From the Beginning...

       In 1999, I was in the 4th grade and the mission committee was planning a trip to Belize. For some reason they let me go, even though I was by far the youngest member of the group. In Orange Walk Town, I helped teach in an elementary school that was part of a church and helped build a house. There is a good chance I got in the way more than I actually taught and supervised more than I actually built, but during the week my eyes were opened to the need present in a neighboring country. That mission trip to Belize sparked in me an interest in service and international missions.

            Since then, I have been on mission trips to Guatemala, back to Belize, Florida, North Carolina, and Tennessee and have participated in various service projects around Alabama. I learned so many different things during each experience about God’s love, about the importance of serving, and about making an impact both physically and spiritually. Each mission trip I have been on has been unique but most have included sharing Jesus through working with children, building or repairing houses, or gathering food and serving those in need.

            The summer after my freshman year in college I was selected to represent the North Alabama Presbytery as a Youth Advisory Delegate to the 218th General Assembly in San Jose, California. While exploring the Exhibit Hall during a break, I came across a brochure for YAV. Young Adult Volunteers - a year of service for a lifetime of change…I instantly knew it was something I wanted to look into. Three years later, here I am, a YAV.  

            Young Adult Volunteers, a PC(USA) program, offers opportunities in Christian service and learning for people ages 19 to 30. The YAV Program has 16 sites both here in the United States and around the world. Young Adult Volunteers serve in communities of need for one year.

            During the spring, I went through the application, discernment, and interview process. I traveled to Louisville, Kentucky for a placement event where I spent time with other potential YAVs and interviewed with the site coordinators for two locations, Guatemala and South Korea. I would have loved to have been placed in either country, but after speaking with Simon and Haejung Park, the coordinators for South Korea, I knew that was where I was being called.

Anna, Thomas, Me, Haejung

            On August 29^th, I will be on a plane to Daejeon, South Korea. What will I be doing there? While I am still learning about my specific responsibilities, I know I will be partnered with a local church and work with an after school program as well as a community development program. For the first four months I will be in language school every morning…working on my Korean.

            I know that this year’s experience is going to be life changing for me. It will involve living outside my comfort zone and what is familiar to me. It will involve focusing on the needs of others. It will involve journeying in faith and trusting God in new ways.  I could not be more excited!

            Whether or not you are supporting me financially, I am so grateful for your prayers and the support you have provided me now and throughout my life.  Also, I am thankful for growing up in First Presbyterian Church and would not change that for anything!