Los internos

Colorado Springs was an amazing week to meet all interns serving with EMI, but I especially enjoyed getting to know the other three who I will be working with in Costa Rica.  Brad, Esther, Kevin and I have spent a lot of time together getting to know each other on a more personal level.

Here is a little description of each of my team members: 

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Brad is always moving, tapping, looking around, and zooming ahead of the rest of us.  He has a B.S. in Civil Engineering with a structural emphasis from Vanderbilt University.  He (like Esther) enjoys rock climbing and together they convinced Kevin and me to pick up the sport! Since Colorado, we are all now outfitted with climbing shoes and harnesses! (Yes, I am going rock climbing!)  Brad has never been to a Spanish speaking country before now but God has blessed him with languages.  He likes to make conversation so even after having only a few years of Spanish in school, his Spanish is very good. 

Esther has been labeled a Granola, which was verified by the fact that she rock climbs, skis, drives a Subaru, and wears Chacos.  She is a recent graduate from Washington State University with a B.S. degree in Civil Engineering with a structural emphasis.  Esther is a sweet girl with a sweet heart.  She will drop everything when she feels led to pray. We got to room together in Colorado so we are already that much closer. Esther, by far, has the prettiest name in Spanish.

Kevin is an almost hipster skater. He studied Architectural Engineering at University of Texas and graduated 1 1/2 years ago (like me).  He has spent most of that time working at a skateboarding ministry in California.  He has just been diagnosed with Chrohn’s disease and will find out soon if he also has contracted malaria from his time spent in Africa.  Please keep Kevin's health in your prayers.  It seems like Kevin and I share many things in common- one being that we have a special place in our heart for Mexico from taking several mission trips.  We even scored the same on our personality tests- Watch out, EMI América Latina will have two "advocators"!

Costa Rican group hug!

We tend to gravitate to each other after meetings.

The Costa Rica team + Ross took a day trip to Garden of the Gods to enjoy God's beautiful creation.

This is Esther's description of me from her blog:  Allison is a southern sweetheart from North Carolina. She studied interior design (more like interior architecture) at Appalachian State University. She has had a passion for missions since going on a missions trip to Mexico in college. She is humble and willing to laugh at herself. We got to be roommates during orientation, so we are already close!

Garden of the Gods

We like to have a good time.  Brad, the strong one, is holding up the rock as I give Kevin a little push. One epic picture.

 

Feel free to follow the blogs of Esther, Brad and Kevin! There is much to write about!  Hopefully together we will capture all our experiences. 

Esther Lynch:  http://costaestherica.blogspot.com/

Brad Montgomery: rockclinger.blogspot.com
Kevin Winner: awinnersjourney.blogspot.com

Colorado Springs

Welcome to the first post of my new blog! To refresh your minds a little about what I will be doing, I am working for Engineering Ministries International- a non-profit Christian organization made up of engineers, architects and design professionals who donate their skills to help children and families all around the world step out of poverty and into a world of hope. EMI's headquarters are located in Colorado Springs with seven offices all around the world. EMI's mission is "Designing a World of Hope for the Physically and Spiritually Poor". I will be serving as an Interior Architect Intern in the EMI América Latina office located in Costa Rica.

The preparation for this opportunity was three months, although I really think God has been preparing me for several years. The month of January has been extremely busy as I tried to pack six months worth of stuff into only TWO suitcases... pretty impressive for a girl, well at least for this girl! I have been looking forward to this new journey since October and the time has now come for me to depart on this new chapter in my life.

On January 14, I flew from Charlotte to Colorado Springs for one week of orientation where I joined 21 other interns and six new staff members from around the country who will be serving either in India, Uganda, Egypt, Costa Rica or Colorado. Orientation is designed for one week of spiritual training in preparation for the next six months. What a humbling experience it has been to meet others who have all been called by God into the mission field. As interns, we are all here for the same purpose- to use our design skills, to go into the world serving impoverished communities, and sharing the Gospel of Christ.

The Hideaway, Colorado Springs

Orientation was held at a Christian retreat called The Hideaway in Colorado Springs. We moved non-stop every day and got barely enough rest between each day! We spent one week learning more on what the Bible says about God's heart for the nations, studying different cultures, team-building, and learning more of designing in the developing world.

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"Do Not Sit on the Dam"

We were able to get away from The Hideaway for a few afternoons and do some hiking through Castlewood Canyon and Palmer Lake Reservoir. As we were hiking back down, a falling boulder hit the foot of one of our interns. He had to be carried by other men in our group for the next two miles back to the car where we took him straight to the hospital. He was ok and was back with us within a few hours.

Enjoying God's creation at Lake Reservoir.
(I am pictured in the bottom left corner)

             

Another afternoon we went rock climbing at an indoor sports gym, which was another team and trust-building activity. This was my first experience on a rock wall and our assignment was to be blindfolded and have someone on the ground talking us through the climb to the top. Safety harnesses were used but a great lesson was learned on having faith in the person who can see the big picture while you are working hard to make it just a bit further.

Climbing and trusting while blindfolded

Made it to the top, thanks to Ryan's guidance!

 
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These are the lovely people I will be working with in Costa Rica! Brad Esther, Kevin and me.

Much of my time has been getting to know the other interns, especially the ones I will be working with in Costa Rica. In addition, this week has really been about digging deep to find out more about the person God made me to be.
                                      

VIDEO- Friday morning was spent at EMI's headquarters where we started the day in worship.

After several months of raising support and one week of orientation in preparation for the next six months, I cannot be more excited to finally arrive in Costa Rica! I praise God for all my financial and prayer supporters during this time. Please continue to pray for all EMI interns as we are literally dispersed throughout the world on January 22 as God has prepared the way for us to show Christ's love to all people! Please know that you are on this journey with me and I thank God for you every day!


-Allison