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Overview
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Hearts DR is a Dominican Republic based NGO founded in 2011 with the help of GRACE Cares. It is the umbrella organization for a number of fantastic projects run by Ruben Ottenwalder and his team in Baitoa, Santiago, DR. Since 2006, GRACE Cares has worked with this community on several successful projects. These include a water project, community center, elder care home, school improvements, safe stoves, and an egg business.
Hearts DR works on a variety of community improvement projects in the area around Baitoa. They provide necessities for children in the area and work on improving the schools. They build homes for the needy and are working on several economic development projects. The web page for Hearts DR is www.heartsdr.com. Donations to Hearts DR from the US can be made through GRACE Cares. To assist with, fund, or find out more about a specific project Contact Us.
A current pressing need is for a new truck as the current one is on its last leg and beyond repair. The cost is around $15,000.
Students in the community could not afford transportation to the nearest high school. The community came together and built a basic school on donated land and were able to get teachers assigned to it. The school contained three classrooms with open walls, unpaved floors, and no bathroom. This made it very difficult for girls to attend school (boys were more comfortable with the woods) and class could not be held when it rained. Ruben and his team constructed an outhouse, have poured floors, and are currently building exterior walls. In 2011 they expanded the school but much work is still needed. Some classrooms need new roofs, and exterior walls. Additional classrooms, a closet, and computers are needed.
Learn more about Hearts DR school improvement projects and supply drives
Many families live in crumbling or extremely crowded homes. Hearts DR uses donations and volunteer labor, from abroad and in the community, to build homes for needy families. To date, more than 20 houses have been completed. The houses are small and very basic but are solidly built with cinderblock. They contain all of the necessities including bedrooms, cooking facilities, and depending on location, an outhouse or bathroom. A sturdy house costs about $3000 and can usually be built in less than a week by a team of six volunteers. Due to the cost and timeframe, this has been a great option for Volunteer Trips. They are also built from donations and very grateful community labor. Families who receive houses repay the generosity by taking in other community members in need.
Community CenterThe pavilion in La Lomita, built by GRACE Cares, is a great resource, but now needs improvement. The roof requires repairs, and needs to be painted. We would also like to enclose one side to block rain from coming in. This would cost about $550. Supper for 45 children and 5 elderly are provided in the center five days per week for a cost of $50. This is obtained through donations and proceeds from Hearts DRs other activities. We would like to add breakfast. More About La Lomita and the Community Center
Many of the children in the area cannot afford shoes, backpacks and school supplies. Donations from GRACE Cares have provided some, but need still exists. 200 shoes can be shipped from the US for about $80, this is a great project for a Community Group. As thankful as they are to have textbooks, many children, especially the smaller ones, have difficulty carrying them to school over country roads. There is a need for donations of backpacks that can be sold at a minimal cost or given away. Every year, we aim to provide funding or donations of school supplies. Although the government builds schools and hires teachers, they do fund books and supplies to rural schools. Teachers try and pay for some of this when they actually receive their salaries but the community must find the rest. We try to ease that burden with donations. To learn about organizing a Fundraiser or Drive please Contact Us.
Learn more about Hearts DR school improvement projects and supply drives
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Many of the solutions to the problems faced by the rural poor in this community bring with them economic opportunity. Hearts DR is working to establish local businesses which can meet the needs of the community while creating jobs. Many ideas have been discussed and we are exploring more opportunities including candle making, sweet wine production, an internet cafe, and a dental clinic.
Safe StovesHearts DR began building highly efficient and safe cooking stoves in 2011. They reduce the amount of wood used and smoke produced dramatically. Local workers were trained in building and installing the stoves which cost about $100 each. Stoves are sold to families that can afford them and the small profit margin is used to subsidize stoves for poorer families. In the process, health is improved and jobs are created. The stoves are working great and catching-on but production is limited by the amount of supplies that can be purchased at once and the availability of tools. Funding is needed to help expand the production capacity of this project. This will create more jobs and allow for increased purchasing power.
Learn More About the Stove Project
As outlined in our past projects GRACE Cares built a chicken coop and funded the start-up costs for producing eggs. With experience the project became sustainable but the profit margin, measured in excess eggs available after expenses to feed local children, is very slim. The market exists to sell many more eggs and land has been made available to build additional chicken coops. This project will be very successful if it can be scaled up so that feed may be purchased in bulk.
Drinking WaterEven families with wells or water tanks filled by delivery trucks need to buy or make drinking water. Drinking water can be purchased in 5 gallons jugs but is quite expensive. Filtration systems are also very expensive. Two projects to meet this need have been designed. The first project is to create a small water treatment plant. This project has been fully planned and budgeted, and can be implemented if funding becomes available. A commercial filtration system and water bottles will be purchased and a large clay cistern and rain collection system will be built. The Hearts DR truck will be used to deliver drinking water at minimal cost to families in La Lomita and other poor enclaves. A longer term project is to finance and build small filtration systems for individual families. This has been done successfully in many parts of the world. Neither project has been funded. Back to Top