Many local groups and organizations are friends and partners in the Dominican Republic. These local partners provide us with support while we are in the country; they also offer us unique service opportunities and experiences with the communities they work within. We are honoured to work with organizations that share a common interest in not just giving a hand-out in time of crisis, but also giving a hand up, which will lead to empowerment and self-sustainability.
Scotiabank
Scotiabank is a prominent bank in the Dominican Republic. We enjoy a good relationship with Scotiabank in several communities. Scotiabank takes its corporate social responsibility seriously and has launched a program called Bright Future in its Caribbean and Latin American locations. Local banks are raising awareness of the needs of some of the schools in their communities and are gathering back-to-school supplies for needy children of those schools in September. Go.See.Do. Trips is currently seeking a stepped-up level of support for its school makeover projects in the Moca and Puerto Plata areas from the Bright Future program, seeing as we share an interest in promoting the well-being of children, particularly in the areas of education, health and wellness and the eradication of poverty.
For more information on the Scotiabank Bright Future Program, please click here: www.scotiabank.com - Scotiabank Bright Future Program.
IDDI - The Dominican Institute for Integral Development
IDDI is one of the primary non-governmental, not-for-profit organizations of the Dominican Republic working towards the long-term sustainable development of the country. Created in 1984, IDDI has much experience and concentrates its activities on supporting the low-income population that live in both urban and rural areas of the DR. A goal of IDDI local staff is to expand access to health and education to those Dominicans living in poor communities. The organization's hallmark is its ability to form partnerships to achieve common goals. We are happy to call on our partner, IDDI, to present workshops in communities where volunteers are working and to participate in our medical clinics.
For more information on IDDI, please visit www.iddi.org.
CEPROSH
Centro de Promocion y Solidaridad Humana, operates out of Puerto Plata with the primary objective to give support to programs and educational projects related to the HIV virus and AIDS. This professional organization is happy to facilitate seminars, testing, and workshops at schools where we do makeover projects or during our local medical clinics in hopes of reaching the young people especially, educating, preventing and treating them.
For more information on CEPROSH, please visit www.ceprosh.org.
Conani Schools
Conani Schools throughout the Dominican Republic are offering enriching and stimulating programs
to children of preschool and kindergarten age. Partnering with Conani Schools, as PowerTrips we have done some magical 'school makeovers' and empowering teacher workshops, and most significantly, an expansion of 4 additional and gorgeous preschool classrooms, bathrooms and a regional office to the Puerto Plata school.
For more information on Conani, please visit www.conani.gov.do.
The Laura Vicuña Training Centre for Women
This vital centre in Moca offers women and teen-aged girls opportunities to become self-sustaining via a variety of educational skills-training programs. Offering courses in hairdressing, beauticians' programs, arts and crafts, sewing, cooking, baking, cake decorating, the centre is a hub of activity each afternoon and early evening. Go.See.Do. Trips is proud to have made some significant renovations to the centre and to have established a meaningful partnership with this centre, in the belief that educating a woman may lead to a break in the cycle of poverty.
Una Luz en el Camino
Sandra Tineo is a significant community leader in the barrio of Aguas Negras in Puerto Plata. While difficult to keep up with this modern "Mother Theresa", it is an honour to partner with Sandra to provide improved facilities for her schools, the community's health needs, local micro-enterprises and the very special children of this village.
Project las Americas
Rotarian Bob Hildreth is a man making a huge difference in many areas of life in the Puerto Plata area.
His preference of projects to back, support or promote is based on the degree to which the assistance will
help the local people to help themselves. We therefore enjoy partnering with Project Las Americas to provide
humanitarian assistance to enhance the well being of the poor and provide hope and opportunities to the disadvantaged. Our favourite activities in partnership with Project las Americas include working with the brilliant programme of the Hermanitas (Little Sisters) and the leaders of hte Nuevos Horizontes (New Horizons).
For more information on Project las Americas, please visit www.projectlasamer.com.
Integracion Juvenil
Integracion Juvenil was created in 1978 to serve the needs of youth in especially difficult circumstances, particularly the street kids of Puerto Plata. Today Integracion Juvenil offers vocational and educational workshops at an educational centre in Munoz and provides guidance, support, alternatives, opportunities and hope to youth at risk to help them break out of the cycle of poverty and social/educational stagnation they find themselves living in typical barrios of Puerto Plata.
For more information on Integracion Juvenil, please visit www.integracionjuvenil.com.
Christian organizations
Several mission-minded volunteers have been significant sources of Christian inspiration to those trip participants particularly wishing to work in the Haitian bateys of the North or with children at risk. Some have been special partners of PowerTrips over the years: Cuidado Infantil Dominicano, International Child Care (Canada), Fundacion el Samaritano, Dominican Crossroads, Servant's Heart Ministries, Dominican Ministry, and Dove Missions, to name a few, all of whom offer Christian-based programs of hope, health education, or charity as they focus on the needs of the poorest of the poor, and instill hope in the people they work with.
Vermont Institute in the Caribbean
Developers of a brilliant school program being offered to grades 4 and 5 in two Puerto Plata schools as a test pilot run, Vermont Institute in the Caribbean is a young organization that shares interest with PowerTrips in helping people help themselves, in creating sustainable projects, and in developing local leadership. Healthy Neighborhoods, Healthy Kids is a program designed to empower students to make a difference to their own community through a series of activities led by trained teachers and volunteers . As a partnership grows with PowerTrips, it is hoped that these trained teachers will bring the program into those communities where PowerTrips volunteers work, and so the program will continue to engage more and more students in other communities.
For more information, please visit www.institutecaribe.org.
The National Institute for Technical Professional Training (INFOTEP) has initiated several vocational training programs for the youth and adults of the Dominican Republic , with the aim of promoting their development and equipping them with skills to enter the work force. Courses range from agriculture to sewing, crafts, electicity, auto mechanics, plumbing sales , marketing and so many more. Go.See.Do trips likes to facilitate such educational programmes by building multi-purpose community centres that can function as classrooms for INFOTEP teachers to use.
Fundacion Ir.Ver y Hacer
This organization is a registered charitable one and the Spanish equivalent of Go.See.Do. Founded by a parent whose family was significantly and positively affected by three Go.See.Do projects in his community, the mission and vision of Ir.Ver y Hacer is simply to pay it forward, to lend a helping hand to people in the La Colorada – Imbert district, whatever that may be – and to be available to Go.See.Do trips when we are in country. The Dominican team generally coordinates our construction projects, guides us, advises us, when we are in the Puerto Plata area.
