TSA Students Had Eyes Opened During Dominican Republic Trip

TSA Students Had Eyes Opened During Dominican Republic Trip

During their April vacation, nine seniors and two faculty from The Sharon Academy, joined by a community member and baker from King Arthur Flour, traveled to the Dominican Republic for 10 days, as a part of a community service and cultural immersion experience.

Every other year, students from the school travel to Cotuí, a city about two hours away from the capitol Santo Domingo, and stay with members of the Lions Club for the duration of the trip. This year was particularly special, in that they had the opportunity to stay with families that had children attending the Piaget school.

Both American and Dominican students were excited to learn about teen culture in each others’ countries. The Dominicans loved learning American slang and phrases to use with their friends, while the TSA students learned how to salsa to their hearts’ content.

Over the course of their 10 days in the Dominican Republic, TSA students became increasingly humbled and aware of their own relative wealth, compared to that of many of their host families.

Chloe Landon, a senior from Sharon, lived in a house that had no running water and with a family who did not speak a word of English, while other students stayed with families who were fluent in English. When asked about her trip, she said, “It was an incredible experience that I wouldn’t trade for anything in the world, not even for a shower,” during those 10 days.

The community service aspect of the trip was an eye opener to living conditions as well. Most of the workdays were spent in a little town called Limón, where the students learned how to make cement by hand and created a foundation for a local medical clinic spearheaded by a Peace Corps worker.

Miriah Atwood from Stockbridge commented, “The building process was so different—making cement by hand was so tiring.” When the sun was too hot or there weren’t enough shovels to go around, students often spent time with the town children, playing around the pineapple trees and practicing their Spanish.

On their last night in Cotuí, the Americans and their host families gathered for a final dinner and dance. The American participants were also given certificates honoring their service while in the Dominican Republic.

Co-trip leader Mary Newman summarized the trip by saying “Once again, I was reminded of TSA students’ remarkable ability to integrate into, communicate with, and embrace the world around them.”