Batey 105

Batey 105 is a village of just under 100 people located in the center of a sugar cane field outside La Romana in the Dominican republic. We don't know exactly when the village was formed, but in talking with the elders, life in the village in the 1930's was almost the exact same as life today.

In the village are about 50 children and 40 adults. The men primarily work in the sugar cane fields. They start their day by walking up a steep hill north of the village. They spend 6 days a week cutting sugar with a machete and piling it into a large container that is about 6 feet tall by 12 feet by 5 feet. They workers are paid $150 pesos for each container that they fill. A strong worker can finish about 1.5 containers in a ten hour day.

In other words, a strong sugar cane worker can earn up to $225 pesos per day. ($5.23 US). This is up from about $3.50 US when we first started working in the Bateys in the early 1990's.

While sugar cane is the primary industry other members of the village have learned skills outside of the sugar cane industry. Some have worked in resorts, doing construction work, and member worked in an office building in the city for a while.

The village also has created it's own industry of raising chicken and pigs. They purchase the pigs for $20 US and sell the pigs for as much as $140 US after raising them to full size. This income and investment is divided equally among the 90 members of the village.

Batey 105 faces many challenges. When looking at the physical buildings of 105, this is perhaps the worst Batey we have ever seen. There is one community latrine (but they need a minimum of 10). The houses are all built of debris and scraps. They drink unfiltered water. The church is falling down. There is no place to place/burn garbage. There is no place to play baseball or basketball. There is no school for the children. There is no open ground with sufficient soil to grow a garden. Etc. Etc. These projects, while important, are not the primary need for the village.

The primary need for the village is a reason for hope. Many members of the village are products of generations in the village. Nothing has changed in 80 years and they have no reason to believe that things will change for them in the future. In the late 1990's they saw some sporatic aid from outside groups, but they have felt abandoned for about 15 years. They are somewhat skeptical of Americans because a Latrine was started 2 years ago, but funding dried up and the hole that was dug eventually filled up with debris and garbage over time.

While some are skeptical of Americans their spirit is not broken. The children have dreams, the parents want the best for their children and they are extraordinarily welcoming of us and our help.

There is no school in Batey 105 so the 1st through 4th grade children walk to Batey 106 which is about 20 minutes away. From the 5th grade to 12th grade, however, the children must take a bus to and from school. This bus costs $50 pesos per day. For a sugar cane worker, this represents about 25% of their daily pay. With more than one child, this is simply not possible for many families.

Another significant challenge facing the village are the elderly men/women who are unable to work either from health reasons are due to injury. This places an enormous burden on the other members of the village because they must all chip in to feed them.

The sense of community in Batey 105 is extraordinarily strong. The members have a jointly owned business, and they really look out for their members. When asked if they would ever leave, most of the older members of the village said they never want to leave even if they could. For others, however, their dream is to move to the city and for their children to move onto a greater life.

Our goal is to help address their most basic of needs (shelter, sanitation, water, schools) but also help dive deep into their lives and commit to help change their lives for generations. Our focus in the past has been primarily construction but we have learned that there are so many other issues that have high priority. These issues are: Education, citizenship, adult education, learning English, learning a skill/trade, nutrition, medical care, and finding a reason to hope.

Fairmount Church has been going to the Dominican republic since 1987. From 1987 to 2013, Fairmount spread their resources to dozens of different Bateys. Starting in 2014, the primary focus will be to make a more profound impact on just one Batey. By focusing on just Batey 105, the members of the church can learn about the lives, dreams, hopes, and fears of the members of Batey 105. This model has proven to be more successful over the past 10 years by a number of other churches and organizations.