1/23 Kickoff Meeting notes

Opening Prayer

We discussed the trip, starting with “What do we do at Camp”, and covered many aspects of camp, the home, and the region. The main themes:

• The girls are darling, bright, and full of potential. Their families face many poverty related challenges.
• The Carmelite of Saint Joseph (Carmelitas de San Jose) Sisters are loving and committed to the girls’ education, self-esteem, and values. They also run Catholic schools in the country.
• Camp is one small piece of the system that the Sisters have developed over the years. We didn’t go over how we started at the meeting, it’s all spelled out here, but we started this after the Sisters requested it. The content is based on the Sisters’ guidance.
• Azua is one of the poorest regions in this poor country with the highest rate of teen pregnancy.
• Many nuts and bolts questions can be answered at http://campamento.blog, but you can always contact me if you have any questions.
• No one has to commit to anything yet, although you are all welcome! The commitment is made in Late March early April when you buy your ticket.
• Two rules that many be new to past travelers:
  • Travelers are invited to participate in one week of camp only. The complete Code of Conduct is here.
  • We require travelers’ health insurance (not trip cancellation). More info on purchasing traveler’s health insurance here.

Camp will be Week 1: July 8-16 and Week 2: July 15-23

We collected travelers’ names and weeks they can travel. We’d like 4-6 more potential travelers, especially for Week 2 so please spread the word!

Closing Prayer