The time has come...

I leave for Staging in DC tomorrow so thought it's about to time for me to put up my first blog post. I cannot believe it's time for me to say goodbye to all my friends and family members and start this new adventure in the Peace Corps. Thanks to everyone who has made my last month or so in the States very full and memorable. Between trips, goodbye parties, the Martz wedding, and other activities I've somehow managed to get 'ready' to go to Ghana. By ready I mean my bags are packed and my life is kind of in order for me to leave. I don't know that one is ever really prepared to leave loved ones behind but all the support I have received means so much to me. All that said, I'd like to start my blog on a cheesy note by answering the top questions I've been asked by people about my joining the Peace Corps:

1) How long will you be gone?
Peace Corps is a 27 month commitment. When I depart on June 6 for DC, I start the training phase. I have a 1 day staging in Arlington, VA before flying to Ghana with 72 other volunteers the next day. Then we have 3 months of Pre-Service Training (PST) before hopefully being sworn in as an official Peace Corps Volunteer. Then I will serve as a Volunteer for 2 years at my site.

2) Where will you be in Ghana?

Site placement occurs during training but for the first 3 months I will be in Kukurantumi living with a host family. I will be sure to announce it here once I know the location of my site!

3) What will you be doing?

I will be serving as a Math Teacher in the Education program. I will be teaching at the junior high school level which equal grades 7-9 in the US. I could be teaching trig, algebra, statistics, etc. I will also be working on secondary projects which will be determined by the needs of the community.

4) When/how did you decide to join the Peace Corps?

Peace Corps always interested me during college but I never looked into seriously at that time in my life. After studying abroad in Thailand for six and a half months, I knew I'd love to live internationally again for a longer period of time in order to further integrate into a community. I attended a Peace Corps Info Session January 2010 but didn't apply until July 2010. It's taken 11 months for me to go through the entire process but my departure date is finally here!

5) What are you most excited about? Most nervous?

I'm very excited to become a part of a community, learn about a new culture, and also use my skills to help people. At the same time I'm nervous about language learning, adjusting to a new place, keeping in touch with folks back home, and training in general since I've heard it can be pretty intense.

6) Will you come home during the 2 years?

Currently I'm thinking I'd like to come back to the States at least once during my service. Next summer would be halfway through so that seems like the natural time to visit but it depends on what's going on in my work and also with friends and family here.

7) How can we keep in touch with you?

I'm not sure yet what level of access to forms of communication I will have but do plan to buy a cell phone once I get to Ghana. I can also be reached via my gmail account though I don't know how often I will be able to check it. Lastly I've added my initial address so you can send lots of mail and packages. There's nothing quite like letters and goodies from home. Please keep in touch!