From August 15 - December 15, 2010, I will be working as an architecture intern with Engineering Ministries International in Colorado Springs, CO. I will be helping to design a girls orphanage in Sudan, so I have the great opportunity to travel to Juba, Sudan for a couple weeks to work on the project there too! I'm so excited for this big adventure that God has me on for these next few months and I've created this blog to share that excitement with you! Thanks so much for visiting, your encouragement and support is always appreciated!

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Last Day at eMi...

...it's bittersweet!!

The past few weeks have just flown by with a lot of holidays, socializing, and of course, project work! Due to the schedule of project trip dates, many projects in the Colorado office don't come to completion and printing by the end of the intern term and the next semester interns help to finish up the redlining and printing. However, it's still the goal of most project leaders to get their projects to as close to completion as possible by the time we leave the office. Thus, I've been busy getting as many of our drawings as possible into CAD, and am happy to say that I accomplished that goal as of today. I've been working on the civil drawings for the project, these drawings take me a lot longer to do than the elevations and plans because I'm not a civil engineer and often have to stop and ask questions. And, when my boss is in Egypt, well, occasionally the turn around time for answers is a bit longer than usual! There are plenty of people at the office here who have been answering my questions, too. It's a big happy family willing to help each other here at eMi, so a lot of projects are on track to finish up soon!

I had my exit interview on Monday and Friday morning at worship all the interns gave short testimonies of their time here at eMi. Both of these events, as well as spending time packing and talking to the other interns has given me a lot of opportunities to reflect on how I've grown spiritually and professionally during my time with eMi. My professional growth has been obvious, in my opinion. This was the perfect internship for me. Not only did I get applicable architecture experience, this job also gave me a confirmed motivation to continue studying architecture. Unlike where I was at a year ago at this time, now I know why I want to pursue architecture: so I can continue to serve with eMi in some way and with other organizations that help people through design. I was also given a lot of responsibility as an intern; I got to focus on one project and be an integral part of the design team--an experience that not many architecture interns right out of college get!

I've grown in a lot of other ways with eMi, too. Mainly, I felt valued as a person and not just used as an intern. I know that there are plenty of companies that treat their interns well, but working for a group that emphasizes mentoring and individual growth in their internship program is unique. When I shared how I've grown spiritually at this internship, I shared about how I've come to have a bigger view of God and come to rest in His perfect plans. It still blows my mind that even a month before I came out to eMi I couldn't have even come close to orchestrating these last four months to play out as well as God has. He really does have my best interest in mind! It's evident even looking at our group of interns; most of us agree we probably wouldn't be as close had we been classmates at the same school--we're just too different in a lot of ways. But, this unique setting has given us the opportunity to work and play together and become close friends. Another thing I've loved about my time here is how God has shown me how small this huge world is. I've gotten to meet brothers and sisters in Christ all over the world and it's so fun to leave here knowing that God provides that "family" wherever I go. This time with eMi has been truly life changing, and I can't wait to tell others about it when I get back to Minnesota! In fact, I've already recruited (without trying) Minnesotans for internships/project trips---my friend from school, Paul Evans, will be an intern in Colorado in the Spring!

This past weekend the interns finished off our time in Colorado with a ski trip to Breckenridge/Frisco/Keystone area. The group included 11 Colorado interns/staff, the 2 Canada interns, and 9 friends-of-interns from around the country! We stayed in a huge place and everyone skied together on Sunday. It was a great end to these amazing four months. My friends from home, Phil & Ivana, came to join us for the weekend and it made me so excited to come home and see friends and family. Skiing was definitely not easy for me since the last time I skied was in Minnesota four years ago, but I ended up having a great time.

Alright, I have to cut this post off and post it already! There will be more to come! With some pictures!