I'm back!

Surprise! I’m back in the States!

Of course, I am surprised too.  It wasn’t something I had planned, but nonetheless I am happy to be back in Cedar Park, Texas, at my parent’s home.  While back I am going to get re-evaluated for my pain after the surgery I had seven months ago.  As God wills, I will be back in Bukoba, Tanzania with my teammates soon.

I really want to thank a number of people for their love and care over this past month during my stay in Nairobi and my trip back to the States:

Jan and Tim Ryder--they opened their home to me when, at the last minute, I decided to stay in Nairobi, Kenya for further testing.

Michael Pagedas—my missionary teammate, for traveling with me and supporting me during the first week I was in Nairobi.

Felice Stewart—another of my missionary teammates who has been a great support system to me from the beginning in Dar es Salaam when I first had my appendectomy.

James Hargrave—still another of my missionary teammates, who stayed with me in Nairobi, Kenya, until I got on the plane for the States.  James wouldn’t leave Kenya to go back to Mwanza, Tanzania, where he resides, until I was safely home in my parent’s arms.

Margo Kelley—she’s the executive secretary for the missions department at OCMC, and she kept in constant contact with me and assisted me in so many ways until I arrived in Texas.  She continues her support and assistance even now.

Rob Thurner—he’s a member of my home parish in Cedar Park, and he drove my mom to pick me up at the airport in Austin since my dad was finishing up the service on Great and Holy Friday.

And finally, a big, big Thanks to Fr. David Rucker and Dn. James Nicholas for their on-going spiritual support and encouragement!

That’s all for now, but I’ll be posting another update in the next couple of days so stay tuned (here’s a preview: I kissed a giraffe before I left Africa; no kidding; I have photos!)

Love To All

KT