July 12 – Aidan Rice

This is my second trip to the Dominican Republic with Kingsmen Baseball and I am so glad I came back. Today we played Paulino Baseball Academy. Being able to compete with their players and interacting with them was special. Their love for the game of baseball and how fearlessly they compete is really cool to see. After the game I exchanged Instagrams with some of the players and they have already reached out to talk to me. We also handed out Bibles to each of the players, and it was awesome to see them already open and start to read them as we were leaving. It’s truly special how you connect with who you meet here. They all appreciate us so much and we appreciate them just as much, which makes bonding at a deeper level easy. Yesterday we went to a girls orphanage. It was my second time going there and it amazing. A girl from last year remembered me and we hung out a lot of the time. Playing games and interacting with them is unbelievable. Their presence never fails to light you up inside. Seeing how happy they are despite how little they have makes you grateful and think about how lucky we are. It is crazy how you go there to try and make their day, but they always end up making yours. The Dominican Republic holds a special place in my heart and I can’t wait to see what the rest of the trip holds. It is the experience of a lifetime that I will never forget!