RMI is pleased to announce that we are opening the Dominican Republic as our new field! For a few years, the Lord has laid the Dominican Republic (DR) on our hearts. Not only is ministry available to the Dominican people but also to the over one million Haitians that live there.
Last year we began the process of inquiry as to the opportunities there for our C3 Partnership Program as well as our style of ministry. We found that working in the DR would be a natural extension of our ministry in Haiti due to the many Haitians living in the DR. We met with Haitian church leaders to see what the real needs were and whether RMI would be able to have a part in helping meet those needs. The needs shared were heartbreaking and varied. We came away knowing that RMI has great potential to bring hope and help to many there. We also met with Dominican church leaders and found that there is much need amongst their people as well, especially in the area of Biblical training, discipleship, and evangelism.
We also were looking for a church association as a ministry partner. The Lord brought us into contact with the Convención Bautista Dominicana (CBD), or the Baptist Convention of the Dominican Republic. They originally were founded by the International Mission Board efforts of the Southern Baptist Convention. They are now their own independent church association directed and led by Dominican nationals. They have 140 churches in their association. Forty of those are Haitian congregations. The CBD will be a great fit for RMI and provide RMI with a great diversity of ministry opportunities within both the Haitian and Dominican churches and communities in addition to providing recognition from the Dominican government. Recognizing the great needs within the Haitian community, the CBD Executive Committee was very desirous of RMI starting a ministry with their Haitian churches, due to our extensive ministry experience in Haiti. They will also be invaluable in helping us navigate the Dominican culture.
Haiti will continue to be our main field of ministry. The need for our various ministries and programs is greater than ever and our goal of expanding our current 40+ partnerships to 100 partnerships in Haiti is still a huge priority for RMI. Haiti is a vital part of RMI’s DNA and will always be a major part of who we are. You will continue to interact with the Haiti staff and your Sister Church as you have been doing. Nothing will change for you and your partnership there.
Jim and April Starkey and their family plan to transfer from the Haiti field to the DR to help RMI start our ministry there. This could happen as early as this summer. The DR will match some health and family needs that they have much better than Haiti did, and they are very excited about taking their experience and training in Haiti to help RMI establish C3 partnerships in the DR, especially with the Haitians as they are dear to their heart. They will need to raise additional monthly support funds as well as one-time funds before they can go. They are already studying Spanish as a family and God is preparing their hearts to minister there.
Santiago (see the map above) is the city where they will be living and where RMI will be establishing their headquarters. It meets the criteria needed by both RMI and the Starkey family. Pray as they look for housing and begin to consider the many logistics of setting up a new ministry.
Much of our ministry in the DR will mirror what we do in Haiti as many of the expressed needs are much the same as in Haiti. Education will continue to be a great need, especially in Haitian communities. There is a great need for pastoral and church leadership training, in addition to opportunities for medical, relief, construction, and help with sustainable endeavors. Of course, there will be differences and new opportunities due to the different cultures and circumstances. Due to the modern society and well-developed infrastructure, it will be much easier to handle teams and develop the ministry there than in Haiti. We look forward to our Haiti leadership team being a part of helping with establishing the ministry in the DR. This will be in the areas of helping to provide training to Haitian leaders, helping receive teams that are working with Haitian churches, and helping to provide guidance and input on the types and how of ministry with the Haitian communities in the DR.
RMI is ready to promote the DR field, not only for C3 Partnerships but also for one-time work teams for the fall of this year. What does this mean for you or your church? If you have a Haiti partnership but haven’t been able to visit Haiti for the past 4 years, how about considering sending a one-time work or ministry team to help us open this work in the DR? You would be ministering to a Haitian church to help them in various ways. What a great way to keep a Haitian emphasis going in your church. We would love to see several teams starting in the fall of this year, especially if Haiti continues to be closed to teams.
Maybe your church would desire to add a partnership in the DR to your mission opportunities. We would love to see this happen as long as it doesn’t take away from your Haiti partnership. Plan to send a team to see if this would be of interest. This partnership could be with a Dominican or Haitian church.
For any questions, please feel free to email Dan Shoemaker at dan.shoemaker@rmibridge.org or Jim Starkey at jim.starkey@rmibridge.org.
