In Pedro Corto, Dominican Republic - 2007

"My name is Rebecca Loux and I went to a community called Pedro Corto in San Juan, Dominican Republic. It was an eight week Youth to Youth project partnered with Plan International, an organization focused primarily on youth like Amigos. I had two partners: Andres from Chicago and Debbie from Austin. My female partner's spanish experience was very low and both she and my other partner were quite shy in the beginning, so I took on a leadership role in Amigos events and meetings, as well as needing to help Debbie a lot with her Spanish. However, the challenge made me so much more outgoing and brought the other two out of their shells a bit. And we picked up 'Dominicanisms' like un chin and un chon, meaning un pocito and mucho respectively, and immersed ourselves into the culture. I played baseball and soccer (soccer as much as I could), learned to love mango, chinola, guayaba, guanabana, limonsillas and all types of fruit, and learned merenge and bachata (dances). We fundraised for a library and volleyball supplies and started a community garden. We also had campamentos three times a week, and a youth group meeting. Dominican culture and music and attitude is addictive, and once I was there and in the thick of it all I was just home. I met so many people, so many characters. Now, knowing them and their stories and their laugh and their individuality, I can't imagine life without those relationships, or without my connection to la Republica Dominicana."
- Rebecca Loux, 2007 volunteer