THE TIME HAS COME

TODAY IS THE DAY! 

Myself and two other SALTers (Check out their pages with the links on the right hand side of this page! Dominik Berthold and Melinda Norris) will be boarding our plane at Dulles International Airport this afternoon around 5:00pm and will be departing around 5:40pm. Believe it or not, this is a direct flight to Africa. Yes, that is right... 18 hours without stopping. 

We should be landing in Johannesburg, South Africa around 5:15pm on the Thursday the 27th (which is approximately 11:15ET). Once we land in Johannesburg, we will board a smaller plane where we will then fly to Durban, South Africa, hopefully arriving around 10:00pm (approximately 4:00ET). 

Once we arrive in Durban, we will meet our Country representatives. 

From here, I am unable to answer many of the questions that most of you may have. In fact, I may actually be asking myself the same questions that you are. 

I don't know where I will be living.

I don't know how to speak Zulu.

I don't know who my host parents are.

I don't know my students.
I don't know how I will adapt to this culture.

I don't know what kind of food I will be eating. 

But, there is something I do know, and that is this...

This has been my calling and I am ready to learn as I go. I am ready to hopefully impact the lives of others. I find excitement in the unknown & am ready to embark on this journey of mine. 

I cannot thank you all enough for the endless love, support and prayers so far on this adventure.  I please ask that you continue to keep myself as well as all the other SALTers traveling overseas these next few days in your thoughts and prayers. It is greatly appreciated! 

I'm not sure when I will be able to update you all again, but will be sure to post a few pictures when I get the chance! 

Thank you,

Peace and love to all  ♡

"live a life of expectancy, rather than a life of expectation"

The Danger of a Single Story

Today, I'm not here to tell you about the lessons I've learned or to count down the days until I leave for South Africa, but to simply share a story with you. I was shown a brief clip earlier this morning called "The Danger of a Single Story," and while watching it, even I myself, was feeling extremely guilty.

I think more often than not, we as Americans usually classify different people & their cultures according to where they're from in the world with "that ONE story" we have all been told. For example: When telling people that I would be moving to the country of South Africa for 11 months, I received many different reactions, such as: Will you be living in a hut? Will you be riding an elephant to school? Will you have to go to the bathroom in a hole?...and you laugh, but I'm being serious. Because, unfortunately, that is all these people know about Africa. It's all they have ever been told. Forgetting about all of the beauty it has to offer. Many of people had said to me: "What a great sacrifice you will be making!" When in reality, I see this upcoming journey as a privilege, and an honor.

We may also call all of this a stereotype. Or, a "single story." And the problem with that, is this: The single story creates stereotypes, and the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete. They make ONE STORY become the ONLY STORY. And the consequence of the ONLY STORY is this: It robs people of dignity. It makes our recognition of our equal human difficult, and it emphasizes how we are different rather than how we are similar.

Please take a few minutes and watch Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie briefly explain some of her own personal stories about the "Dangers of a single story" - I guarantee you too, will be in the same shoes as I was this morning while watching it: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9Ihs241zeg

Thank you,

Peace & love to all ♡

"When we reject the single story, when we realize that there is never a single story about any place, we regain a kind of paradise."

A New Perspective

Just a brief update on how my upcoming journey has begun. I know many of you thought I was actually flying out of the country yesterday, but I am still here... in Pennsylvania! I will be spending the rest of the week in Akron, PA with the rest of the volunteers. At this time, we will have a general orientation on leadership and expectations while serving. From here, we will all fly out on the 26th to all of our assignments and go our own ways. Once I arrive in Durban, South Africa I will have another week of country specific orientation. Here I will learn all about South Africa (Safety, Norms, Etc.). Following my orientation in Durban, I will have two weeks of language classes where I will learn how to speak Zulu.

Following all the goodbyes yesterday with my parents and family, we jumped right into our welcoming orientation. Now you might be asking yourself, who "we" is? The unique thing about Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) is that they offer several different programs for young adults between the ages of 18-30.

The first program that I am going to tell you about is the SALT program, which is also the program that I am going to South Africa through. SALT stands for Serving And Learning Together. This is a year-long, cross cultural service experience. Through SALT, young adults from the U.S. and Canada serve internationally in a wide variety of positions in fields like education, agriculture, health care, information technology, peace and more. During their assignments SALTers are immersed in another culture, living with host families or communal settings such as dormitories or teacher housing in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin and Central America and the Middle East. 

