My husband went on a missions trip to the Dominican Republic just last year. Although he wasn't in the area of the quake he saw first hand the suffering, poverty & homeless. These people have so very little, it's hard for us to even imagine. A little boy would sit outside the compound every day waiting for people to come out and shine their shoes for a dollar. He was so poor he didn't even have a pair himself. The one thing these the Dominicans showed my husband on his trip was compassion. He saw them in the poorest of all circumstances and yet they always offered a smile. My husband brought back pictures of children the age of our own and they would smile at him and

laugh. They rarely saw a camera. It was very heart warming and made us both recognize how very blessed we are to live here in the United States of America. I can sleep at night because I know my family is safe. They have food, shelter and necessities.

When my husband came home it was late in the evening when he arrived. He went into our children's bedroom and sobbed.

He felt so overwhelmed. You can't possibly understand what these people live like unless you visit there. Then and only then can you understand the need of assistance. The needed it greatly before and now it's even more urgent.