A LEG UP FOR SCHOOL: Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association President Patrick J. Lynch, right, and Lieut. Angel Fermin, president of the New York Dominican Officers’ Organization, exhibit one of the 2,000 backpacks the NYDO will distribute to students in impoverished areas of the Dominican Republic. PBA Photo
A group of Dominican police officers was scheduled to leave Aug. 16 for the Dominican Republic to distribute free school supplies to children in impoverished rural communities.
The New York Dominican Officers Organization received $19,000 in donations, including $5,000 from the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association. NYDO used some of the money to buy 2,000 backpacks and equip them with notebooks, pencils, pens, rulers and other school supplies, as well as care packages with classroom supplies for teachers.
PBA Aids With Medical Costs
The PBA’s donation will also help cover the costs of pre- and post-operative care for Dominican children born with cleft lips and palates. The surgery will be performed by doctors who volunteer their time at the Clínica Cruz Jiminián in the capital city of Santo Domingo.
“New York City police officers’ dedication to service knows no borders, especially since so many of us maintain a deep connection to the places our families came from,” said PBA President Patrick J. Lynch. “We are proud to support NYDO’s efforts to give back to the children of the Dominican Republic.”
“One of the founding principles of our organization has been to help people, both here in New York and in our parents’ country,” said Lieut. Angel Fermin, president of NYDO. “With our school-supply and medical-support initiatives, we hope to give these children opportunities to succeed that would otherwise be out of their reach.”
Will Hit 16 Schools
Ten members of NYDO planned a five-day trip that will take them to 16 schools in the northern part of the country.
NYDO is an NYPD fraternal organization with more than 1,200 members. Those who participate in the school-supply-donation trips, which have occurred annually since 2007, pay their travel costs out of their own pockets. That means all of the money donated can go to supplies and logistics.