I had a great few weeks at home. Got to see friends and family and went on vacation in Myrtle Beach. I even went skydiving! It was really great to get a little break but I'm excited for my new adventure in Guyan Valley, WV. I was originally moving to Jonesville, VA from now until May but, last minute, my assignment got changed. I don't know too much about Guyan Valley yet but I'll be sure to update you all on what it's like :)
Tomorrow is my last day at home so I'll be finishing up packing and saying my last "see ya laters" to friends and family. Then, Tuesday morning I'm going to leave for training for the adult program. I'll be in Johnson City, TN from Tuesday night until Friday afternoon. There, I'll receive more construction training and training for my specific positions. This time, I'll be the Volunteer Coordinator and Operations Coordinator. That means I'll be the one to contact all of our volunteers before their arrival to tell them about their projects and our center. I'll also be in charge of the menu, managing our cooks, and the upkeep of the center (basically, I'll organize chores). I'll also still have a few construction projects each week that I'll be the point person for. I had a great summer but I'm excited for this new adventure. The program from now until May with ASP is an adult program. So, we'll have all college-aged and adult volunteers instead of high school volunteers. It will certainly be a very different experience.
I don't know my address in Guyan Valley yet but I'll be sure to post it on here when I do because I loved getting mail from everyone this summer!! :)
I'll post again when I'm in Guyan Valley! Talk to you all soon!
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Monday, August 8, 2011
One of my favorite quotes...
We have posters with quotes all over our center and I had this one hanging above my desk all summer long that I just glanced at again. I found it at the beginning of the summer and liked it but it means a lot to me now because, as I start to reflect on the summer, I find that it describes a lot about how I'm feeling. It's a quote by a past ASP staffer. Here it goes:
"Hey, people are people. Everybody's born into this world with what their parents got. Though there are a lot of material and cultural differences, we're all born with needs: for love, acceptance, fun, laughter, friendship, and security. And because of these similar needs, it's possible to break down some of the material and cultural walls that separate us. In high school and college, most of my classes involved answers that were black and white-true or false. But it's usually difficult to discern what's right or wrong to do It's seldom black and white. Here you don't read or talk about other people's experiences: you do it yourself. You struggle through your own 'lessons' every day. My physical, emotional, spiritual, and intellectual limits have been tested more here than they ever were in college."
-Steve Seifried (former ASP staffer)
"Hey, people are people. Everybody's born into this world with what their parents got. Though there are a lot of material and cultural differences, we're all born with needs: for love, acceptance, fun, laughter, friendship, and security. And because of these similar needs, it's possible to break down some of the material and cultural walls that separate us. In high school and college, most of my classes involved answers that were black and white-true or false. But it's usually difficult to discern what's right or wrong to do It's seldom black and white. Here you don't read or talk about other people's experiences: you do it yourself. You struggle through your own 'lessons' every day. My physical, emotional, spiritual, and intellectual limits have been tested more here than they ever were in college."
-Steve Seifried (former ASP staffer)
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Summer's almost over
Well, the summer is coming to an end. On Friday, we had our last day of construction work, and, with the help of about 550 volunteers that I've had the pleasure of knowing this summer, we completed all of our construction! Friday night was an extremely happy night for me because I was a little nervous about completing a few of our projects. Not only did we complete all of our construction but, now, a few families have a heating source that didn't before and one family has a septic tank. Thank you again to all who helped to make that happen!
The summer has been really great. I've gotten really close with my staff-Katie, Jon, and Lena and I'm going to miss them a whole lot. I'm also going to miss the families that I've gotten so close with this summer. Good news is that I'll only be about an hour and a half away when I move to Jonesville, VA so I can visit and check in with them.
I go back to Johnson City, TN on Tuesday morning and that's where we unload all of our vehicles and return all of our tools, dishes, tuperware, and paperwork. I'll also get to see the staffs in the other 29 counties and hear about how their summers were! After Johnson City, we all go back to Jonesville, VA for "Wrap Up." It's a time to finish up any paperwork that wasn't completed and to start to decompress after the summer because it certainly has been a whirlwind of an experience. I'll be in Jonesville, VA until Friday morning and then I'll head HOME to Springfield! I'll be home for about a week then it's vacation time :) Then, I'll be heading back to Johnson City, TN on August 31 and I'll be there for a few days at training and then I'll be in Jonesville, VA until May!
