CURRENT AND UPCOMING

PROJECTS FOR DOMINICAN

STARFISH FOUNDATION

OUR MAJOR PROJECT FOR 2015We have been chosen by a foundation in Orem Utah ILP—International Language Program to help expand into the Dominican Republic. This is a 20 year old company that goes into countries around the world to teach English.

It will require lots of work and commitment on our part to help make this happen but we feel it is so important. We have been in conversation with Casey Glade, the director of the program. The program that they offer is an English immersion program that lasts for 8 years.

We will be starting a sponsorship program where people in Canada and the US people will be able to sponsor a student in the Dominican Republic to learn English. We initially hope to find sponsors for 120 children at $20/ month.

We are thrilled at the response we had and the many, many donations that were made to help make possible for Patricia to get a new leg. A wire transfer was sent to Santo Dominigo with the money for this. The materials have been ordered from Germany and soon Patricia will be walking again.

This has also led to new possibilities of a group coming from Canada to do prosthetic limbs. Our foundation in the Dominican have been busy doing the background work for this.

In December 2014 we raised funds to help 17 year old Patricia get a new leg. She lost her leg as a result of a motorbike accident.

A selection of possible recipients for prostethics

Through the miracles of technology, Louise met Kari Lock online and visited with her. She and her husband Lorne have moved to the Dominican Republic to do humanitarian work in Jarabacoawhich is about 2 ½ hours from Puerto Plata.

Kari is a nurse practitioner and Lorne is a dental technician. One of the highlights of our November 2014 trip was meeting this wonderful couple.

They are interested in partnering with our foundation, helping us with the medical dental trips (which they will be doing in February, June and July) and adopting our model of building homes. As we partner with wonderful people who have common goals, our reach will multiply.

A presentation was set up with the Pre-Med Students in Lethbridge by Brian Bohn of Stirling early in October. We are happy to be hosting 7 university students from Lethbridge, 1 from Calgary and 3 from Edmonton reading week in February. They will be helping with medical and dental screenings, helping feed the children at a school and other projects on their visit.

Build a Playground in Javillar

Paula Lythgoe from Petawawa Ontario found us online when she was headed to Puerto Plata for Christmas 2014. She wanted to give back to the community so we were able to connect her with our director Amarilis Urena. She funded and helped provide a pasta dinner for 500 children.

Upon seeing the needs in the community Paula asked if she could work with the foundation to build a playground for the children in the community where we work the most. Thank you Paula. That will be such a blessing to the children there. Here is her first facebook post about the project.

OUR DOMINICAN HOME-MAKE-OVER PROJECTS• The homes we build in the Dominican Republic cost approximately $7000 USD

to build. If people don’t own their land to cost is approximately $10000-$12000 USD. Prices on construction materials are going up steadily.

• Each of the following homes are in the fund-raising process. They have had someone choose to sponsor them but help is needed to make this happen.

• We are looking for assistance in building these homes. Each of the ones that have been chosen by a sponsor, have a fund-raising link for others to participate.

KELVIN ALMONTE AND FAMILY

MESSAGE FROM BOB ANDLISA HUNTER

• “We first met the Almonte family in 2012 when we vacationed to Puerto Plata. We met up with them again in February 2014 in Puerto Plata while we were on a humanitarian vacation though The Dominican Starfish Foundation. On this last vacation we fund-raised with a group of friends in Edmonton to help another family build a home. It was a very worthwhile and rewarding project.

We would now like to help the Almonte family improve their living conditions. They currently do not own land, so building a home would be expensive. In this family's case we have opted to purchase a completed home if one can be found. ”

• Bob and Lisa have been hosting bottle drives and other fund-raising efforts for this cause. You can find them on facebookunder Almonte Family Home.

WHY THEY WERE CHOSEN.

• Kelvin has a job driving a motor-bike taxi.

• They have two children.

• Many times they have no money to feed their family.

• They rent their home and often don’t have money to pay the rent.

• They spent lots of time serving others in the community.

• When we visited their home we took some food. There was no other food in sight anywhere.

A new Home for Vitico and family

Why were they chosen

• We are always looking for people who have great need and also those who give exceptional service to those around them.

• Vitico fits both of these qualifications. He and his wife have 5 children. Their home was literally falling down around them.

• Vitico is the master carpenter for our home-building projects in the Dominican. He is always going beyond what is expected and has given hundreds of hours of volunteer service.

Their sponsors

• The sponsors for this family wish to remain anonymous. They are from Utah. They contacted our foundation and offered to give up their Christmas 2014 with their family of 7 children and 23 grandchildren to give someone a home in the Dominican Republic.

Their home before and at the start of construction

When Gloria Strachan, Jeannie Hare and Margaret Peacock came to the Dominican in November, they fell in love with the people. They particularly felt drawn by Anny’s story. She is a young 15 year old girl with a serious health condition. She has been living in an institution but now she must leave because of her age. These 3 generous grandmas have gone back to Edmonton area and started raising funds for Anny to have a new room built on the top of her father’s home.

As of Jan 1st 2015

A home for Kate Bateman

Why she was chosen

• Unlike all of our other recipients, Kate in Canadian from Quebec. She is 23 years old and has started a school for Haitian children in the Dominican Republic. She care for 6 homeless Haitian children in her school.

• The government has told her that she can’t live with children at the school so she needs to find another place to care for the children.

Her sponsors

• Again, Zoe and Gemma Palmer from Edmonton have followed their theme of “Children helping Children. They have chosen to help Kate and the children she cares for.

Zoe and Gemma are pictured here with Kate in from of the “school” where she is the director. In this building 120 children are crammed in every day for their schooling.

Karen Wojtowicz of Alberta and Jill and Claire Keddy of Nova Scotia are also helping in a big way to sponsor a new home for Kate. Karen hosted a fundraiser November 28th 2014 and all proceeds have be donated for the building of this home. They are pictured here the day the met.

Maria, Rebecca and Gerson

Maria, her son, Gersonand her daughter, Rebecca live in great poverty in the Dominican Republic. They have been sharing one small bed for the past 11 years.

A widowed mother of 4 in Calgary, Alberta has chosen to sponsor this family. We thank them for their sacrifice on behalf of the less fortunate.

Why they were chosen

• Luis Miguel was called to visit the home of a High School classmate

• Rebecca 23, her brother Gerson 24 (who is sick) and their mother Maria live in great poverty in the Dominican Republic. Rebecca contacted an old acquaintance from High School, Luis Miguel Gutierrez who she had heard was part of our foundation in the Dominican Republic. She begged him to come to her home.

When Luis Miguel arrived, he was shocked at the conditions they were living in. Rebecca had been crying for 1 1/2 years with tooth pain. Gerson is very sick. Maria is a single mom, deserted by her husband 14 years ago. For 11 years, Rebecca, Gerson and Maria have been sharing the same double bed.

28 years ago in 1986, Maria had a dream that someone came to help their family with a new home. The group that came, became her new family. When Luis Miguel walked into her home, the dream washed over her again. Luis Miguel wasn't even born at that time.

Having lived in the Dominican Republic his whole life, Luis Miguel was touched to the core.

This is what Luis Miguel found

We started fund-raising July 1st . This was our first project.You can donate at https://www.youcaring.com/rebecca

Pedro Amonte and AltagraciaVasquez

Pedro is a teacher in the Dominican Republic. He and his wife Altagracia serve in the community. They do many things to help others—especially the youth. He is a great proponent of education.

They will be truly blessed to have a new home.

• We encourage people to find their own “starfish” (person or family they want to help).

• Blake Williams served a mission in the Dominican Republic and was friends with the Almonte family. He and his parents returned to the Dominican a few months after his return home to Arizona and became very close.

• Eric Williams, Blake’s father asked to visit the home and donated the first $1000 for this project.

• We are looking for additional sponsors for this family.

Why they were chosen

Where they live now

The family currently lives in a small rented home. They own some property where their new home will be built.

Antonio and Colasa and family

On June 18. 2014, Antonio and Colasa received the news that the had been chosen to have a new home built for them. They are the parents of three sons. It was a joyous occasion.

Why this family was chosen by Color My World,a partner foundation from New Hampshire.

• Antonio and Colasa Alveres live in a home that floods regularly. They live very near the river. Their home is

• Besides having great need, the family was chosen in part because of the amazing service they give in the community. Whenever anyone is in need, they are there to help.

Berto, Pedro and Pedro

Why were they chosen by Lynn and Pearl Giles

• As is obvious from the pictures, this family is in desperate situation.

• In this run down shack lives 88 years old, his son, and a grandson of 17 years.

• The son has been trying to provide and has even collected cinder-blocks and rebar which will be utilized in the new building.

• They are extremely grateful to the Giles Family and friends for choosing to sponsor them.

Esperaza (Hope)

• Esperanza begged for us to come see her home. She had an air of desperation about her. While we were visiting her neighbors, (the men in the previous selection) whose home we are sponsoring, she plead for us to come.

• She is a single mother with 3 children. Her home is in deplorable condition causing the director Louise to shed tears in the taxi.

The sponsors for this family are Chris and Stephanie Clark from Oregon.

Chris and Stephanie ended up the Dominican Republic through a strange set of circumstances. On the second to last day there, through yet other interesting circumstances they were introduced to Dominican Starfish Foundation. Louise took them to see some of the projects. There they met Hope who Louise had only met two days previous. Just a few hours later over dinner with Louise they committed to sponsor this needy family. They have created a fund-raising site:http://www.youcaring.com/nonprofits/giving-hope-to-hope-/194823

Why were they chosen?

• Hope is single with 3 grandchildren living with her. She has no job and no means to feed her children.

• Their home is in horrible condition and it gets very wet every time it rains.

• Hope was desperate to show us her home and her desperation came through.

• Stephanie grew up in extreme poverty as well so this tugged at her heart-strings.

• Thank you Chris and Stephanie for the compassion you feel and show for Hope and her little family.

Where they live now

FUTURE PROJECTS

• Our foundation has chosen several homes as future projects. We are looking for sponsors for these homes. The cost for building is around $6000 US and inflation is an issue. All the prices are going up for materials.

• We hope to find sponsors for these families that are in such great need as well as so many others that we have on our long list.

Gloria Vasquez is a 70 year old lady.

She lives in very poor conditions. She is caring for a 26 year old daughter, Arelys with serious mental health problems. She is also raising a grandchild—Junior age 11

She has no family assistance and no job.

She shed many tears at the thought the someone might really help her.

Gloria

Ana lost her husband in a motorbike accident 8 years ago. She is a single mother with two children.She works as a house keeper.

Her home is on a flood plain and is open to the elements. She works hard but has no way of improving her situation on her meager income of $5 a day.

She was very humble and tearful when we told her that she may be chosen to have a new home.

Ana

Raymon, his wife and

three children live in this home in the Javillar, Dominican Republic. We love that he has a job but makes only enough to survive. They haves lived in this run down home for 17 years.

Build a Haitian School in Dominican Republic for 23 year old director, Kate Bateman and her 180 Haitian students.

BUILD A NEW SENIORS’ HOME IN PUERTO PLATA

BUILD A LARGE DISTRIBUTION CENTER/vocational school/ COMMUNITY CENTER IN JAVILLAR

Build an additional 100 homes and employ more Dominican and Haitian people in the

projects.

Build a small Catholic Church in the Community of Maggiolo