Café de la Leche ladies ended the year in style at the home of Xiomara Menéndez with a lot of glamour, good food, and conversations. Little is as enjoyable as gathering with neighbors, seeing friends from out-of-town, and catching up on topics overdue. We chatted about recent vacations, upcoming plans for the holidays, children’s studies, family health, and excitement for all of Casa de Campo’s Christmas events.
These monthly gatherings for the Hogar del Niño have been a way for the community to connect, pause busy lifestyles and put a pin in distractions. They’ve been a way for everyone to remember what’s important in life— the people, and how contributions both big and small make a difference in the lives of others. Our Casa de Campo community is like a family, we support each other through the good times and bad, and by helping the children of La Romana our extended family has grown.
Every month, over two-hundred babies in the Crib Room of the Hogar del Niño benefit from the milk and formula received from Café de la Leche events, and numerous donations throughout the year for the Patronato Benéfico Oriental contribute to children’s education, food, medical care, and extracurricular activities. This year, the school formed an alliance with the BoMana Cultural Center and the development of a formal musical program and band was made possible. Recently, they celebrated their first music concert to the delight of children, parents, staff, and local residents.
As per tradition, December’s Café de la Leche was one to be admired and remembered. In Xiomara’s Bahía Minitas home, a lovely dinner spread was prepared by Casa de Campo Resort & Villas with baked ham, smoked salmon, shrimp, mini sandwiches, quipe, pastelitos and more. Eggnog, cocktails, and scrumptious desserts added to the Christmastime feast that everyone savored before bidding farewell to witness Altos de Chavón’s lighting ceremony, which officially marked the start of Christmas in the resort.
In addition to milk and formula, Friday night children of the Hogar del Niño received lots of goodie bags with chocolates to be handed out at their Christmas Day party. Community members in attendance also could purchase adorable Christmas cards drawn by the students themselves and the book “El Búho y la Lechuza,” available in Spanish, English, and Italian by renowned author Lidia Martínez de Macarrulla who donated close to 90 books to benefit the charity! Thank you to everyone for your generosity throughout the year and attendance at Café de la Leche; we hope 2018 is as bright and merry!
View more pictures in the gallery below, taken by Laura Perdomo on Friday, December 8th, 2017:
