Today my church had their prayer send off for me. The service was wonderful!! We went out into the field, down by the pond, and set up a huge tent to provide a little shade in the extreme heat. It was so nice to just sing out praises with my church family while seeing all of His beautiful creations all around me. I want to say a special thanks to Pastor Ray, and Pastor Richard. You two have been absolutely amazing and have given me a guidance that I couldn't have found anywhere else. Thank you for taking such an interest in me and helping me with everything. 

I cannot begin to describe how excited I am!! This is the start of my last week in Oklahoma. A lot of people seem confused about my schedule, so I just decided to post it here with a little description about each. =)

  This coming Saturday, June 19th, I am traveling to Orlando Florida with my family for a few days together before they drop me off on this adventure. 

June 24th - July 8th = The Lord's Boot Camp
 Boot Camp is stationed in Merritt Island, Florida. The time spent here will be very strenuous. They are helping us get accustomed to living with almost nothing and training us for the field. Every morning our team of 25 individuals from around the country has to run the dreaded timed obstacle course. It is filled with challenges designed to test your physical, spiritual, and mental strength. This is one of the many team building activities, if we are not strong as a group before we get to the field then we will most certainly fall apart on our own. In addition to this we will be taking classes in Bible, drama, music, basic construction, evangelism, spiritual and practical survival skills and learning some puppetry to show the kids in Malawi when we get there. 
 
July 9th - July 11th = Breaking Camp and Commissioning
 Fairly self explanatory. These days will be spent taking down the camp, packing up our gear, and preparing for our mission. 
 
July 14th - July 16th = Traveling to Malawi Africa
 My team will be stopping twice on the way. Our first flight will be from Orlando Florida to Washington DC. From there we fly to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where we will spend the night. Then onward to Lilongwe Malawi!!
 
July 17th - August 5th = Malawi Foot Washing
 Our mission is to wash the feet of AIDS orphans and put new socks and shoes on them. In addition we will complete small work projects on or near the Units. We will be sharing the love of Jesus through songs, games, puppets, and balloons. 
 
August 6th - August 7th = Traveling to Debrief
 The flights home will be exactly the same as the ones going to Malawi, except in reverse. Starting in Lilongwe, we will travel to Addis Ababa and from there to Washington DC. Then back to Orlando for a few final days. 
 
August 7th - August 11th = Debrief
 Debrief is a very crucial time for us. Coming back from a country that is in such poverty will be difficult. Reverse culture shock is never easy, but when the average individual in Malawi survives on less then a dollar a day.... well it will be incredibly challenging to come back and realize the immense wealth that we all have here and take for granted. This time will be spent taking a few classes on how to share our experiences with others and not block everyone out. By this point our team will be incredibly strong, we will have laughed, cried, and seen some incredible things together and it will be important that we never lose each other.
 
August 11th = Travel Home
 I'll be flying back to Tulsa Oklahoma on August 11th and will be exhausted, but happy to be home. A mere 5 days later my school will start so I won't have a whole lot of time to rest up before my Senior year!! =)