The second program that I will tell you about is the IVEP program. IVEP stands for International Volunteer Exchange Program. The international Volunteer Exchange Program is a yearlong work and cultural exchange program opportunity for young, Christian adults. Every year, 60 IVEP participants come from more than 25 countries around the world to volunteer in the U.S. or Canada, where they live with a local person or family. Since its beginning in 1950, IVEP has emphasized peacemaking and building understanding across cultures. 

So, with all this being said, this week at orientation, there are 52 SALTers here from all over the United States and Canada, along with 36 IVEPers from countries all around the world. On the 26th of August, all 52 SALTers will be flying out of the States to their assignments all over the world, while the 36 IVEPers will be dispersed to their position in either the States or Canada. 

The neat thing about this is that I am actually able to meet several individuals from Africa, that just recently made their flight to the States (many for the first time ever) and will be serving with the IVEP program. As we are able to share with them things to expect during their time in the States, they are also able to share many stories about life in Africa. 

Even though I have only been around these individuals for about one day, I have already learned an abundance of information from them and also many new things about myself. I think its more often than not that we become so caught up in whats happening in our everyday life, and forget about what else is out there. Just in these past 24 hours, I have been exposed to so much more than I could have ever expected, and I haven't even left the country yet. 

My taking away from today: I know and believe that I am neither inferior or superior to the people around me. 

We are all entering an area of uncertainty within the next week, whether it be in the States or one of the other 60 Countries that MCC serves. We all also have one thing in common, and that is we are all here trying to make some kind of a difference. And even though we know we cannot save a whole country, we can still make some kind of an impact. And thats my goal through this all. 

Peace & Love to all ♡

"Not all of us can do great things, but we can do small things with great love"

How I Got Here

On August 19^th, I will be saying goodbye to my familiar life here in the States and moving across to world to a tiny village known as Eston, South Africa for the next 11 months of my life!

I spent the past five years of my life studying Early Childhood Education (k-4) with a dual major in Special Education (k-8) and a minor in Adapted Physical Activities at Slippery Rock University, which is located North of Pittsburgh.

As I started my last semester at college Student Teaching earlier this spring at Pittsburgh Public, I began to realize how much of a passion I have for helping underprivileged children and teaching in general.

As the semester moved along, I really started to think about what I truly wanted to do with my life post graduation. Graduate school had crossed my mind… for approximately 10 minutes, until I decided I was crazy for even thinking about 2 more years of school at this point in my life!

I began to apply for the Peace Corps and then realized that 27 months away from my family would be a bit too long but still knew that volunteering somewhere overseas was truly where my heart was being called.

As I looked into more volunteering programs, my mom mentioned MCC, which stands for Mennonite Central Committee. When I first looked at MCC’s webpage, everything looked AWESOME, except the deadline for applications had passed and I instantly became discouraged. I called my mom in a panic and she told me that I shouldn’t lose hope so quickly and that I should call first thing in the morning.

After a phone call the following day, I was told there were still positions available and they would be willing to still consider my application! The very same day, I selected three teaching positions located in South Africa, and sent in my application. Very much to my surprise, I had my first interview with MCC the following week!

About two months later, endless paperwork and interviews, I had my final two-hour interview via Skype with South Africa. Later that afternoon, they offered me the position with five days to make my final call! I knew instantly that if I didn’t accept the offer right away, I never would.

With this being said, I accepted a position with Mennonite Central Committee as a Kindergarten teacher at Hope Valley Farm School where I will be focusing on the English language alongside a Zulu speaking teacher. I will also be organizing a peace club for the school as well as coaching.

On August 19^th, my parents will be dropping me off in Akron, Pennsylvania at MCC’s headquarters. I will be spending a week in Akron with the 55 other volunteers where we will have an “in-country” orientation. On August 26^th, I will be boarding a plane and flying 16 hours across the world to meet my new family and be welcomed to my new home.

At this point, I do not know much about my time in South Africa. I do know that I will be living with a host family during my time there and will be able to experience South African culture on the weekends.

The school I will be teaching at is very rural and all the other teachers at the school are volunteers as well from all around the world.

While overseas, I plan to stay in touch with everyone. Please feel free to message me with any questions you may have. I will be updating my blog weekly with new pictures and stories for all!

I cannot thank you all enough for all the support, love and prayers that I have already received. I would greatly appreciate you to continue to keep me in your prayers as I set out on my adventure serving God and his children of South Africa!