CURRENT AND
UPCOMING
PROJECTS FOR
DOMINICAN
STARFISH
FOUNDATION

OUR MAJOR PROJECT FOR 2015
We 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 Jarabacoa
which 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
AND
LISA 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 facebook
under 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, Gerson
and 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 Altagracia
Vasquez
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.
hy 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