Back to the Carolinas

Wow, it has been quite a ride since I last made a post on here at the end of July. I had a crazy push for setting up projects and connections in Haiti to function for my six or so weeks back in the States, then I had to prepare to actually leave for a while. This required some mental fortitude, lots of time for reflection, and patience. Then I actually flew back to Asheville on August 21st.

Metal art

I am so grateful to have spent just over a full year in Cange, Haiti, working under the Young Adult Service Corps in relationship with the Diocese of Upper South Carolina and many others who work in and around Cange. What an amazing year of growing confidence, new relationships, a richer faith, and a different outlook on day-to-day life. God's love is so alive and vibrant in this world.

Pastyme Benefit Concert

Do you love music? Do you love dinner? Of course you do. So get a ticket to the Pastyme Benefit Concert at Trinity Episcopal Church in Asheville, NC, on May 18th at 5:00pm. The wonderful folks of Pastyme (an awesome group of singers) will be performing to send Trinity youth to the Episcopal Youth Event in Philadelphia in July AND to support myself in my second year with the Young Adult Service Corps and fellow Trinity young adult Megan Cox in her service for the Episcopal Service Corps.

Order your tickets here: http://www.trinityasheville.org/announcements/pastyme-youth-benefit/

We would all greatly appreciate your support--and you'll have your ear drums massaged with beautiful music and tummies satisfied with scrumptious food.

Here's a map to Trinity:

Ecole Lo Limonde

Thabenie invited me to visit a primary school she supports in a rural locale called Lo Limonde. This is a walk-through of my visit. I deliberately restricted use of my camera to have a more personal interaction, so I'll use more words to illustrate the experience.

I started the trip on my first ever moto ride (I only decided to do this because most of the trip was on a gravel road and not the busy paved road). We drove for about 45 minutes to Tierra Muscady, where our path ended and we had to switch to foot travel. 

The path traversed pretty typical rural Haiti countryside with very few trees, some farm land, and a lot of open grassy areas with sparse livestock. Dusty now, in the beginning of the dry season, baking in the sun and with little water.We walked for about 45 minutes, crossing one knee deep river, before arriving at the school. As is typical in rural Haitian areas, there is no centralized village. In Lo Limonde, the school is the only building excluding fairly spread out houses.

Meet the Other YASCers!

Ashley Cameron created this awesome video that introduces all of this year's YASC volunteers (except for the two from the Dominican Republic who were unable to attend training in New York due to visa issues). Watch the video to find out who we all are, where we are from, where we are going and what excites us about YASC.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-NBnHLUpNI&feature=youtu.be
You can also find out more about each volunteer at the blogs linked on the front page of my blog.

So Close And Yet So Far Away

From June 16th through June 29th, twenty some twenty somethings and a few young-adult-at-heart Episcopal missionaries experienced the 2013 training session for the Young Adult Service Corps. Meeting at the Stony Point Center, north of NYC on the Hudson River, we mixed logistical and abstract training sessions to help us prepare for integrating into another country. A big THANK YOU to the YASC staff and all of the others that contributed so much to our training and preparation for our mission years.

I'm amazed by how at home I feel with this bunch of missionaries, given we've only spent three days of discernment weekend and about 14 days of training together. After getting so close during this time, we all embark for distant lands in the next couple of months. But through that, we will all be there for each other for support as we navigate this calling.

Change of Place

Two big pieces of news came to me this afternoon. First, I have reached my goal for fundraising! This is far sooner than I expected, and I am so grateful and blessed to have all of this support. Thank you to all who have made contributions! (More on this at the end of the post).

Second, I have received the blessing of Bishop Duracin, the Bishop of Haiti, for placement in Cange, Haiti, a town located in the Central Plateau inland to the northeast of Port-au-Prince. This means my placement is official!

"But wait, I thought you were going to Brazil," you say. That was the plan until Dr. Harry Morse and David Vaughn, both parishioners at Holy Trinity Episcopal Clemson, proposed a placement in Haiti.

And so it begins!

Well actually it already began. Last summer I first heard about the Young Adult Service Corps while talking to my friend and current YASC volunteer Jared Grant. Skip a few steps to February, and I found myself at a deeply spiritual discernment weekend for the program at Camp Weed in Florida. That retreat was a chance for us to meet the YASC staff, former volunteers and the other potential volunteers for next year. The weekend was an intense period of reflection that helped me determine that YASC and a mission year are right for me. Then there's been the past few weeks, when I've been occupied organizing my fundraising, communication and support for this experience.

But in some sense, I feel like YASC starts with this blog. Communication is going to be key for me as I enter a mission year with the Episcopal Church, and this blog will be a core part of that communication. It will serve as a tool for me to record my experiences and work, to keep in touch with people back at home, and to gather support from my family and friends.

I hope it will also serve as a tool for you as you follow me in this journey and participate in the ministry. You'll find information about me and my motivation to serve here, under the "About me" tab. You'll find details on how you can participate in this ministry here, under the "How to Help" tab.

You'll find a passage of scripture from 1 Corinthians in a separate tab on the main page as well. This is a passage of scripture that I really appreciate. In it, Paul provides an explanation of how our individual spiritual gifts fit into our often chaotic world and how we are all united under God. It's also the inspiration for the title of my blog.

You'll find the meat of the blog here on the main feed. I'll be posting about my preparations for leaving, my work and my travels while abroad, and anything else I find interesting or relevant to my service. If that sounds fun to you, I hope you will follow what I post and discuss what you read with others and me.

An unpredictable journey lies ahead, but your support will help me remember I am not alone walking this path.

I look forward to making more posts in the future, and I look forward to hearing from you. Hopefully the next time you'll hear from me here will be with details about my placement.

Together we are many parts but one body.