The Georgia State men’s basketball team is currently on an eight-day trip to the Dominican Republic to distribute shoes and hope with Samaritan’s Feet. Each day of the trip, one of the players will write a short blog about their experiences, so make sure to visit the site each day between now and Sunday for more photos and reactions.
Saturday, Aug. 6 – Senior Isaiah Dennis
It has been a blessing being in the Dominican Republic with my coaches, teammates, and close friends. I’ve always enjoyed doing mission work with my teammates handing out shoes and serving others. This time was so different. I had to realize that I can’t help everyone. I had to keep telling myself this before every distribution. Extreme poverty is a load, and it is devastating. Poverty here seems so widespread as far as the eye can see. We helped tons but there will always be more to help. I still enjoyed this mission trip and I believe this mission trip opened my eyes up more to my American ways and brought me closer to my Panther Family and God. The poverty here made me realize that I take for granted what I have back at home and that I complain too much about things that mean so little. We were here to give but the Dominican also had something to give us. They gave us lessons that we will never forget. They taught us how to care for one another, how to value the small things, and to be hopeful.
Outside of the distribution I have had a great time today. We went out early this morning to go chill at the beach. It was so relaxing and soothing. We got the chance to go banana boat riding which was a blast. Some of us also swam from shore to the island nearby. Also, the people on shore got massages from the Dominican people and purchased some unique Dominican souvenirs. Today for lunch we sat outside right by the shore. I had the chance to try something new again. I decided to go with the whole fried snapper. I was scared when they presented the plate in front of me because the fish still had its head on. However, it was one of the most exclusive tastes I have experienced. After lunch most players visited the art shop and got a couple of nice paintings. I also got some for my family and friends back home. The paintings we got today were so diverse from what we usually see back at home. The paintings will always help us remember our stay in the Dominican Republic.
Without this trip I am not sure we would have gotten this close. We didn’t just get closer because we were around each other all week. We got closer because we went to battles this whole week and we got through them all together. This week we also had the chance to open up to each other because of devotion. Devotion helped me realized how special this team is and how unique our bond is. This is the last day here before we head back, and I honestly believe that everyone will go back a better person for the team and for their life. We will use every lesson from this trip to attack our upcoming season, and I plan on this year being special.
Friday, Aug. 5 – Junior Carter Cagle
It is Friday, Aug. 5, and we just finished our third and last shoe distribution with Samaritan’s Feet. We were stationed in one of the roughest areas of Santa Domingo. The conditions were nothing like what we are used to seeing. But we still got the job done--our team washed the feet of around 250 kids. Each child that was there came in with unclean feet, and beat up shoes, but left with a new pair of shoes and a message of hope.
By the time we got back to the hotel we were all huddled up in the back of the bus laughing and cutting up. No one has cell coverage, and the wifi is so slow you might as well not even bother. So, believe it or not, we actually did socialize. Coach used to take us to the arcade so that we could bond as a team, but I think now he knows that all he really has to do is take away our phones. I don’t think anyone knew we would grow so close in just a matter of days. We expected a reality check, or a culture shock (we got those, trust me), but nothing like this. Last night we met in our meeting space, and we were going around the room just sharing what we learned or what stood out to us. Jordan Session spoke up and said, “I just love my teammates. Y’all are my brothers.” After that comment, the whole team broke out with their own commendations.
I don’t believe that we would have this kind of bond if it wasn’t for this trip. This team is a team that recognizes the bigger picture, the greater purpose, and is pursuing each game plan through that lens.
Only a couple of days left on our trip, but I know we are going to make them great and use it to prepare us for the upcoming season.
Thursday, Aug. 4 – Junior Jordan Tyson
It’s always good to experience something new, especially when that experience is in a completely different country. This is the third country I’ve been to outside of the United States. Actually, every summer for the past three years I’ve been to a different country. The summer going into my freshman year, I played basketball in China for a couple of weeks, and last summer I was in Croatia playing basketball for a company called Global Sports Academy. They have all been great experiences, but the trip we’re on currently in the Dominican Republic has by far been the most enjoyable.
This is the first time I have been outside the country not playing basketball. It’s given me some time to reflect and really appreciate the environment and culture around me without being almost consumed by competition. Today was an extreme culture shock, but a great one at the same time. We all had the option to go zip lining, or ride motor vehicles. Of course, riding motor vehicles sounds a lot more fun and is what most people did, but myself, and a handful of other people decided to go zip lining. It turned out to be a great decision.
I guess the first thing I should mention is how I almost died while zip lining, kind of. We were instructed to hold our hand in a certain position while gliding across the rope. I however, let my hand go, and started spinning uncontrollably and coming full speed at the stopping point. It was a very scary moment, but I thank God I made it through alive and without a scratch. I was very careful from that point on when preparing to take off. We took pictures afterwards and relaxed and cooled off a bit.
