Drum Roll Please...

It's been 2 months and 11 days...alright already. I'll tell you about my job!

The fall before I left for Namibia, I had the blessing to get to know Travis Gravette and his organization, Global Support Mission, and did a little on-the-side intern work with them. Fast forward to 2011 and packing up to move back to Nashville. I had no idea what I was going to do in moving, but knew this blessed city was where I was being led to. On a whim, I emailed Travis to see if he knew of anyone who might be hiring. Because, let's face it, the prospects for a recent graduate are grim indeed these days.

Within one day, he emailed me to set up a meeting over coffee.
Within three days, we were sitting at a table in Fido and he spoke some powerful words to me - "we'd love to have you join the team."
Within a week, I took the leap and accepted his offer...and embarked on the ever-intimidating road of fundraising my complete salary.
Within two and a half weeks, I had raised enough money to start working full-time - by the grace of God and His very generous and faithful servants.

And here we are - 2 months and 11 days later.

I am beyond grateful to be part of the team at Global Support Mission. We exist to see a movement of compassion wipe out hunger, disease, and extreme poverty. To do this, we partner with local leaders who have already begun movements in their communities, and we work with them to train, equip, and resource them to better carry out their mission and serve their communities. Right now, we are partnered with two incredible affiliates in East Africa - one in Kaihura, Uganda, and the other in Mombasa, Kenya.

Global Support Mission includes several exciting initiatives. Our two biggest programs right now are Red Earth Trading Co. and Know.Think.Act.

Red Earth Trading Co. is a direct-trade company; we work with local artisans in East Africa and then sell their products around the States through house parties and online. This promotes continued economic development in East Africa and supports the operational needs of Global Support Mission. We recently kicked off The Exchange Tour in which we have two interns on the road taking Red Earth into homes, businesses, schools, and churches around the U.S - so exciting! And if you order anything from our website, yours truly is the one to personally package every order. So go buy something now!

Know.Think.Act. is a web-based giving platform that connects people at home directly with the needs of our affiliates in East Africa. 100% of donations go directly to the need and it's a great way to get communities here with communities in need halfway around the world.

In addition to these programs, we also have an International Volunteer Program, a Leadership School for our affiliates in Uganda, and Legacy Partners, which enables people to partner with supporting the operational needs of Global Support Mission on a long-term basis so we can continue to fulfill our mission & purpose. If you're interested in becoming a Legacy Partner, please let me know. We would love to get you involved and have your support.

As for me, I am serving as the International Volunteer Coordinator & Office Manager for Global Support Mission. I get to get my hands dirty in almost every area of the organization - from back end financial work to Red Earth inventory to sending our enthusiastic volunteers to Uganda to writing personal thank you notes to our donors on Know.Think.Act.

All that to say, I am thrilled to be a part of this movement and to be working in my dream job at 23. Global Support Mission's work is sustainable, effective, and really exciting these days. We are growing quickly and have some really awesome things to come in the next few months and years!

Want to know more? Just ask! And visit all the links above - our media department has done a great job on all our sites...after all, that's how I fell in love with GSM.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow. And today, praising him for 2 months and 11 days of His provision of employment, passion, and new friends.