Three weeks to go!

Greetings everyone!!

Just to let you all know, this is going to be the official spot for updates from Team Uthando! While in country, we will have limited internet access but we definitely want to make the effort to keep all of our friends and family updated on what we are doing and how we are doing in South Africa. That being said, keep checking back to see the latest and greatest from the different members of the team! Let me start this one off and catch you up on what's been going down so far!

Here we are, three weeks away from two of the most exciting moments of my summer! The first is my graduation from APU with a master of arts in Organizational Leadership...the other is spending one month in George, South Africa with eight of the most amazing people in the world! That's right people! We leave in only 23 short days!

I can't believe how time has flown. Being only three weeks away, there is much to prepare for and much to be excited about. With the short amount of time left before we leave for SA, it seems that there is so much to do and so little time to do it in! But, with a great co-leader and a great team, you can't go wrong. They are all so wonderful and I can't wait to spend next month in SA with them in service! Being in the home stretch, we are all very excited and anxious to get this trip underway!

Just a few events we have coming up:

Saturday April 24th: All-day intensive training and commissioning service
Sunday April 25th: Team BBQ, meeting and fun!
Thursday April 29th: Final team meeting
Tuesday May 11th: Off we go!
AM, before we leave for the airport: Team commissioning service (details to follow)
12:00pm - leave for the airport!!

Please continue to pray for our team throughout the remainder of this process:
Dan Williams
Valerie Rodriguez
Ashley Winn
Emily Christian
Jake Steedman
Kyle Asher
Matt Ward
Megan Lentz
Tyler Swaney

Prayer Requests:
- For strength, rest, and courage for the next few weeks; school is winding down and stress seems to be creeping around every corner.
- Please pray for us as God continues to work in our hearts and minds to prepare us for the trip ahead.
- Please pray for Dan and me as we continue to lead the team; that we would stay humble and courageous in what God is doing.
- For team unity, humility, and strength in Christ.
- Please pray against attacks from the enemy, that we would stay strong in faith.

Thank you all so much for your love and support! We couldn't do this without all of you!!

~Valerie

"To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God."
~Micah 6:8