From health care to water quality, Americans often take life’s simple necessities for granted. For many students, a trip to the Dominican Republic inspires a change in the way they view their everyday lives.
Both undergraduate students and alumni have experiences while serving in the Dominican Republic can shape the way they live the rest of their lives.
The Institute for Latin American Concern has given students the chance to experience a different culture, form relationships and develop their skills in one service trip. ILAC is an international, Catholic and collaborative health care and educational organization that promotes the well-being and spiritual growth of all of its participants and works with them upon their return to Creighton to promote social justice in the community.
“For most of the students, whether professional or undergraduate students, it makes them think about how they want to use their skills in the future,” said ILAC Director Holly Fuller.
One student who developed her skills and passions was Arts & Sciences junior Sally Breining. With the help of a few friends’ advice and an inspiration to develop her skills, Breining said the ILAC trip is an experience she will never forget.
“I knew that the Dominican Republic would be an experience that would change my life, since I’d heard about it from so many people,” Breining said. “Personally, I was attracted to the water quality program last year because it combined my two passions: the Spanish language and biology.”
Breining is passionate about improving the water quality in the Dominican Republic. ILAC inspired her to give months of her time to help develop the quality of life there.
She will be participating in the ILAC Summer Program, which sends doctors, nurses, dentists and students – both professional and undergraduate – to run clinics in the campus for a month.
“I knew before leaving the DR last summer that I would definitely return; I love life there. It’s simple, real, beautiful, and it’s a ton of fun.”
ILAC also branches out to other schools in the Omaha area,” Breining said. “It has seven high school programs, eight university programs and seven medical/surgical teams, all of which are focused on building relationships and developing a strong, sustainable community.
Business sophomore Liz Kavan went on an ILAC trip in high school. She said the experience of living in a different culture impacted what she wanted to do with her future.
“I believe that immersing yourself into a different culture is very important for a student because understanding another culture will further the insights of students about life,” Kavan said. “This will help carry students into their careers with a mindfulness of other cultures, and the DR experience will give students a new outlook on social justice in their professional lives.”
Fuller said that it is the unique exchange between cultures that makes the Dominican Republic trip worthwhile.
“There is an exchange of gifts and talents,” Fuller said. “The students are able to share knowledge and skills, and the Dominicans are able to teach them about their culture, their language and their perspectives.
“People talk about poverty in developing countries or poor health care, but after the experience, now the students can put a face and a name to those issues, and their way of thinking about it generally changes.”
ILAC also assisted Creighton’s efforts with the earthquake in Haiti. Through fundraising, ILAC helped gather medical supplies and donations for Haiti. The members helped to orient the other volunteers with the country. Though the ILAC program focuses its attention on the Dominican Republic, it recognized the need for assistance in times of disaster. Fuller said the program was instrumental in Creighton’s Haiti relief efforts.
On March 20, ILAC hosted a retreat for those who are going to the Dominican Republic this summer. They focused on what will happen while on the trip and discussed the transition back to everyday life after the experience. Kavan said the retreat helped keep her connected to how she felt when she was in the DR.
“The retreat is meant for our community to reconnect and talk about our experience upon coming back to the United States,” Kavan said. “It can be a hard transition, but the retreat helped us talk about what we can do to stay connected to our experience.”
Breining said she couldn’t wait to return this summer to enjoy everything from the culture of the country to her experiences with service that still impact her life back in
the U.S.
“These are some of the truest, lasting relationships I have ever formed,” Breining said, “and I cannot wait to return to visit them.”