Mary Sullivan
Mission Trip 2010
Good afternoon! My name is Mary Sullivan and I am one of the 24 missionaries who were lucky enough to travel to the Dominican Republic last week. We travelled to the Mustard
Seed Orphanage in Puerto Plata to bring Christ’s love and service to the orphans. It was a complete honor to be able to go on this trip and it was all because of you. The donations, support, and prayers that came from this parish were truly amazing. Throughout the week, we were thinking of you as you were thinking of us. You are the ones that made this trip possible, and for that, I am undoubtedly grateful. It was a trip that changed my life forever. The opportunity of a lifetime, the Dominican Republic Mission Trip 2010 is something we will never forget as long as we all shall live. It is nearly impossible to explain this trip in words, but I will do my best to help you understand how much this trip changed my entire perspective on life.
Meeting the children for the first time was an experience within itself. As soon as we arrived, a few of the kids came running out to greet us, hugging everyone. Walking around the orphanage, I saw 19 beautiful children. Some were young, some were teenagers. Some could walk, others could not. Each child was unique, offering something wonderful to the world. Even the ones that could never leave the floor were smiling. This amazed me, and opened my eyes to the way the world should be. These children, despite any disabilities they may have, are so happy. They look for the good in everyone that they meet, and allow their hearts to be open to
God’s love. In fact, it was not just the children at the orphanage that were so welcoming and joyful. Every single person that we met while in the Dominican Republic was welcoming and pleased to see us. They were honestly the most amazing people that I have ever met. Anytime we saw someone new, they would smile and you could tell that they were genuinely happy to see you. We attended Mass at the cathedral in Puerto Plata on Sunday as well as the chapel in the village on Thursday. On both occasions, during the kiss of peace, the people around us gave the warmest hugs. They had no idea who we were, and did not care where we came from. They just knew that this is how God would have wanted it, with people of many different backgrounds coming together under one roof to pray with Him.
These incredible people taught me a great deal about faith. They have next to nothing, and yet they have everything. In material goods, they have nothing. However, in faith, they have everything. It was absolutely amazing to me how strong of a faith they have. The bible reads, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you” (Matthew 17:20). The people that I met can certainly move mountains with such an undying faith, and I hope that someday I can have even half as much faith as they do.
Even the orphans have an unbelievable amount of faith. On Thursday, we were given the privilege of witnessing nine of the orphans get baptized. This day was an emotional roller coaster with very high moments and also exceptionally low moments. The sad moments came in the morning when we visited the garbage dump where people live and scavenge for any food or usable material. This part of the trip is extremely hard to talk about and it gives me the chills just thinking about it but I am still so lucky to have been there. I wouldn’t give up those few minutes for anything. Standing outside with the stench of the mountains of garbage wafting through the air, watching the millions of flies buzz around and land on the faces of little children, and thinking that there was no possible way to get any lower than this, it was the most overwhelming moment of my life. Back at the orphanage a little while later, when the magnitude of the situation finally hit us, and we were all crying until there was no water left in our bodies,

someone looked up at the sky. There, right above the orphanage, was a rainbow. However, it was not just any rainbow. It was a circular rainbow that surrounded the sun in its entirety. This one moment could sum up the entire trip. It helped all of us realize that God was there with us, especially when we needed Him the most. That rainbow foreshadowed the beauty of the rest of the day with the baptisms and the strengthened faith that would come as a result of this extraordinary journey.
There is so much more to tell, but so little time. All I can do is try to express how thankful I am to everyone in this parish, as well as all of the families and friends of the missionaries, for sending us on this trip. It completely surpassed any expectations that I had. I have found a new family in my fellow missionaries and a renewed faith in God’s work. My words will never be able to measure up to how amazing, incredible, wonderful, and rewarding this trip was. This trip meant the world to me, and I think I speak for all of us when I say that we would do it again in a heartbeat. In the end, although we brought a great deal of Christ’s love to the orphans, they brought even more to us than we could ever imagine giving to them. Please continue to pray for the children as well as the remarkable people that care for them.