Many of you have been asking questions about this 11-month thing I’m doing called the World Race (WR), so here are the answers!!
How did you find out about the World Race?
I was scrolling through Facebook one afternoon back in May and saw a sponsored post about the World Race. I had never heard of it and didn’t know anyone who had done it, but after reading the whole website and two weeks of constantly thinking about it, I decided to apply and here I am! I NEVER in a million years would have thought I’d be the person doing what I consider to be long-term missions (yes, yes, I know it’s not what some of you think of as long-term missions, especially since I’m only in each country for 1 month, but it’s feeling pretty long-term to me!!!) I certainly had not been thinking about doing overseas missions before I saw the post, but I just couldn’t get it out of my head after seeing it. I want my life to so obviously reflect the love of Jesus, and I think the World Race will be a wonderful way for me to learn more about sacrifice and living life outside of my comfort zone in order to love people well.
Where are you going?
I am on January Route 2 and am going to the following 11 countries in the order listed:
West Africa – Cote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast), Ghana, Togo
Southeast Asia –Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines. We were originally going to Myanmar rather than Indonesia, but this was very recently switched.
South America – Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Peru. There is a possibility Ecuador will be added at the very end and we would just spend less time in Peru, but nothing is set in stone yet!
What will you be doing in each country?
Hmmm, my best answer is I don’t know! We are given a general idea of the things we might be doing but won’t find out details until a few weeks before arriving in each country, which I see as a good thing. There is a chance the 11 countries listed above will not be the countries we go to for various reasons. In the case we are re-routed, I won’t be disappointed if I was excited to work with a specific ministry. Also, I will be able to give my full focus to the ministry we are doing without wishing I am two months down the road working with a ministry I am more passionate about. Here are some possibilities of what we will be doing in each country:
- Vacation Bible Schools
- Working in orphanages and prisons
- Evangelism outreach
- Spending time with the sick in hospitals
- Construction
- Working with sex trafficking victims
When do you leave and when do you come back?
I fly to Atlanta on January 4, where I will be spending a few days in preparation with my squad before we leave the country on January 7. According to my profile, I will get back on November 22, 2019!
Have you met your fundraising goal?
YES!!! God has provided in incredible ways through so many people, including many of you who are probably reading this right now. Thank you for your support and encouragement – it means the world to me!
What will a normal week look like?
Monday through Friday, we will most likely be working full-time at the ministry we are with for the month. Saturdays and Sundays will be free days where we can go in search of WiFi at a local coffee shop, go bungee jumping, take a much-needed nap, or do any number of other things! I hope to do a lot of exploring and see a lot of each country I am in on the weekends!
What will the food and lodging situations be like?
Each team is paired with a local ministry in each country, and they will often provide some sort of housing for us. Sometimes that might simply mean space for us to set up our tents! If not, we will find our own place to stay, whether that be in hostels, an AirBnB, or somewhere else.
We have a budget for food, lodging, and transportation, which is part of the money I had to fundraise. Depending on the ministry host we are paired with, they will either be given our money budgeted for food for the month and will cook for us, or my team will go to the marketplace and we will cook our own food for the month. Each month will look different. My fingers are crossed that our ministry hosts will just cook for us! 🙂
Did you get a leave of absence from your job? What will you do when you get home?
I have worked in the tax department as a CPA at Eide Bailly for the last couple of years since my graduation from USF. I have nothing but wonderful things to say about my time there and have been so blessed by having that job and working with some amazing people. However, I did officially resign, and my last day working was November 15. Because I have no idea what will happen over the next 11 months, I did not want to be committed to returning to a job if God really was pointing me elsewhere. I will be keeping my CPA license active, and there is a chance I would return to Eide Bailly if I really felt that’s where I should be, but I will not be giving much thought to my post-World Race job until I am nearing the end of my 11 months since so much could change during that time.
Will you be able to communicate with people back home?
For the most part, yes. We are encouraged to blog once a week while on the World Race, and some of the places we stay may have access to WiFi 24/7. Other places might not, but we have Saturday and Sunday free, so we would be able to try to find WiFi if need be. My plan is to take my phone and keep it on airplane mode the whole time unless I decide to buy SIM cards in each country (depending on the price and availability and need to do so). Whatsapp and Facebook messenger will probably be my primary forms of communication with people back home.
How many people are on your Route?
I will be traveling to each country with my Squad (specifically named R Squad) made up of 32 other people. However, once we are in country, our Teams will be working with different ministries in different parts of the country. My squad is divided into 5 different teams, each made up of 6-7 people. I was matched with the 5 other girls on my team (called Rak Pak – see their blogs to the left) at Training Camp in October, so these are the people I will be with every day on the Race. After so many months, they will switch up our teams, so I will probably have 2-3 different teams throughout the 11 months.
What does your leadership staff look like?
There are 5 Squads launching in January going on different routes to different countries, and each Squad has their own leadership staff.
- Squad Mentor: Stateside for a majority of our Race but comes out to visit for debriefs a few times throughout the 11 months; One of our biggest support systems.
- Squad Coaches: Offer spiritual guidance and prayer support for our squad, follow our blogs and are available to chat as needed, travel to the field multiple times to debrief with our teams in person.
- Squad Leaders: My Squad will have four next year. They have done the Race before and will rotate between teams for our first few months and help us get acclimated to life on the Race.
- Team Leaders: Each team will have one Alumni Team Leader for the first few months of our Race. They are with us 24/7 unlike the Squad Leaders, but sometimes we will have both the Squad and Team Leaders with us. After the first few months, a member of each team will be chosen as the new Team Leader and the Alumni Team Leader will go home.
- Admissions Advisor: Assigned to us upon acceptance into the World Race and is available to help with all preparation leading up to launch in January.
- Squad Logistics: Each Squad has a person in charge of logistics and finances who remains stateside to help coordinate travel plans and budgets with some of our team members in leadership roles.
Are you scared?
I think that’s a pretty obvious answer. I don’t know if I could be considered human if even a little tiny part of me wasn’t scared. I’m scared for a lot of reasons, but I’m also excited for a lot of reasons. I know this is going to be a really challenging 11 months, but I can’t help but think it will be so incredibly worth it. Different days bring different emotions, so there are a lot of feelings leading up to my launch in January, but at the end of the day, I know God is with me, whether it feels like it in the moment or not. I wouldn’t be quitting my job, putting myself in uncomfortable and scary situations, and leaving my amazing friends and family for 11 months if I didn’t think this adventure with God would be worth it!!!
Do you have more questions? I’m always more than happy to answer questions you may have, so don’t hesitate to reach out to me and ask anything! Seriously. Anything!
