As many in the Camp Scatico community know, since 2015 our CITs have traveled to the Dominican Republic to work alongside The DREAM Project and help run a one-week day camp for 80+ Dominican children. The trip is a highlight of the summer as we bring the magic, fun and learning of camp to an under-resourced community, and connect with children who otherwise would never have a traditional camp experience. Sadly due to Covid-19, 2020 will be a summer without camp, for both us and for our Dominican campers.
But just because our summer plans have changed, doesn't mean that the learning and playing has to stop. As part of DREAM’s #DREAMenCASA (#DreamAtHome) initiative (which you can learn more about at the video below), the 2020/21 CITs will be creating fun activity packets for our Dominican campers to keep them engaged, laughing, learning, and even practicing a little English, during their summer quarantine. Each packet will include an activity book that the CITs will make themselves (think word searches, spot the difference games, coloring book pages, etc), and a puzzle. DREAM will then deliver the packets to our campers and community members.
A 501 c-3 nonprofit organization, The DREAM Project provides more than 1,000,000 hours of quality education to more than 8,000 children through 17 different programs across 27 communities in the Dominican Republic. That’s a lot of numbers… but basically DREAM is an incredible non-profit with multiple programs (a Montessori pre-K, an after school program, a job training program for young adults, the list goes on!) that impact community members of every age. The summer camp Scatico runs for children in Sabaneta, is just a small piece of the DREAM puzzle.
During this difficult time, DREAM has had to rethink a lot of their in-person programs, children across the island have had to do without schooling, and the Dominican Republic’s economy at large has suffered from lack of tourism. #DREAMenCASA represents DREAM’s efforts to pivot and address the needs of the community amid the coronavirus. Through the initiative, DREAM is proud to provide food, educational materials and online resources to thousands of children, youth, and community members while they remain safely at home. Learn more at the video below!
WHAT WE’RE DOING + HOW YOU CAN HELP!
The 2020/21 CITs are donating their time and talents to help create the activity booklets we mentioned above as part of the #DREAMenCasa initiative! We’re excited to provide our campers with a dose of camp fun, and to make a connection with them a year before we’ll hopefully be down there again, meeting them in person, and playing side-by-side.
The CITs also launched a Custom Ink fundraiser and created the below LIMITED EDITION CAMP SCATICO x DREAM T-SHIRTS (!!) to raise money for DREAM. The T-shirts were 100% designed by the CITs. They come in green and grey, and the front has the new Scatico 100th logo, and the back reads “a dreamer keeps on dreaming” in a heart of hands. The quote is both an homage to the DREAM project, and a line from the song “For Our Hands Are Strong,” which girls side sings at every Friday Night service. The money from the T-shirt sales will go towards printing and distributing as many activity booklets as possible, as well as purchasing puzzles to go along with each kid’s booklet. Any extra we raise (fingers crossed!!) will support DREAM’s other #DREAMenCasa programs.
ONE LAST THING… FOR FORMER CIT’s
Do you remember the “dinámica” we’d do in the mornings, “El Barco Se Hunde”?! How could you forget! Well, DREAM is trying to raise awareness about their programs and work by creating a viral, virtual “El Barco Se Hunde” video with AS MANY former DREAM volunteers as possible… so that means all of YOU! Below are the instructions with how to participate, and a video explaining it (you’ll recognize many familiar faces in the video!).
INSTRUCTIONS
Film as many of the below clips as possible, and email them to nicki@scatico.com!
1 to 2 clips of you, and/or you and friends/ family walking around clapping to the beat in the video
1 to 2 clips of you, and/or you and friends/ family exclaiming “Si mi capitán!!!”
1 to 2 clips of you, and/or you and friends/ family pairing up with one person holding another like a baby “BEBE”
1 to 2 clips of you, and/or you and friends/ family pairing up with one piggy backing on the other like a backpack “MOCHILLA”
1 to 2 clips of you, and/or you and friends/ family freezing like a tree “ARBOL”
1 to 2 clips of you, and/or you and friends/ family making a house with a person in it like in the video “CASA”"
1 to 2 clips of you, and/or you and friends/ family dancing bachata