Marlin’s Charlie Levine Does Humanitarian Work in the Dominican Republic

Marlin’s Charlie Levine grabs a photo-op with some local
children during his humanitarian trip to the Dominican Republic.

Many of the world’s top fishing destinations in Central America, Africa, the Caribbean and Mexico are mired in unthinkable poverty. The goal of Reel Life Adventures, a nonprofit group, is to make a difference in the lives of the people locked in the grip of such hardship. Marlin’s senior editor, Charlie Levine, spent a week with a group of 13 Reel Life volunteers in the Dominican Republic in late July doing humanitarian work.

The group built a home for a single mother of six and a bank of showers in a community that previously had no area to bathe — they washed in the same water they drank. They also distributed water filters and hospital supplies, as well as books and baseball equipment.

“Having never done any work like this, I didn’t know what to expect,” Levine says. “But it was one of the best weeks I’ve had in a long time. It changes your perspective. You see how lucky you are. You might think you’re having a bad day because the car doesn’t start or some other trivial thing goes wrong. Trust me — your day is much better than most people’s around the world.”

Levine’s trip will be featured in the October issue of Marlin. You can also find a photo gallery on Marlin’s website at marlinmag.com/reellife.

Levine (left) and television host Jose Wejebe (right) work on rebuilding a home for a single mother of six. The pile of scraps in the background is all that was left of the old home.