August 2024 Hand in Hands Expands into the Samana Province

We are thrilled to be able to reach the corners of the beautiful island of the Dominican Republic! This past August we expanded to include Las Galeras with the help of Magdalena , a dear friend (and sister of our main partners Fausto & Maricela). She and her family live in Las Galeras. She has patiently waited and prayed over her community for nearly three years , offering what little support she could to make a difference in their lives. She is a woman of faith, and shows love-in-action to the vulnerable in her community. We are so pleased to be able to support the families alongside her. The ministry is grateful to God to be trusted with an even greater responsibility. ><>

 

Highway Clean up May 2024

Each Year we get a team together for the Alberta Highway clean up. It’s a great way to get involved locally and to raise funds for our community projects in the Dominican.

Team Junio 2024

We were thrilled to do an outreach in 2024. We were a small but mighty team! Thanks to our hardworking partners and a couple new local recruits, we were able to do outreach in the areas of; Puerto Plata -2 locations, Luperón, Monte Llano, and La Ciénaga with food hampers, hygiene kits, new born baby kits, craft and play time with kids and church youth groups.

We have met a new partner to add to our outreach . Kathy Santos , she will be connecting us with the communities of Luperon, Monte Llano, and the Seniors Home (Hogar Ancienos de Paz y Esperanza) . Another exciting development is Magda, the sister of our main partner Fausto, has been in close contact with us over the past two and a half years since we met her. We are happy to say we have now secured enough support to also support her helping to feed the marginalized families in the surrounding communities of Las Galeras in the eastern Samana Province.

Valentinos Night

Last month , the Hand in Hands foundation had the opportunity to support the Okotoks Evangelical Free Church Youth at their popular Valentinos night. A large group attended on behalf on Hand in Hands to support the youth fundraiser which collects donations for tasty homemade desserts. They set up the sanctuary and the youth act as the servers. :)

Hot Dog Funder at OEFC a weiner!!

A recent Hand in Hands fundraiser November 13th will provide our sponsored families regular food hampers for nearly year! We are thrilled and feeling blessed at the support of our church and community. Thanks to OEFC and all our volunteers that came to shop, prep, cook, and serve the crowd. All left over treats, chips and dogs were donated back to the youth programs at the church and some church families that graciously accepted :)

LIKE COSTCO HOT DOGS FOR LUNCH ?

Come join us at our funder at Okotoks Evangelical Free Church (OEFC) for Lunch on November 12th. All profits going towards ongoing needs in the Dominican Republic. Items like food hampers, educational, and medical needs. Come to 28 Westland Road in Okotoks. We’ll start servicing lunch about 11:30, (Large Costco hot dog, chips, cookie, and a beverage).

Cost: by donation Suggested per person $5. Phone 403-938-8888.

Sirocco Annual Spring Event a Huge Success!!

We are so grateful to Sirocco for helping us host a sold-out event. We had a silent auction with over 50 items! The cooks were busy in the kitchen preparing the Famous Sirocco Burger Bar. We had a large dessert bar prepared by Sylie Gill , Wendy, and Kari. With the generous outpouring of support. donations, and (a returned 50/50 winning- thank you Pam & Scott), we were able to surpass our $4000 goal. With ongoing fundraisers and support, Hand in Hands can feed dozens of families every 6 weeks. The reports and photos from our Dominican partners are an example of how small grassroots organizations really can life up and support communities.

Sirocco Annual Event Spring 2023

Burger Bar , Silent Auction, & Music

Join us for our fundraiser event Saturday, June 10th at the Sirocco Golf and Country Club. All proceeds to support our work in the Dominican Republic. For further information contact director2hih@gmail.com or presidenthih@gmail.com. Be on the look out for a Mailchimp Save-the-Date, and Event Brite ticket emails.

Hand in Hands opens Director roles to the public

Hand in Hands has weathered a couple of arduous years with the pandemic. The inability to have teams, and the complexity of travel has made it so we have had to funnel our resources differently. Throughout our meetings together as a board of five we were able to use prayer, our field partners, and one another’s experiences, to plan our support for the Dominican Republic. We feel blessed to say 10-20 families have received food hampers every 6 weeks during the pandemic, as well as support to a school/orphange with special projects, and medical support to our field partner family. Its a labour of love, and more hands are needed to meet the growing requirements.

After a solid serve time of several years. One of our directors is stepping down to pursue other exciting endeavours. We appreciate her time and energy invested and wish her well going forward. We appreciate you Darlene and wish you the best!

At this time Hand in Hands wants to extend an invitation to anyone wishing to get involved with the background workings, decisions, and direction of Hand in Hands. We have some exciting developments for the coming year and want to once again form annual teams to the Dominican Republic. Our ongoing work there through the pandemic has allowed us strong partnerships with our field members. Our church has also once again ramped up support in various ways. So… If you feel you have something to offer our group. More importantly, that God is tugging on your heart to get involved and ‘be the change’. Areas of interest may be Team Coordination, Admin, and IT. Please contact our Director Darryl at: director2hih@gmail.com for more information, or to put your name forward.