On February 17, 2024, a group of 16 students and two adult chaperones from Southern Berkshire County will be taking a trip to the Dominicá School and Orphanage in La Ureña, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

The opportunity to go on this trip was brought to students by Dr. Stephen Kisiel and his family, who has been visiting the Dominicá School and Orphanage for the past eight years.

In 2017, the Kisiel family brought a group of students from St. Joseph’s High School in Pittsfield. After moving to the Great Barrington area, the family is continuing the service trip with students from Southern Berkshire County.

Students will be broken into groups, each with a different objective. One group will focus on teaching lessons to the students (K-10) in topics such as algebra and chemistry. Another group will be doing construction projects around the school, such as building cubbies for the bathroom and picnic tables. Some students will be doing arts and crafts with children as well as teaching music and sports.

The students participating in this service trip are very excited to have the opportunity to represent the Berkshire County community.

As life-changing as this experience will be, it comes at a large price. All donations will be put toward flight transportation, supplies for arts and crafts, construction materials, and room and board.

We truly appreciate the time you have taken to read this letter, and we hope you consider donating toward our trip. For more information, please do not hesitate to contact us.

As they say at the Dominicá School and Orphanage, “no act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.”

Thank you for your time!