Hey Guys!
It's been a minute since I've added a blog post. I just got back a few hours ago from the Dominican Republic. This is my third mission trip and it was unbelievably hot and humid! I stayed in the second largest city there called Santiago De Los Caballeros. I was introduced to Romano Romano Ceradieu Romain through Jayla in early January 2023. We met with him in Tennessee and from there we decided we had to make a trip down with plenty of soccer gear.
Romano is a kind and caring man with a beautiful son and another on the way. While in the Dominican we spent a majority of our time with Romano. He brought us to his home and told us stories of how he traveled from Haiti to the Dominican Republic on foot at the age of 13. His father had paid one of his friends to safely lead him and one of his cousins out of Haiti through the mountains. Once in the Dominican Republic he worked in the rice fields from three in the morning until five or six in the evening earning only fifty pesos or one U.S. dollar. Even after telling us this shocking story he was never mad or upset with what he had to endure. He is happy in the life he has built for himself and the family he has built it with; with God by his side.
Romano has accomplished so much and put himself through school. He worked for a while as a translator after having taught himself five languages including: Creole, French, Spanish, English, and Portuguese. Currently he is the pastor at the church he has created for his community. He is also the coach and head of the soccer program he has created. Due to lack of space and fields his team currently plays on the baseball field when they are allowed. They are maybe allowed two practices a week and possibly one game all weather permitting. If rain they are not allowed on the field as they may mess up the fields for the following baseball game.
TruthFC brought down two extra large duffel bags full of soccer equipment. We were able to bring four teams worth of jerseys and shorts. Ten soccer balls and two ball pumps also made the journey down. We also brought with us plenty of socks and cleats, as well as cones to make goals with and outline the field. While there we stopped into a market to get five fans for the church. I hope these will make a difference given how many people they have at their masses. Though we brought a lot of soccer equipment down I hope to eventually bring much more and go on several more mission trips.
My time in the Dominican Republic was memorable. I was happy we could bring as much soccer equipment as we did. Thanks to all of the kind donations and support we have received; we have affected countless people's lives. If you are able to donate to either TruthFC or Romano and his mission I would Highly recommend it. We are making a change in this community and this world. You can donate to Romano by sending me an email at madison@truthfc.org. and we can connect from there. You can also donate to TruthFC's mission through our website TruthFC.org.
