As far as is known now, none of the churches, schools, and other facilities of the Diocese of the Dominican Republic sustained damage from Hurricane Maria other than leaks in ceilings and walls from rainfall and some collapsed perimeter walls because of fallen trees. However, people in several communities near Episcopal churches experienced flooding in their houses, and their household goods and other items were destroyed. The Diocese of the Dominican Republic has a well-established program to assist affected individuals in nearby communities to recover from natural disasters such as flooding, and Episcopal congregations throughout the country are already collecting relief supplies such as bottled water, bleach and other cleaning supplies, replacement clothing, and mattresses to be distributed to the areas in need.
Bishop Diocesan Julio C. Holguín, along with Bishop Coadjutor Moisés Quezada, Canon to the Ordinary Juan Márquez, and the Deans of the diocese’s four archdeaneries, are coordinating this collection and distribution of supplies. Within Province IX, only the Dioceses of the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico were affected by this most recent hurricane. Sadly, in Puerto Rico the damage was massive, and recovery will be both slow and expensive.
If you would like to contribute funds to assist with purchasing additional supplies and transporting them to the Dominican communities that need them, please consider making your donation through the facilities of the Dominican Development Group at this link:
http://www.dominicandevelopmentgroup.org/donate.
Please designate your donation for “Hurricane Maria Relief.” All contributions received will be quickly sent to the Diocese of the Dominican Republic for use in these relief efforts.
If you would like to contribute funds for hurricane relief in Puerto Rico, please consider donating through Episcopal Relief and Development at this link: <http://bit.ly/2xBXPe8> or the Global Episcopal Mission Network (GEMN) at this link: <http://bit.ly/2fmWLRm>. The Dominican Development Group is one of the partner organizations within GEMN, which held its 2016 meeting in Puerto Rico and has established a special fund for hurricane relief there.