The Mustard Seed

Hi All,

Thank you for visiting my blog, it really means a lot to me :) This chapter of my life began in wonderful Colorado, with a hopeful goodbye to all of my family, friends, and co-workers. I have decided to go on a mission trip to Ethiopia for a year. I will be working with the Salesians, a Catholic Order, and most likely teaching English.

Currently, I am in New York for a three-week orientation. This is my first ever time being in New York, so it is very exciting! There are 18 of us at orientation, from all over the country (California, Washington State, Ohio, Wisconsin, Iowa, Pennsylvania, New Jersey). I am the only one from Colorado, though :) Most of our time has been spent volunteering at a soup kitchen, getting to know each other, and attending talks/workshops about safety, culture shock, conflict resolution, etc. Within the next couple of months, we will all travel out to our assigned locations (Ethiopia, South Sudan, Bolivia, Cambodia) to be there for the next year. Most of us will be helping at schools and orphanages. Also, while in New York, we spent a day in the city (New York City, that is!) and boy was it a blast! I think I saw nearly everything there is to see in New York in one-day of walking: Statue of Liberty on the free ferry, Battery Park, Native American Museum, Bronze Bull, Wall Street, Brooklyn Bridge, Central Park, Times Square, Empire State Building, taxis, rode Subway, Grand Central Station. What a day - yay :)

Upon my completion of orientation (Aug 18), I will be travelling to Dublin, Ireland. I will meet up with friends there and travel Europe with them for approximately two weeks. We plan to visit Dublin, Berlin, Munich, Vienna, Rome, and Venice. After that (Sept 1), I will travel to Ethiopia to begin my work as a Salesian Lay Missioner (SLM).

Even though I will miss you all very much, I feel this is where I’m being called at this time. I will try to post pictures and updates when I can :)

Lots of love,
Jenna

MY FAMILY!