Beginnings

And so, we're sitting in the airport in Johannesburg at our gate to take the second leg of our journey to East London.

Joining me on this journey to South Africa are Sarah Cowles (my daughter from Liverpool), Kristina Frenette from Amherst, Calvina Johnson from Astoria, Queens, Ben Lukens from East Rockaway and Alyse Masterson from Cortland.

We actually started the trip on Thursday.  Kristina's parents, grandmother and dog dropped her off at my house in Liverpool. We picked Alyse up on our way to East Rockaway.  Ben's parents, Kate and Mark, put us up overnight.  Calvina made it at about the same time as we.  Early on Friday we left the Lukens' house in East Rockaway and traveled the 7 miles to JFK. Our South African Airways plane took left the terminal on time at 11:15 enroute to our 15 hour flight to Johannesburg.  So, now you're up to date.  At 2:00 we board the plane to East London, a Syracuse-sized city on the southern coast of South Africa.

We look forward to meeting the remainder of our group from Evangelical Church in Hessen and Nassau and from the Moravian Churches in and around Port Elizabeth, South Africa.  Hopefully, they'll already be at the hotel in East London by the time we get there.

For more information and photos of our group click on this link to the South Africa site on Flowing Streams.
http://www.flowingstreams.org/Mission/SAYA2010/SAYA2010(UCCNY-Group).html

Blessings,