10 Reasons to Join Mak Staff
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There are so many reasons why anyone should want to join the staff team in Dominican Republic and come be apart of what the Lord is doing here through Makarios! We’ve compiled a list of 10 reasons (although the list could be much longer) for why you should join Mak staff in Dominican Republic. |
1. The endless stream of hugs you will receive from the children you minister to
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The primary focus of Makarios in the Dominican Republic is our school, where we serve some of the most beautiful, loving 3-12 year-olds from three neighboring villages. Our students are taught primary academic subjects and more importantly about the Lord and how He has come to save us and reconcile us back to Himself. In no time at all, students carve out a special place in your heart and it becomes your joy to see the Lord working in their lives and families.
Our hope is for students to be future Christian leaders in their communities. And although ministering to them can be challenging, sometimes God allows us to see fruit from the seeds we’ve worked hard to plant. A local staff member shared that one day, four third-grade students came across a board that listed teachers’ prayer requests and that the students, completely of their own accord, decided to pray through every request. They spent their entire recess fervently praying! Moments like that remind us of why we do what we do. |
2. You will experience close-knit community with other staff members
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The bible makes it clear that as Christians we are supposed to live in community with other believers. To serve the Lord well, we need our community to encourage us when we’re struggling, to speak truth into our lives when the devil tries to deceive us, and to pour into us so that we can pour into others. In biblical community, believers love and humbly serve one another, bear each other’s burdens, and pray for each other. Most importantly, living in community means having the opportunity to reflect the image of our supreme triune Creator, who lives in perfect community through the trinity of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Makarios recognizes the importance of this and staff members in Dominican Republic strive to live and love well in community daily. Imani Folkes, Sponsorship Coordinator and Resource Teacher, said, “I cannot possibly count the amount of times I have felt the love of my fellow staff members. When you’re sick they come visit you, and make you soup in your own kitchen. When you’re going through a tough time, they surround you to lift you up in prayer. My coworkers are not merely my coworkers. They are my family.” |
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3. You will laugh A LOT
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A day’s work at Makarios isn’t complete without a belly laugh … or several. Between students, coworkers, neighbors, and even strangers, you won’t be able to hold it in when they spout off hilarious commentary or break out into spontaneous song or dance. Our local Dominican and Haitian staff members are incredibly expressive and wonderful story tellers, and our students follow in their footsteps. It’s so entertaining to teach them, never knowing what spunky response you’ll get to an open-ended question. Local staff members are experts in pranking. A popular Dominican birthday tradition is pouring water on the birthday boy/girl and though this is a reality that everyone is aware of, Makarios employees have been able to surprise-drench one another for years with epic creativity. Hiding in trees, on rooftops, around corners, in disguise – anything’s worth the good laugh that’ll come with soaking your coworker on their special day! |
4. The island is beautiful, and you will live in close proximity to the beaches
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The Caribbean is a breathtaking part of God’s creation and in general every view from the Dominican Republic is spectacular, starting from your first gaze down at the island through the plane window. The blues of the water are bluer and the greens of the trees and sugar cane fields are greener. The colors jut out at you, like the mountains that cut through the earth here. Their presence is undeniable.
It’s so important to rest after work and on weekends and the nature features and beauty of the island allows you to do that in synchrony with creation. Dig your toes in the sand of a beach that’s been pictured in a thousand postcards, or get away to the big city of Santiago and see a 3-D movie. Take a trip to Samaná to watch the whale migration, or hike Mount Isabel in Puerto Plata. There is so much to explore on such a diverse and beautiful island. |
5. You will work for an organization that values not only your physical, but spiritual health
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Sarah Holland, third grade teacher, shared that for her, one of the many blessings that comes with working for Makarios is being apart of an organization that truly cares about her spiritual walk. Your faith is congruent to your work thus, spiritual health is vital in professional success in ministry.
At Makarios, that is understood and valued, and measures are taken to promote spiritual wellbeing and to support one another in striving to be like Christ. It’s encouraging to go to work every day knowing that your coworkers share your beliefs and values, and that they value your spiritual walk more than anything else you could bring to the table. They know the truth: that it’s only the Lord working through you who can enact real change in the lives of the children and families you’re serving. |
6. You will consume the best coffee and fried chicken IN THE WORLD
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If you’re not already a coffee addict, it’s highly probable you’ll become one, and if you’re a coffee drinker but have yet to try DOMINICAN coffee, you’ll certainly become one after your first sip of coffee in the Dominican Republic. It’s richer, bolder, and livelier than your favorite American coffee. For Sarah VanHoose, second grade teacher, it’s a representation of the country itself and all the life it overflows with in a cup.
