About
Shine The Light Initiative is a non-profit organization founded by Winnipeg dentist, Brent Wong and his wife Wendy, formed to assist people in the world who are less fortunate or are facing great challenges in their lives.
Unlike most charitable organizations, Shine the Light believes that an organization can be effectively run, simply with gifted volunteers. This way all of your donation goes towards the cause, not the organizers of the cause.
All monies raised are for the express purpose of transporting our volunteers to the villages in need, for medical equipment, needed supplies and for local help to transform the landscape with new buildings, to stimulate the economy.
Our focus at this juncture is on the north shore of the Dominican Republic and more particularly in the area around Puerto Plata. We have worked in the barrio of Agua Negra (recently renamed Nuevo Renacer, meaning new re-birth) in Puerto Plata and the villages of Ascension, Cangreo, Nazareth and others. Today we are focusing our attention in the village of Javillar, Puerto Plata.
We work with and through a number of local Dominican and Haitian professionals (pastors and doctors) to ensure that our efforts are expended in the areas where they will have the most impact.
How The Trips Work
Home Building
The construction teams financially provide the materials and physically assist the local workers in the construction of in-fill homes for area residents whose homes have deteriorated to the point of being dilapidated or have been destroyed by time, extreme weather or flooding.
Dental Clinics
Brent and his dental team provide free dental clinics to the locals. They perform fillings, extractions, cleanings and even some dental implants! At least once and often twice per year a Winnipeg denturist joins the group and provides dentures to locals who have been missing teeth for many years.
Medical Clinics
The medical team consist of doctors, nurses, and pharmacists who co-ordinate with local doctors to provide free medical clinics in Javillar or outlying villages where they are most needed. The teams bring much needed medicine, vitamins and health related products and dispense them to the communities in need.
Although these are the highlights of the missions trips, we continue to seek out new and challenging opportunities to provide further assistance wherever possible.
See the Transformation For Yourself
Before
After