Help a 26yo and his 2 kids have a better future!

Hi family,

I met Wailin a few weeks ago when he drove me and my friend Steph across the Dominican Republic. He was the most responsible driver we had encountered so we continued to use his services every time we needed long-distance taxis.

I’ve gotten to know his story and it has driven me to want to do this for him (as a surprise, he has no idea).

Wailin’s had to start working as a young teen.

Him and his partner got pregnant in their late teens and he decided he wanted to be the father he did not have, so he has since been working around the clock as a driver to provide for his family. The way he speaks about his partner and children is moving and quite rare in this area.

Wailin and his partner are only 26, and are raising 2 kids on $300 a month.

He works to pay for food, and there is nothing left after. One of his kids had a complication with pneumonia and he was in debt for years to afford the simple hospital treatments that were needed.

The thing that moved me to support him is realising that with just $2000, he could buy his own vehicle and taxi freelance instead of working for a company that charges $150-200USD *per trip* to tourists, and yet pays him $300 USD per month when he’s doing about 30 -40 trips each month.

Having his own vehicle would mean he could 5-8x his income, save for the low season when there’s very little work in the area (meaning not getting in debt to survive!) and give his children a chance of a better future.

What really got me about Wailin’s situation is realising that he truly has no chance to save or invest or take a loan, which means that it is really hard for him to change his situation around and get out of survival.

It saddens me that someone at only 26 can be so stuck in a reality that does not support him or his children. And even then, he shows up every day with a smile on his face and excitement to share the new epic songs he found since he last saw you…

I hope we can give this brother a surprise and help him have a change of luck!

Thank you for your support, any donation counts♥️

My goal is to raise this money within the next 24h so that I can give him the surprise (and record it for you all!) when he drives me back to the city on Tuesday.

Thank you in advance for donating and/or sharing.

Lots of love,

Sigrid