Our Story

In 1994, the founders’ 14 year old daughter was diagnosed with Graves Disease and put on a therapy of polythiouracil (PTU). She became the sixth documented case of PTU attacking the liver and the first to survive. She received a liver transplant at Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh, PA.

With that, Rita had received every mother’s wish…a healthy child. A Mother’s Wish Foundation was born to provide this wish to other mothers who had little hope of receiving it.

On October 18, 2003, the founders arrived in the Dominican Republic and spent the next six months getting their personal and clinic items through Customs. After that:

§  April 1, 2004: Secured rental facility in El Llano, R.D., and began construction of the permanent facility in Los Pajones, R.D.

§   April 22-28, 2004: Administered a government vaccination campaign to all children under 5 years old for measles, mumps, rubella and polio. We were given 30 doses, based on previous campaigns in our area. We vaccinated 558 children by the end of the campaign. Regular vaccinations continue weekly at the Clinic.

§   May 3, 2004: Began providing free medical consultations and free medicines from our rental facility with Doctora Venecia Quinones.

§   June 17, 2004: Met with the residents of our community at the local church to discuss the implementation of trash pick up. The residents agreed to pay 10 pesos per household per month.

§   June 24, 2004: Trash pick up begins and continues today.

§   August 13, 2004: Inaugurated the permanent facility three days before the government changed and the Regional Director of Public Health lost his job. One thousand women and children were provided with food, drink, cake and entertainment.

§   September 13, 2004: Began providing free medical consultations and free medicines from our permanent facility. Hired a nurse from Santiago, a receptionist from El Llano and a Health Promoter from each of the five communities.

§   November – December, 2004: Completed a census of the five communities and computerized the information.

§   April-October 2005: Instituted community educational talks including, Nutrition, Osteoporosis, Parasites and Nutrition for Pregnant Women. The Parasite talks became semi-annual with every member of the community receiving a prophylactic dose of anti-parasite medicine.

§   November 30, 2005: Instituted Pap Smear Day at the Clinic. Samples are tested by a reputable laboratory in Santiago and women with irregular results are referred to a specialist who provides his services to our community for free. This has become a semi-annual event at the Clinic.

§   January 2006: Hosted a 3-day seminar for the Young Women of the Community and spawned the Young Women’s Club, LOGXCEST – Logros Grandes por Caminos Estrechos (Large successes through narrow roads). We wanted to provide an alternative vision for their future from their current expectation, which was to have a baby and live in their town. Thus far, none of the regular members of LOGXCEST have been “married” or become pregnant. This is an outstanding accomplishment in a culture where most women have their first child in their teen years.

§   March 2006: Instituted “home visits” for new mothers which includes a package of supplies and medicines that every new baby needs. Most of our new mothers are teen-agers who know nothing about the care of a newborn. Generally, the moms live with their “husband’s” family and many times the “mother-in-law” refuses to help their new “daughter-in-law”. We try to fill that gap for the sake and safety of the newborn.

§   January 2006: Dental Clinics were instituted by Susan Cote through the University of Southern Maine Nursing School program. Regular Clinics were held every six months until July, 2007.

§   August 2006: Received recognition by the Dominican Government that A Mother’s Wish is a non-government, non-profit organization incorporated outside of the Dominican Republic. This ended a process begun over two years earlier.

§   September 2006: Instituted the “School Nurse” program that lends the services of our nurse to the local primary school every Thursday for minor consultations, referrals and educational talks to the students. Our nurse, Rosemary, has enlisted the support of the children to visit each house in the community to contain the outbreak of Dengue Fever in the community.

§   November 2006: The Young Women’s Club hosts the Cinderella Project during which the Club members invited girls aged 8 – 13 to come to Clinic, watch “Cinderella” while their hair and make-up was applied and then had “Glamour Shot” type photos taken in front of the Christmas Tree. This provided the girls of our community with a new vision of who they were and what they could become – with the help of others.

§   November 2006: The Clinic instituted a monthly newsletter to the community, Buenas Noticias, to advise of upcoming programs and health/safety tips.

§   December 2006: The LOGXCEST Club members were treated to a visit to the Centro Leon Museum.

§   April 2007: “Women’s Month” at the Clinic included educational discussions with every demographic of women in our community. LOGXCEST provided free child-care during the talks.

§   April-May 2007: In conjunction with La Leche League, the Clinic sponsored a 16 hour training program and graduated 7 lactation counselors to meet with the community and promote breast feeding infant children.

§   May-June 2007: Instituted a Health Committee and hired and trained three Health Counselors who visit every house four times per year. The Counselors check vaccination cards, general health including fevers and diarrhea, and check for breeding grounds for Dengue mosquitoes.

§   May-June 2007: A series of educational talks with the men of the community culminated with the community instituting a Water Committee that is supported and run by the elected members of the communities.

§   June-July 2007: Began construction of “smokeless” wood burning stoves to replace the open wood burning stoves that are causing severe respiratory problems for the residents of the communities.

§   June-July 2007: Completed an analysis of the water from six points in multiple aqueduct systems and three rivers used for washing clothes, bathing and drinking. Confirmed by two sources, all the water is unfit for human consumption and the river water contains levels of bacteria and parasites that inhibit proper bathing hygiene.

§   August 2007: Dr. Jomy Abreau provides weekly dental care for the children of our communities using the Clinic’s permanent dental chair and equipment.     

To raise a generation of healthy children, a clinic is required to resolve simple disease states before they become life-threatening situations. But it is also required to provide children an environment that is conducive to healthy growth. This includes potable water to drink, bathe and wash; clean air to breathe, and a safe area to play. To accomplish this, we need the support and involvement of the residents of the community.

 

The adults have grown up under a dictatorship that was replaced by a party politics system in which the Party in power provides all good things to the people. They have lost their initiative of action because they have been taught entitlement. Poverty is so rampant that there is no sense of community – only what I can get for myself.  Laws are not enforced and corruption is a cultural component.  The Foundation is teaching community involvement and highlighting community successes to increase pride in the community and instill a sense of self-destiny. Our programs focus on the basics of human existence and healthcare; trash collection, potable water, clean air, and community safety. Our programs and clinic operations show no favoritism and we offer our services to all of the women and children who live on the mountain.

Copyright 2008. A Mother’s Wish. All rights reserved.