SARAHMANCA.

Hey guys.

I know it’s been a second since I’ve updated, but everything is going pretty well in preparation to getting to Spain!

I’ve had such awesome things happen to me in the last month or so. Krystal and I didn’t have jobs for about a day, then were offered positions on a new project, which is going great. Our boss is way cool!

On a trip to the Dominican Republic for Thanksgiving where I thought everything was going wrong, I had a great conversation on the plane ride there with someone who decided to support my trip to Spain! A great reminder of how wonderful people can be.

My mom decided to give up birthday presents this year and asked all her friends and family to donate towards Sarahmanca instead. Which helped me A LOT! Parents are pretty awesome sometimes.

I was also able to obtain a buddy pass to lower my airfare costs, which I am soo incredibly grateful for.

I’ve also gotten a chance to read some great books! All of which I think will help me in these next coming months. One in particular, The Art of Non-Conformity by Chris Gillebeau, really hit home with me and Krystal, who also got a chance to read it (thanks Carolyn!). In the unconventional career path of industrial designers, it’s nice to have a reminder that you don’t always need to know where you want to be in 5 years, and there’s nothing holding you back from taking that trip or mission you’ve always wanted to take, or going to grad school. Or not going to grad school. Really a great read for anyone who wants more out of life.

Which brings me to my new year’s resolutions. Thanks to a group of very creatively minded ladies I meet with about once a month, I will be kept on track with my resolutions this year. Megan and I did a spectacular job with our “look fit for the summer” plan last year so I’m pretty confident about this one. As a professional resolution, I’d like to get into at least 3 graduate school programs (which I think might be public health now!). As a personal goal, I’m taking more initiative in general. No more keeping quiet about things I think matter! Feel free to help keep me on track with any of these.

Support-wise, I’m at about 80%, which went up drastically in the last month or so. This is my last week for support raising for my tentative January 7th leaving date, so keep your fingers crossed and prayers up! If you’re reading this and would like to donate, just go to http://cmfi.org/serve/apprentice and click on support your apprentice, and put my name under the ‘missionary/project name’ field.

Thanks to everyone who has made these last few weeks really awesome.

I will update for sure before I leave to Salamanca, and way more once I get there.

Adios a todos!

-smelgen

Hola

Leaving for Spain is getting a little bit more real these days. With three months left I’ve had to really start getting things together - papers for visas, airfare quotes, mental preparations, etc. Support raising is going well, a little slow this week but going up!

I’m very lucky to still be able to work before I leave though. Lucky and thankful for the job that I have, because it’s awesome. And I probably couldn’t have asked for a better coworker. She’s as passionate as I am about helping those who need it. Also we’ve bonded over the classic hip hop station on pandora for a solid week now.Which speaking of, the project we’re working on has just entered a competition for a grant! We need as many votes as we can to win and keep developing our product, so go here and vote as many as three times!

Chyeah, we’re in the double digits.

10% support!

Photo

This is how excited I am.

Oh, hey there!

This is a blog about my journey. Because it’s going to be amazing, filled with great people, great conversations, and life changing experiences. And I’d like you all to be there for it. Don’t worry, I’ll post the awkward moments too, my specialty!

If I haven’t told you all about it yet, I probably will really soon, but in the mean time here’s a brief story:

After graduating this summer from Georgia Tech, I was given the opportunity to join a campus ministry team in Salamanca, Spain in January for five months as an apprentice. I gladly took it, as it seemed like the perfect next step in my year toward getting to know God. I’ll be honest, I’m a little nervous since I’ve never been on a mission before. But I’m going in with an open mind and 22 years worth of Dominican culture under my belt, so I think I’ll be okay.

Right now I’m in the process of support raising. My updated budget is $8,565 and I’m currently at 9%, which I’m really excited and thankful about! If you would like to support me, it’s super easy. Just go here and click on “support your apprentice” and put my name under “missionary/project name”. Regardless, I’d like to ask that you support me through prayer!

Also feel free to ask me any questions. My email is smelgen@gmail.com. I’ll be in ATL for awhile, then back in Orlando for a bit, and I’m always down for an iced latte, so let me know.

-Smelgen