Back to School

Rakeb started school this week! She has a challenging schedule with two English classes, Advanced Biology, Advanced Algebra, US History, Spanish, and Photography. It appears that the biggest challenge for her so far has been adjusting to starting school at 7:30am. I know that I would be completely useless at that hour in an Advanced Algebra class. She is loving the fact that her teachers actually care about her, and go out of their way to make sure she understands each lesson. This is drastically different than what she was accustomed to in Ethiopia.

Fun concert at Red Rocks

1st Day of School

She's Here!!!

Rakeb is here! After 30+ hours of travel she arrived in Denver on Monday, August 12^th. She’s had a whirlwind first week with registering for classes, seeing Ben Harper in concert, meeting tons of people, and adjusting to American culture among many other things.

One of the highlights has been a trip she took to Colorado Springs this past weekend. She and the other seven Amicus exchange students living in Colorado got together for an orientation weekend. Orientation is often equated with boredom, but that wasn’t the case this time. It was held at a castle in the mountains! She got to experience hiking, make many new friends, and see a new part of beautiful Colorado.

We are trying to make sure she enjoys the last bit of summer before starting school on August 26^th, so this week we will see Fun in concert, go to a BBQ contest, and do some more shopping!

Thanks again to everyone for making this possible! More updates to come soon!!!

On our way to see Ben Harper

Almost here!

A week from today Rakeb will board an airplane for the first time in her life! 30 hours later she will arrive in Denver, and a new chapter of her life will begin. Thanks to an outpouring of generous donations, she will arrive to a room filled with school supplies, gift cards, and other items that will help tremendously as she adjusts to living in the United States. THANK YOU!

Rakeb’s summer has already been full of experiences! The two that stand out the most are…

1)   Moving into their new home. It is a much larger and newer space than their previous home, but much further away from their family and friends.

2)   After 4 years away, Rakeb’s father returned to Ethiopia to visit his family! He will be there until Rakeb departs, and this time has been invaluable for Rakeb.

We can’t wait to begin sharing more photos and stories of her experience in the U.S.! Rakeb is SOOOOO excited to meet you all!