Our arrival

This is the first time I have been able to sit down at my blog since Saturday night. On Sunday morning, I woke up and got ready for the 9:30 service where my GAP Immersion team was to be commissioned by Dr. Johnny Hunt. After the service had completed, my team met at the world impact center to change and load luggage, and the families drove to lunch for one last meal together before we left. After lunch the team went to the airport. We boarded our plane at 4:00, and with delay, landed in New York, and boarded our Dublin flight at 7:30. From there, we flew to Ireland and arrived 8:00 am Dublin time this morning. The time now is 10:00. This means the team has been up for about 32 hours. Please excuse this blog of any spelling or grammar, for I'm very tired AND lost my glasses on a flight so the screen is blurry. But! In light of all this: I'm having a FANTASTIC time! Ireland really is a beautiful country and it REALLY is extremely green!

When we arrived at the Lacken House, we had a tour of the grounds and were impressed with the work OM is doing all over Ireland, not just with the GAP year but many other ministry events as well that our team will be able to help with. Today we unpacked and rested. I am rooming with two girls from the states: Ashlyn Chambers from Georgia and Whitney Ratcliff from Louisiana. We're having a blast and have met so many wonderful, kind, and God-honoring people here. Tomorrow, we will have our orientation and then get acquainted with the local town while doing some much needed shopping. (We realized how high the voltage is here, when I almost blew my hair dryer up while turning it on LOW and another girl fried her straightener after turning it on for four seconds) So, we decided to spend some money on appliances that are accustomed to Ireland's electricity.

Pictures are coming soon! If you're friends with me on facebook, they should be uploaded by tonight!

Blessings,
Leanne [and the Immersion team]

One day more...

What a terrific weekend I've had- and am going to have! Yesterday was my going away party and so many people were able to come! I am blessed to have so many friends that my home doesn't have enough room for them! It's neat to see how God used each person to impact my life in different ways. Whether it was from speech and debate, our local theater, school, or church - all of those people have helped me at some time in my life and I am thankful for that. Now, it's my turn to help the people of Ireland! Tomorrow, 3 other girls and myself will fly out at 3:30 from Atlanta. We fly to New York and then to Dublin, where we will arrive around 8:00am Monday, Ireland's time. I'm looking forward to the flights because I've always been a fan of overseas trips.

There's one neat thing I'd like to share with you before I end this note and go pack! As you know, I had to raise $6,000.00 before the trip. Well, I was only $520 dollars away from that goal yesterday. Last night, many of my friends brought me gifts! I was overwhelmed by their generosity. After counting the donations, I found that I had been given exactly $522.20. God does bless those who are faithful to Him - even at the last second!

So, here I go to start a new adventure in Ireland! I'll be updating this as frequently as I can while I am away!

Blessings,
Leanne

Less than 90 hours!

In less than 90 hours, I step onto a plane that will fly me to a country I have never been to! I'm thrilled! Many people ask me if I'm ready, and I can honestly say "yes!" I have all of my clothes, accessories, and appliances ready to go! My most recent statement from SCORE said I only had $2,720 more to collect. I only need $720 of that before Sunday. YES! Sunday! I know that God will provide, though!

As the day to leave is coming up, I've been getting a lot of emails from the other girls in the group and I have a feeling we're all going to get along well. I've already met two of the girls and Saturday night, it seems that all five girls will be able to meet over dinner! I'm looking forward to getting to know new people and experience new things! Once I'm over there, I'll be able to tell you more specifically what exactly we're doing. But, for now, I know that the first, I believe six, weeks are devoted to our study time. Part of the GAP program is a learning-abroad Bible credit. I'll also be taking courses in Gaelic! This will all be done at the Lacken House, outside of Dublin in the country. After that, I believe our field work begins!

I'm looking forward to filling you all in with more detail in the coming weeks!

God Bless,
Leanne

Closer to our goals!

Sitting down at my computer today, I found another statement from SCORE! I only have $2,980.00 left out of the entire $8,000! So many friends have been generous in their donations! THANK YOU! I have also started something new! My grandmother had a great idea to sell our home-made fudge! I have gotten around $150 dollars from that and I made $85 from a garage sale! It's such a blessing!

Mary Wallace from FBCW, who is already in Ireland, tells us that the temperature will be 60 degrees going down to 30 degrees in October. Cold and rainy! That is actually my favorite kind of weather! I even got adorable polka-dot rain boots for the occasion.

I am also visiting my mother's 9th grade Sunday School class this coming Sunday to meet the girls so that we may all become pen-pals during my mission trip!

In other news: I am proud to announce the OM Ireland Team! Please pray for each of these individuals.
I hope to keep you further updated more frequently!
God Bless!