Soon, after we finished zip lining, some of us from the group decided to get on a slingshot type of machine that functioned as a roller coaster. My teammate Willie Clayton was very excited to do this and was the first person to strap up and get on. Just a side note, the roller coaster drops you from 64 ft. while you’re in your harness and Willie is afraid of heights. He would go on to tell us afterwards that he just wanted to face his fears. Now, Willie is 6’7’’ tall and 230 lbs., yet when he got on this roller coaster, he was screaming like a child, crying out to God. He even passed out for a couple of seconds, and then woke up and proceeded to scream. I eventually got on, by force of course.
The rest of the time we ate, Pastor Dexter and his wife taught me how to swim, we ate fruit straight off the tree, drove motor vehicles around the campus, got on the back of a donkey, played a game that’s very popular in Spanish culture, took a picture with one of the biggest dogs I’ve ever seen in my life, I even held a real machete. The list could go on for a while, but the point of it all is that I got to experience a foreign culture hands on like never before and met great people. I’m extremely thankful for this opportunity and will never forget it. I’m so glad to be a part of this Georgia State family.
Wednesday, Aug. 3 – Sophomore Austin Donaldson
This experience has been life changing and moving. The roughest part has been giving out as many shoes as we could as each of the first two distributions, but then having to leave before every child could be served. Kids still really wanted shoes which was really tough on me. However, through the pain, there was much more joy giving out shoes. The smiles on the faces of each child made my day 10 times better.
My experience with Samaritan’s Feet has been humbling and brough me humility. You begin to be thankful for everything you have back in the States.
These children down here live in tough neighborhoods and many have no shoes or shoes that are really beat up, which can make it tough to have to walk everywhere.
Another thing that stuck out to me is how everyone has smiles on their faces regardless of what they are going through. The heat is tough and there is no air conditioning, yet they still have smile on their faces.
Today we went to a really rough part of the Dominican Republic and when it came time to go, it was tough. Kids were not able to get shoes and that I know they wanted them so badly, but we just ran out. Many kids were wearing hand me downs or flip flops just like we saw on Monday.
Something I will definitely take from today is that there was one kid who came up and was already smiling with a big smile. Once he got his shoes, they didn’t fit, but he didn’t tell me. I just kind of figured it out as I thought they were too small, so I got the hint and got him another pair and the smile got even bigger. He walked off with the new shoes and old ones in his hands. That really made an impact on me. He was grateful just to receive something that he didn’t want to complain. We all could learn a lot from that.
I am just blessed to be in this situation to be able to give back. I could have been someone that needed the same thing back in the States, but I was fortunate enough to not have to experience that. It truly makes you think.
All week long, the people have been so friendly to embrace us. I had one kid who ran into my arms and I picked him up. That was moving to me. They have no relationship with us, but they know we are here for a greater cause. I hope we can continue that the rest of the week.
Tuesday, Aug. 2 – Junior Isaiah Williams
It’s Tuesday. This is now our third day in the Dominican Republic. For the most part everyone seems to be enjoying themselves. This trip has been a great learning experience for everyone. I was mostly amazed on how different the culture is in the Dominican Republic. Just driving around the city was interesting. Seeing the different houses and buildings and how they are put together was a shock for me. Also, tasting the food over here has been another great experience for me.
We went sightseeing in Santo Domingo today and that was also another learning experience for us. We really learned a lot of great history about this beautiful country. We explored what use to be a war zone and learned it was actually the last stop on Christopher Colombus’ voyage. His mansion was located along the tour and that was pretty cool to explore.
Along the way, a lot of the guys bought little things, like rosaries, hats and shirts. Dinner was at a small restaurant right along the ocean. Everything has been in Spanish which has been a bit of a challenge, but also another learning experience.
These past three days have been great for us and I can’t wait to spend the rest of my week down here.
Monday, Aug. 1 – Senior Willie Clayton
It’s our second day in the Dominican Republic after flying into Santo Domingo from Atlanta yesterday. On the way here, I experienced a culture and voices of people I’m used to hearing in the United States. When we got off the airplane in Santo Domingo, the people are very nice and friendly, wanting to speak to all of us. You could tell some of the guys could speak a little bit of Spanish, while for others, it was completely new. What was great was that all of the people seemed to be happy and appreciative to have us in their country.
The flight from Atlanta was about three hours. On the plane, some of the guys were playing Uno. Others were watching movies. For some of our guys, it was the first time out of the country, so it was a unique experience for everyone.
Now that we have had a little over 24 hours here, the biggest difference I see from the United States to the Dominican Republic is the culture of how people interact with each other. On our bus ride to our shoe distribution with Samaritan’s Feet today, we witnessed individual selling fruits and candy right up at cars at stop lights. We also saw homes that really didn’t have front doors, so technically anyone could just walk in. I’ve honestly never seen anything like that.
I learned a lot about myself at our first shoe distribution where we gave out hundreds of pairs of shoes. Sometimes, I feel like I am going through a hard time, but witnessing what these children have and don’t have really makes me reconsider that. I need to remember that when I think I have it bad, others have it much worse.
Today I got to witness a kid being so excited to be getting a new pair of shoes. In America, many frown upon “off-brand” shoes, but a child down here was so happy to receive any shoe, it showed me that things in life do not have to always be about material things. The shoe represented something so much more than a material good.
Our team is coming together and we hope to produce a lot more smiles on the faces of children this week.
