Las Terrenas, a fishing village–turned–beach town on the northeast coast of Samana Peninsula, provides great foreign opportunity for success amongst communal despair. There is an appreciation for
siestas and late night fiestas, family values and sexual expression, the slow moving and the money-making. A walk through town brings you past incredible waters, soft sand beaches, delectable fruits and baked goods, as well as pregnant teens in miniskirts, old women overseeing angled bodegas, soaking their feet on broken side-streets, and children running astray between abandoned homes, unkempt swamplands, and piles of garbage.
siestas and late night fiestas, family values and sexual expression, the slow moving and the money-making. A walk through town brings you past incredible waters, soft sand beaches, delectable fruits and baked goods, as well as pregnant teens in miniskirts, old women overseeing angled bodegas, soaking their feet on broken side-streets, and children running astray between abandoned homes, unkempt swamplands, and piles of garbage.
Amongst the strange mix of calm and chaos sits Biblioteca Anacaona, the only library of it’s kind and all too necessary. With a collection incomparable to the small school bookshelves of Las Terrenas, Biblioteca Anacaona of Fundacion Mahatma Gandhi houses over 5,000 books in Spanish, English, French, German, Italian and Creole. Entirely run on donations, this library has and continues to expand, stretching to serve a rapidly growing population of underserved, poorly educated children and adults.
Realizing extreme poverty coexisted, ironically, with 20 miles of exquisite beaches, villas and resorts, Jose and Annette Bourget dreamed up a plan to bring educational tools to Las Terrenas for anyone’s use in an effort to neutralize inequality and disparity. Their dream resulted in this grand library of sorts – not in size, but in all it symbolizes. This small remodeled home has come to provide immense opportunity amid harsh demands of poverty. The library gives children a few hours away from the temptations of drugs, prostitution, or pains of troubled homes. It’s a place of sanctuary most others would take for granted.
Biblioteca Anacaona now offers numerous workshops for the young and old, keeping everybody busy, smart, and out of trouble. With values of honor and respect instilled in its participants, this library has created a community where the pursuit of happiness is far more than just a dream. Volunteers from throughout the world visit year round to assist with reading skills, homework, English tutoring, athletic games, and any other grand idea they come up with to build a better community.
How to Help
The options are endless if you are interested to volunteer for Fundacion Mahatma Gandhi. Whether you’re interested in helping the young or old, in academics or athletics, every bit of time you spend exposing these children to positive, encouraging personalities is one more step toward change.
Education is the most surprisingly disadvantaged aspect of the area. 10 years ago, the only school in the town did not advance past third grade. The majority of adults in Las Terrenas have never been educated, which means getting their children to the schools is a difficult effort – if it’s raining (which is a lot during rainy season, June - November) the chances of catching the flu (in Spanish, “gripe”) is far worse than missing a few days of class, so many stay home. There are children in 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grade who don’t know their alphabet.
Biblioteca Anacaona is a source of big dreams and little time, space or money to pursue them. Running solely on donations, any assistance is appreciated. Helping out comes in many forms. Continue on below for different ways to give Biblioteca Anacaona a hand as they work to establish peace and progress against slight odds.
Donate Time: Take a visit to Las Terrenas, independently, with a group, or as a family vacation. FMG offers a volunteer house, Casa Paz, at $6/night a few blocks from the water for any accepted volunteer for any period of time. Otherwise, there are plenty of other inexpensive hostels, hotels and villas nearby. Spanish is not necessary, nor is age, gender or experience in education a factor. There is work for everyone.
Donate Money: Visit this link to FMG’s donations page, with an address for mailings and a convenient Paypal option, and also for a list of ways different monetary gifts may be used, per donor’s indication.
- Spanish books for elementary students and teens
- Coloring books – educationally related if possible
- Educational games and toys such as:
o Uno, Alphabet Flashcards, Card Decks, Dominoes, Puzzles (with larger pieces), Braiding Rope/Yarn
- Sports Equipment (Baseball, Soccer, Swimming, Snorkeling)
o The baseball team is run by a volunteer coach and all equipment is gathered through donations including bats, baseballs, mits and shoes. All are needed for future teams to continue practice and games.
o With all the beaches nearby, it is surprising how rare swimming is. Many children don’t know how to swim. At the beach, locals who choose to swim often do so in clothing like jean shorts and t-shirts. I was told this is either because they don’t have money for swimsuits and/or because swimsuits sold are not modest enough for many religious families. No matter what their reasons are, a wet sandy pair of jeans doesn’t sound comfortable.
o Snorkeling equipment is U.S. $10 - $20. Even cheap plastic goggles are $10 or $15 here
- Craft Accessories such as:
o Glue Sticks, Finger Paint, Play Dough, Construction Paper, Colored Pencils, Stickers, Stamps with shapes of all sorts
