** How ironic is it that while I write this first blog post, The Lion King is on TV?**
Jambo Sana! (In Swahili this means a hearty, "Hello!")
As many of you know, I have been granted the incredible opportunity to travel to Chogoria, Kenya this upcoming May. Let me first express to you my deep gratitude to you all for your tremendous support for me for this experience, this trip would not be possible without your help.
We depart for Chogoria on May 12th, my roommate Hannah and I are flying out of Minneapolis to Chicago where we will meet up with our 7 other travel buddies (5 classmates and two of our professors). From Chicago we fly to Brussels and Brussels to Nairobi. We will arrive in Nairobi around 10pm on May 13th. Monday, May 14th we will continue our journey to Chogoria.
While in Chogoria we are all assigned to an area of work/service. I, along with two of the girls going, will be working with the organization Village HopeCore International (http://villagehopecore.org/) which is a micro-lending organization out of Chogoria. This organization was founded by a man named, Dr. KK. I am very much looking forward to meeting Dr. KK as I have heard nothing but positive things about him. Dr. KK is seeking to empower the women and especially men whom he interacts with every day. Although Kenya is still very much a patriarchal culture, the economy is fueled primarily by women. Village HopeCore International seeks to support not only the women of Kenya but to educate, empower and fuel the men of Kenya as well.
The other young women I will be traveling with (no guys on this trip, just one male professor) will be working alongside me, and in the schools and the hospital. We all come from a variety of major fields of study: Education, Radiology Tech, Business, Communication (me), Mass communication, Accounting, and Psychology. We also make up 3 years of college: 4 seniors (two graduating in May, including myself), 1 junior, and two freshmen. Our different backgrounds will all help to support a unique experience for each of us in this new culture.
I think I can speak for every single one of us when I express once more how thrilled I am for this experience. For the sake of keeping this a short blog and not boring you all to death, I am going to say goodbye here. I encourage you to continue to check back and read this blog as the next 7 weeks unfold before we leave for Chogoria. I will be doing my best to update as often as possible.
Thank you again for your support and keep the prayers coming!
