When taking a mission trip to the Dominican Republic to serve at Caribbean Mountain Academy (CMA), there are many ways to serve the surrounding community. At CMA, Missions teams, CMA staff, and boarding school students all work together to serve hand in hand. Depending on your mission team’s strengths, there are a wide variety of ways to get involved.

What Kinds of Service Projects Does CMA Do?

Some DR mission trip teams work together with CMA to provide community engagement, such as putting on a baseball tournament, or Vacation Bible School. Other teams work to build bridges, paint classrooms at the local school, and find ways to help improve the lives of those around them through practical service. Some other examples include:

• Providing tutoring in English for local school children
• Visiting nursing homes
• Cleaning up on campus and in the local community

What Are Some Recent Projects That CMA Has Done?

• CMA has committed to rebuilding 5 houses in Majaguita, an old community with lots of wood houses that are falling apart and rotting out. CMA just completed building its second house in this community.
• CMA is currently building a house for a paralyzed man named Frankely, whose family has unfortunately been taking advantage of his hardship.
• Recently, CMA students and mission teams poured a new road on top of a deteriorating section of street that was reduced to rubble and rock. This road is well traveled and sits directly in front of 5 houses, all of which have benefited immensely from the new road.

How Does CMA Engage With the Local Community?

When going on a Dominican Republic mission trip to serve at CMA, you will find that CMA not only serves the Dominican people, they live life alongside them. Lavinia Westfall, CMA’s Missions Community Coordinator, shares an example of how a DR mission trip is a culturally immersive experience,

“When CMA teams come to work in the communities, they also attend Dominican church services so that they can connect with the culture more, and worship and fellowship with the people they’re serving. After these church services, the pastor of the church and his family will sometimes join the mission team for dinner, which allows the team to get to know him and his family better.”

Those at CMA will tell you that it’s very easy to develop relationships with the Dominican people. Whether it’s Dominican neighbors, staff, or those the missions team are serving, friendships blossom very quickly. Dominican people often treat you like family soon after they get to know you. Some of the staff families have built such deep connections that they even go on family vacations with their Dominican neighbors.

Who Does Caribbean Mountain Academy Partner With?

CMA partners with local churches and ministries in town, identifies needs, and works together with those churches and organizations to meet those needs. Some ministries include an international Christian school, ministries fighting sex trafficking, and local and international missionaries.

How Can I Get Involved?

If you’d like to experience a culturally immersive missions trip to the Dominican Republic full of practical ways to serve, you can connect with us to learn more about how to get started.