bánica and sister parish in Pedro Santana.



We started out early in the morning and headed to Hato Viejo. Isaac and I could not contain our excitement to see our students complete their catechesis preparation by receiving their sacraments. During my visit to U.S, I got them prayer cards with their respective saints including Joan of Arc, Therese of Liseaux, San Martin de Porres, and St. Augustin.

When we arrived, I saw my lovely girls dressed in white. They looked like little angels. I immediately wondered how much their families had to sacrifice to get them their dresses, shoes and hair-dos. The boys were all dressed alike with a white shirt and black pants. Father O’Hare says that such an outfit is typical for “rezos”—a time when the town gets together to pray for a special cause such as funerals, sick people, etc.






The ceremony lasted three hours! It was a combination of sacraments and annual meeting with the bishop. Furthermore, Bishop Grullón is known for his long, charismatic homilies! Nevertheless, I enjoyed seeing my students receive the gift of the Holy Spirit and sponsoring almost half of them!


Pastoral Juvenil (Youth Ministry)


This past weekend, we were invited to attend a diocesan Youth Ministry event at the nearest city called Las Matas. Our Pastoral Juvenil from Banica and Sabana Cruz, along with the most faithful church attendees from Higuerito hopped in our newly repaired school bus for what seemed to be a celebration of St. Juan Bosco’s feast day. Simultaneously, six high-schoolers from Bánica and Sabana Cruz (carefully selected by Hecfredes—the Youth Ministry coordinator in Bánica—and myself) attended a three-day retreat in the capital of Santo Domingo.
When the seventy-plus youth, the five American volunteers and I arrived to Las Matas, we began to sense a lack of coordination. The event was scheduled to begin at 9am. Instead, we processed to an arena at 10:30am. Once we got there, they told us Mass was going to begin shortly. Unaware of the required Eucharistic Fast, most of the youth were snacking and drinking sodas before, during and after Mass. Our group stayed together, except a handful of Baniqueros. They refused to move with the rest of the group, which forced me to leave them where they were. During Mass we kept looking over at them and realized how much they lack respect and veneration towards Mass: they remained seated throughout the whole ceremony.

What was the purpose of the event? I have no idea anymore. Besides Mass, there weren’t any motivational speeches, Christian music or anything of that nature. Was it Christ-centered? Nope. Where the youth enjoying it? Nope. Are we going to attend next year? I hope not.

I was so disappointed at the whole thing (event coordination, kids’ behavior, content) that I told Father I had no hope in our youth. He seemed to agree with me and swore he wasn’t going to send our youth to diocesan events unless he receives a program and detail explanation of what the event is about.



Two days later, Father asked me to gather the 6 young people who attended the retreat in Santo Domingo in order to share their experiences. We met yesterday, and to my surprise, they all grew so much in their faith—and like my seminarian friend Thomas Gallagher would say—“they were ON FIRE for our Lord!”. They talked for about two hours about their favorite memories, ideas to improve their youth ministry, and how much they loved their retreat. They had so much to share with the group that Father decided to make this group a Youth Ministry Council. He gave them an awesome analogy to understand their role in their larger youth ministry: Before a house gets built, you need to lay the floors. Eventually, you put up the walls and the ceiling. These six young people will be the floors to our “Casa de la Juventud” (Youth House). Our job is to continue to feed the fire in their hearts and help them grow in their faith. I told them that those who have great faith can accomplish great things. But most importantly, it will be contagious to those around them.
Just when I started losing my faith in the Bánica youth, my Lord surprised me with these 6 young people. Father and I commented on how happy and grateful we are that we still have faithful youth that not only love our Lord with all their hearts, but they are also willing to improve their communities—especially their young peers.



Today I ask you to keep your prayers in the youth around the world, especially those from Bánica. Lord, despite all temptations, keep your young people close to your heart so that they may truly find happiness in you. St. Juan Bosco… pray for us!

“Solo me basta que sean jóvenes para amarlos” –St. Juan Bosco