After graduating Asbury University in 2013 I have been traveling around the country working in a variety of theatrical settings putting my costuming degree to good use. I worked at Iroquois Springs summer camp in eastern NY, did an internship at The Merrimack Repertory Theatre north of Boston, worked summer stock at Jenny Wiley Theatre in eastern KY, all before moving to Florida. I spent this past summer at the Opera Theatre of St Louis. After moving seven times in the past two and a half years, I am currently in the middle of my second season in the costume shop at The Orlando Shakespeare Theatre. It has been a really crazy journey full of amazing people, stress, learning how to be an adult (with varying degrees of success), and a lot of self-discovery. Getting the opportunity to live in so many different places and meet such a wide variety of people has expanded my perspective on the world in ways I couldn’t have anticipated.
Living here in Orlando has been a change from the other places I have worked. For the first time since college I’ve had the chance to be somewhere for more than a 3 or 9 month contract. I have found an amazing church with some of the greatest humans you will ever meet where I have been able to build relationships and get plugged in. I am involved in the youth program and have the privilege of impacting high school students through the fine arts program. I have been blessed with one incredible opportunity after another and just recently another opportunity arose.
Back during my senior year of college I heard about a program called The World Race. The World Race is a program with an organization known as Adventures in Missions. Participants go and serve in 11 countries in 11 months in a variety of settings. As soon as I heard about the program I was hooked. As my senior year carried on it became clear that the timing to up and leave for a year was not right however, I never lost the desire to go. This past August I was casually scrolling through Facebook when I saw the post that the August 2016 routes had been released. “Huh, I wonder…” I thought. Before I knew it I was completing my application and getting the phone call in the middle of a Panera that I had been accepted.
Since that time however I decided that waiting and leaving on an October route would give me more time to be fully prepared before leaving.
My route leaves in October of 2016 and includes (tentatively) Mongolia, China, Malaysia, Thailand, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Uganda, Rwanda, Albania, and Greece. This route is especially exciting to me because it goes to three different continents and I will get to see a wide range of world culture. I will be involved in all kinds of ministry in these countries such as working with orphans, teaching English, planting churches, feeding victims of natural disasters, ministering to those trapped in prostitution due to human trafficking, and many other things, all while sharing the love of Jesus.
It is my personal goal to be fully funded at $16, 300 before leaving in October so that I can devote my full energy and focus on the work that God has for me while I am there. That number is a little intimidating I know, but that covers all of my expenses: including room, board, and travel for the full year.
You can donate by clicking on the “support me” tab and you can also subscribe so you can follow my race and get updates on my journey. Honestly though what I desire more than anything throughout this process are your prayers and encouragement.
Thank you so much in advance for all your support! Annie Manning