I'm excited about this next journey with ASP but I'm really going to miss Leslie County. Good news is that our facilities manager, Tim, told me that he was talking to the superintendent and another person on the school board here in Leslie County and assured me that they want me to work for them in their school district. So, that was really cool news! Who knows? It's an option. One of my families has 7 kids and one on the way and she really wants me to be their teacher. But, that's in the future. For now, I'm focused on saying bye to my families, hardware store guys, Tropical Sno owners and staff.
The last few days of the summer are always sad but I'm also really excited to be home and see some family and friends! <3
I'm going to put up some pictures from my recent adventures. Yesterday, we went off-roading in Jon's jeep. That was a pretty fun experience and I got to see some BEAUTIFUL views! Leslie County is truly a beautiful place! Hope you enjoy the pictures :)
See you all VERY soon!
The summer has been really great. I've gotten really close with my staff-Katie, Jon, and Lena and I'm going to miss them a whole lot. I'm also going to miss the families that I've gotten so close with this summer. Good news is that I'll only be about an hour and a half away when I move to Jonesville, VA so I can visit and check in with them.
I go back to Johnson City, TN on Tuesday morning and that's where we unload all of our vehicles and return all of our tools, dishes, tuperware, and paperwork. I'll also get to see the staffs in the other 29 counties and hear about how their summers were! After Johnson City, we all go back to Jonesville, VA for "Wrap Up." It's a time to finish up any paperwork that wasn't completed and to start to decompress after the summer because it certainly has been a whirlwind of an experience. I'll be in Jonesville, VA until Friday morning and then I'll head HOME to Springfield! I'll be home for about a week then it's vacation time :) Then, I'll be heading back to Johnson City, TN on August 31 and I'll be there for a few days at training and then I'll be in Jonesville, VA until May!
I'm excited about this next journey with ASP but I'm really going to miss Leslie County. Good news is that our facilities manager, Tim, told me that he was talking to the superintendent and another person on the school board here in Leslie County and assured me that they want me to work for them in their school district. So, that was really cool news! Who knows? It's an option. One of my families has 7 kids and one on the way and she really wants me to be their teacher. But, that's in the future. For now, I'm focused on saying bye to my families, hardware store guys, Tropical Sno owners and staff.
The last few days of the summer are always sad but I'm also really excited to be home and see some family and friends! <3
I'm going to put up some pictures from my recent adventures. Yesterday, we went off-roading in Jon's jeep. That was a pretty fun experience and I got to see some BEAUTIFUL views! Leslie County is truly a beautiful place! Hope you enjoy the pictures :)
Monday, August 1, 2011
Week 8!
Hi Everyone,
It's Week 8 here in Leslie County-our last week with volunteers! This week, we are working really hard to finish all of our work and then next week my staff is here with me and we have to close out all of our accounts, say bye to families, clean our center and other stuff.
I have been very blessed to have received enough donations for the septic tank and heating systems that we wanted to put in here at Leslie County. Thank you EVERYONE for all of your support! It means a whole lot to me to have that many people support this mission that means so much to me. Thank you, thank you, thank you...a million times over, thank you! You have all made a lot of families VERY happy!
I feel like Leslie County is home now-I really love it here. Don't worry-I'm still coming back to PA but I'm excited to move to Virginia for a bit before I do. Everyone should visit me :)
I'll be home in just a few weeks! See you all soon!
Love you very much!
Thank you for all of your support all summer! I'll try to post again before I go home. Also, I'm going to put up pictures of my home (the old elementary school) soon and the showers and Hyden so everyone can see where I've been all summer!
It's Week 8 here in Leslie County-our last week with volunteers! This week, we are working really hard to finish all of our work and then next week my staff is here with me and we have to close out all of our accounts, say bye to families, clean our center and other stuff.
I have been very blessed to have received enough donations for the septic tank and heating systems that we wanted to put in here at Leslie County. Thank you EVERYONE for all of your support! It means a whole lot to me to have that many people support this mission that means so much to me. Thank you, thank you, thank you...a million times over, thank you! You have all made a lot of families VERY happy!
I feel like Leslie County is home now-I really love it here. Don't worry-I'm still coming back to PA but I'm excited to move to Virginia for a bit before I do. Everyone should visit me :)
I'll be home in just a few weeks! See you all soon!
Love you very much!
Thank you for all of your support all summer! I'll try to post again before I go home. Also, I'm going to put up pictures of my home (the old elementary school) soon and the showers and Hyden so everyone can see where I've been all summer!
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