A recent trip to the Dominican Republic to spread the Gospel left 11 members of Orangeburg's Northside Baptist Church humbled by the experience.

But they never expected to bring hope to "Hope."

"We kept saying that among ourselves all week," mission member Sonja Myers said. "Our group held Vacation Bible School for hundreds of children in Es

peranza, located in the northern part of the country. We later found out that 'Esperanza' is Spanish for 'hope.'

"By the time we left, I could see the children and the adults had a look of hope in their eyes."

The July 23-31 mission was the first overseas trip for many in the Northside group. The groundwork was laid by the church's pastor, Dr. Shane Stutzman, who made six prior mission trips to the Caribbean nation.

"A buddy who attended seminary with me called a couple of years ago and told me God is working in the Dominican Republic and that I needed to come," Stutzman said. "The first year I was there, I saw what he meant."

"This was the first time Northside members have done an overseas mission as a group," he said. "A lot of them came back from the trip with renewed energy to minister here and to other parts of the world."

Stutzman said the Dominican Republic government is so excited about the interest in Christianity that it gave 40 acres of land for a church and school. The Northside Baptist mission group used the site for most of its work.

Carlin Connelly, a senior at Orangeburg Preparatory School and one of two teenagers on the mission, said the experience was intimidating but fun.

"The first challenge was the language. It was a little difficult, but we did as best we could," Connelly said. "We had the use of a translator because they didn't speak English, and we didn't speak Spanish.

"The people in the church that we worked through were very loving," she said. "The last night we were there, we talked to them about the experience. Even though we spoke different languages, we understood just by the emotions and expressions on everyone's face."

Phyllis Davis of Orangeburg said interacting with the children during the mission's VBS taught her how the area's abject poverty impacted their most basic needs.

"I didn't realize that the kids sometimes didn't get a meal during the entire day," Davis said. "We asked them to stay over at the end of each session and shared our lunches with them."

"We took a lot of stuff with us that is needed in that area," she said. "All of us took an extra bag of clothes, toys and baseball equipment. I was able to sew up some Hug-a-Bears, about 49 of them, for the kids. I don't know that they had ever seen a teddy bear. They were tickled to get them."

Connelly said the difference between the Dominican Republic and the United States is stark.

"The pastor cried because we brought baseball equipment," Connelly said. "The kids don't have toys to play with. Here, we have iPods that we replace when the new version comes out. In the Dominican Republic, they have a small Matchbox car or a McDonald's toy they will hang onto for several years because that's all they have.

"The difference living there is that running water is a luxury," she said. "People were lucky if their houses had concrete walls. Most of them were wood construction and had dirt floors with only one room that was subdivided."

A middle-aged couple's nuptials in the village of Pierda Gorda, conducted by Stutzman, highlighted the mission. Myers said the event held special meaning for the group.

"We saw the first wedding ever in that town," Myers said. "Marriage is not a big deal down there. This was a couple that had lived together for a long time. Last year, they were saved, and they realized that was not the end of what God wanted for them. In order to prepare for the wedding, they lived separately for the last year."

"We got to see and participate in a baptism, too," she said. "(Stutzman) and one of our deacons participated. I can't describe the feeling because we were at the river. As they were walking into the water, they were singing in Spanish, 'I (Have) Decided to Follow Jesus.'"

Davis said her mission experience was typical of most in the Northside group.

"At first, I had my fears," she said. "You hear horror stories of Americans going overseas, but my husband talked me into it. I was real torn about it, but I'm really glad I did and I'd go back again."

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T&D Staff Writer Phil Sarata can be reached by e-mail at psarata@timesanddemocrat.com or by telephone at 803-533-5540. Discuss this and other stories online at TheTand

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