July 18 – Darrien Whitaker

This is my first trip to the Dominican Republic and so far has been on of the greatest experiences of my life. Just being here and interacting with everyone who calls the Dominican Republic home is such an eye opening and humbling experience. Today we spent time in Los Montones which was the village where Kike grew up. While we were there, we passed out food bags and painted the church which was a great thing because you could see the appreciation on the faces on those who attended the church on a regular basis. When it comes to the baseball aspect of the trip so far it has honestly been some of the most fun I’ve ever had while playing. Even though it is still a competitive environment, being able to have fun and interact with the players from the Dominican Republic has allowed us to have a lot of fun on the field despite the obvious language barrier. This trip has really helped me to understand how fortunate we are living in the United States. Some of the people in the Dominican lack everyday necessities that we don’t think twice about while back home, but when you interact with them and see the smiles and positive attitudes they have, you would never know that they don’t have those things. Throughout this week, one thing that has become obvious to me is the fact that I am getting closer to God and furthering my knowledge about Christianity. The daily Bible studies and devotions have been very beneficial to me and have already began making an impact on me and the way that I see things in life. This trip has really motivated me to never take anything for granted and live life with a grateful mindset. I have made so many memories so far during this trip that I will never forget and I cannot wait to make more as we finish it up. I would like to thank Coach Hudak and everyone who made not only this trip but this entire summer possible, and also all of my teammates that I got to play alongside this summer.