“La bandera Dominicana” (the Dominican flag) is every Dominican’s favorite meal of fried chicken, rice, and beans and much like Dominican coffee, it’s just plain better. It could be that after a long, hot morning of difficult but satisfying work, it tastily replenishes your energy, giving you what you need to keep serving. It could be the community that’s enjoyed as you sit down with your new Dominican friends and trade legs for wings. Be it coffee or chicken, meals are always enjoyed in good company, and they are wonderful opportunities for bonding experiences. |
7. The Lord will strengthen you in your faith as He challenges and refines you
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Working for Makarios will be one of the most challenging, and most beautiful adventures you’ll ever have. We go with the purpose of teaching the students the knowledge and skills they need to succeed academically and about God’s great love for them, and WE end up learning through that experience the knowledge and skills we need to succeed professionally and about God’s great love for us! He does this by presenting us with challenges that we must seek His help in overcoming, fine-tuning and pruning us.
Many different aspects of the job provide these opportunities. Miranda Wauson, School Administrator, comments on living in community: “It’s hard, it’s beautiful, and it is the fire that the Lord uses to refine us.” Raising support to go teaches us complete dependence on and appreciation of the Lord’s provision. Watching our students and their families battle illnesses that are a result of living in poverty stretches our idea of God’s sovereignty and develops our trust in His plan. But at the end of day we’re better people for it, able to serve the Lord and His kingdom more effectively, and we do it because our students are more than worth it. |
8. The culture is very warm, welcoming, and relaxed
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Dominican culture is reflective of the island itself – colorful, beautiful, and inviting. Dominicans don’t meet a stranger and fold outsiders into their families in a way that humbles the American attitude regarding community. Relationships are vital, and locals are kindly willing to slow down their daily rush to stop and greet someone they know (or even don’t know), or accept an invitation to enjoy a quick cup of coffee. People in the DR feel comfortable expressing themselves, and it’s not uncommon to enjoy lively discussion of many and varied themes on public transportation or at the super market.
The culture is relaxed. The lack of foreboding intensity allows people to laugh at themselves, or one another, with fear of offending or hurting feelings, as the relational baseline is so well established. You’ll feel secure in a group of people that easily and frequently communicate how special you are to them. |
9. You will develop personal relationships with kids and their family’s outside of school
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As part of the local staff it’s required that we make weekly visits to the villages we serve. We all go together in the Makarios guagua (van) on the same day every week after the children have been dismissed and we rotate which village we visit so we make sure we see everyone as much as possible. Let us clarify that this is the most enjoyable “requirement” to fulfill – built-in time for fostering relationships with our hilarious children and their incredible families! These visits are filled with you spending time and ministering as you feel led, whether that’s visiting with parents about student progress, walking hand in hand with children down a dirt road, playing any number of fun games or sports, or helping someone’s “abuela” (grandmother) snap beans.
It’s also completely acceptable and encouraged for you to spend time with your students and their families outside of regularly scheduled work events, a privilege that’s a rare beauty in education these days. It might be that you will stop by a home on an afternoon walk and stay for two hours, sipping coffee and playing dominoes. Spending time outside of school builds trust between you and your students and helps to create a better classroom atmosphere. It also shows your appreciation of the value Dominicans place on spending time with one another. |
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10. You will be a part of something greater
Working for Makarios is working for a cause that doesn’t simply benefit people in the present. It’s even more than working to benefit the future of people’s lives in the Dominican Republic. It is the opportunity to be a part of God’s grand plan for His creation and His people. The Lord doesn’t need us, butallows us to be a part of His mission: changing lives and drawing people back to Himself.
2 Corinthians 5:18-21 says “All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.”
At Makarios, we experience true joy every day when we go to work and know that through God’s power and provision we get to make a difference in eternity. Imani Folkes, Resource Teacher and Sponsorship Coordinator, shares “The Lord is doing amazing things through Makarios. It’s going to be a beautiful thing when we reach Heaven and we see all the ways the Lord has used Makarios for His kingdom.”
2 Corinthians 5:18-21 says “All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.”
At Makarios, we experience true joy every day when we go to work and know that through God’s power and provision we get to make a difference in eternity. Imani Folkes, Resource Teacher and Sponsorship Coordinator, shares “The Lord is doing amazing things through Makarios. It’s going to be a beautiful thing when we reach Heaven and we see all the ways the Lord has used Makarios for His kingdom.”
