Florida Insurance Agents Provide Aid to Families in Dominican Republic

April 13, 2012 - PRLog -- Brian Culbertson and David Theiss, Florida Insurance Agents at the Culbertson Agency, recently took a week-long break from writing insurance policies, so that they could travel to a small community called “Hotel del Yaque” in Santiago, Dominican Republic, where they would provide assistance to children and families. Since the inception of Culbertson Agency (http://www.culbertsonagency.com) the company has provided financial support to children in the Dominican through a child sponsorship program called “G.O. Kids” (www.go-ministries.org/go-kids). This year, however, the agents took on an even more active role in supporting the community, by physically traveling to the Dominican Republic and providing aid where it was needed.  

The primary purpose of the Culbertson team’s trip was to assist with the construction of a central building in Hato del Yaque. The building would serve as the community center, and would also provide housing for a local pastor and missionary, who previously did not have a place to live within the community. When the Culbertson team arrived, they saw that most of the structures in the area consisted of only a few old boards and pieces of tin, which were loosely tied together. The mission of the team was to erect a concrete block structure, which would serve as a safe, secure community center in Hato del Yaque.  Photos and detailed information about the trip can be found on Culbertson's Facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/culbertsonagency

“This was very hard work, much different than building homes in the U.S.,” said Brian Culbertson of Culbertson Agency. “We mixed all of the concrete by hand, moved every block, and dug every ditch with a shovel. We partnered with the local construction team, who knew how to do everything. We were just there for manual labor, and they worked us hard!”

In addition to the construction project, the Culbertson team also provided hot meals for children in the community who were suffering from malnourishment. The organization that Culbertson partnered with, called “Go-Kids”(www.go-ministries.org/go-kids), provides a hot meal for these children, 6 days per week in the nutrition center within Hato del Yaque.

Theis and Culbertson also had the opportunity to meet some of the children who have benefited from the financial contributions Culbertson Agency has made over the years.

“We got to meet 5 of the 6 kids that we support through the Go-Kids sponsorship,” said Culbertson. “This was an amazing experience, getting to actually talk to them, learn about their interests, and find out how school was going for them. We also got to meet their parents and families, and learn about each of their situations. We’ve been getting pictures, as well as Easter and Christmas cards from these kids for years now, but it was so cool to actually meet each of them. The kids ranged from pre-K to 8th grade, and our donation for each child covered their education, school supplies, and a birthday and Christmas present. The school’s focus is to prime future leaders for the island.”

Culbertson and Theis plan to return to the Dominican Republic in June, then again in October to provide ongoing assistance where it is needed. They hope to continue this effort by making the same trip at least three times per year.

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About Culbertson Agency:

Culbertson Agency is run by Florida insurance agent, Brian Culbertson and his wife Karen. Together they serve all of Southwest Florida from their Fort Myers location including the residents of Cape Coral, Naples, Lehigh Acres, Bonita Springs, Estero, and Marco Island. They specialize in Florida home insurance and auto insurance. However, the Culbertson Agency team is happy to handle most personal lines of insurance, including boats, motorcycles, golf carts, RV’s and ATV’s and life insurance.

Receive a free insurance quote online at http://www.culbertsonagency.com or call (239) 210-7700.