Fundación Aldeas de Paz

I really liked my stay in Las Terrenas at ADP. During my time I made so many experiences, which mostly were really interesting and good. I met a lot of nice people, got in touch with new customs and culture, enjoyed the beautiful landscape and learned a lot.

I enjoyed working at Casa de los Niños for one month. The school is so different to the ones we know from Europe, which made my experience even more interesting. The classrooms are mostly outside, the do not have a proper curriculum for English and books/exercise sheets are only limited available.

From day one on we had a lot of responsibility because we had a lot of different clases and the job to teach English. Sometimes it was hard, because we had to prepare the clases and organise everything on our own, but I learned a lot. I developed many new skills and improved my spanish. The downside of the school was, that many children were really loud and unorganised, so it was hard to teach them sometimes. But in the end everyone tried to improve their english, which made us happy. Beside from school I got in touch with many other volunteers and enjoyed my time in Las Terrenas. We went to many nice beaches, ate the tipical food, listen to dominican music and studied Spanish!

All in all I really enjoyed my stay at ADP and I would recommend it to other people.
Thank you for your help! I wish the fundation and all the volunteers only the best for their future!

During my placement in Samana, I took part in two different projects; NGO Management and Mama Elba.
I really enjoyed working in both of them, and I think these two projects combined together are the best way to understand and experience the core of the Foundation.

The NGO Management project gave me a better idea about how an NGO works, what the main challenges of this kind of environment are and how to deal with daily issues regarding not only the Founding itself, but the local community as well.

The other project I was working at, Mama Elba, was definitely enriching from both a personal and professional point of view. The children and young adults attending Mama Elba are absolutely lovely, and, while my hope was to help them somehow, what I received from them was way more.
I also had the chance to learn different approaches to education, special educational programs and tools, and the interaction with the students and their families allowed me to learn a lot about the Dominican society and culture.

I really enjoyed living in Samana and I would definitely recommend it. I loved the relaxed and friendly vibe, the kindness of local people and of course the stunning nature.
I would recommend this placement to whoever wants to learn more and get engaged in the local community, it is a great way to acquire new knowledge about another culture, different teaching techniques and the basics on how an NGO works.

To all future volunteers around the world:
After 15 months spending with Aldeas de Paz, my stay comes to an end.So it's an occasion for sharing my experience, point of view and recommendation.

My place abroad was Las Terrenas on the peninsula Samaná in the Dominican Republic. I worked mainly in the cities public hospital.
It' been a long time. 1 year and 3 months is an extensive period spend abroad for a volunteer service, but for all that everyday was worthwhile.

Conception of time in the Dominican Republic is different to the ones a foreign person is used to. Schedules do not work out flawlessly nor appointments will always take place at the exact planned day and hour.
Gradually the progress is made.

Hence you, as a future volunteer should have in mind: the longer the stay the better!

You can not rapid start work in the Dominican Republic from day one on, neither will you see a terrific change and colossal impact during your stay.
This can be arduous to an arriving volunteer filled with creative urges, ideas, motivation and expectations.

During your stay you will face challenges. Nevertheless you will grow with each and learn about yourself and others. By and by you will master a new language, meet various people from around the world, exchange and put things into perspective and experience.
Which I had the great opportunity to.
Likewise myself, the organisation was growing and still is.

Aldeas de Paz is a sprouting and forthcoming NGO.
I am more than thankful for the opportunity of being a part of this Fundacion.
It is a chance of expansion of your own horizon - and for both sides for though the dissimilar living environments and - maxims plus savoir - vivre can fertilise one another.

Exceptional thanks to Vito, Coordinator of Las Terrenas, more of a friend, for always being amiable, available and keen.

During the 6 weeks I spent with Aldeas de Paz in Las Terrenas I have learned a lot. At first, I was a little disappointed because it was really different to what I expected. But after a while I realised that my expectations simply weren’t realistic. The foundation has only been in the Dominican Republic for three years which really isn’t a long time. That means there is still lots of work to do and room for improvement. But that’s not a bad thing it simply means you have the possibility to help shaping the foundation. My work in the NGO management team taught me a lot about all the little but important things that need to be done to keep the Foundations growing. Like searching for foundations or universities willing to support our cause. Looking back, the experiences I made really had an impact on my life and assured me that working for an NGO really is important and something everyone should do at least once in their life.

During my time in Santa Barbara de Samaná, I worked as a hospital volunteer, school volunteer at Mama Elba, as well as initiated my own project at the school Mama Elba. Although it was a short 5 weeks, I learned so much during my stay. Along with really experiencing the difference of healthcare that is found in Dominican Republic, as well as for the first time experiencing what it is like to teach, I learned a lot about myself and the culture of the Dominican Republic. Aldeas de Paz, more specifically Sebastian, did an amazing job making sure my trip went as smoothly as possible from the time before arrival all the way until the end. I really appreciated his support with everything and admired how hard he worked trying to make sure the foundation was running smoothly for all volunteers involved.

My time in the Dominican Republic, is truly indescribable. The food, the people, the music and the tranquility of the town really causes you to fall in love with the country. Creating the special connections I did with some of the hospital staff, my host family, and the students of the school really tied me to Samaná and has made my Dominican adventure unforgettable. The town is easy to grow accustomed to and to really meet and enjoy the company of the community members and local population. I would recommend either hospital placement or school placement because not only will you learn a lot about Dominican life, but the students and patients you see will teach you lessons in life and patience that no other job or university class will. Thank you so much Aldeas de Paz for an amazing time in Samaná, but I can assure you that I will be coming back soon.