Sunday, June 29, 2008

The "Swearing In" Ceremony...

On Friday, June 27, 2008, Dan and his fellow officers were sworn into the State Department.

The day began with family and friends arriving at the Harry S. Truman Building for the ceremony. There, we were all scanned and verified before entering. After we were given our official badges (stickers), we were escorted to the reception hall. The room was filled with decorations... all red, white and blue. We were offered breakfast treats, beverages (the usual coffee, tea, and juice as well as champagne for those who were feeling a little more celebratory) and sweets.

One of Dan's classmates, Brooke, took the time to create a wonderful representation of where each classmate would be going. With a blown up map of the world, she marked each post with a push pin and then aligned each classmate's photo to correspond with the push pin. It was wonderful to see so many of the countries being touched by the efforts of this class.

We had an opportunity to meet many family member's and friends. All were so proud! Dan is so fortunate to have such a great group with whom he can study and work.

Then we began finling into the auditorium. 70 Foreign Service Officers as well as 82 Specialists were sworn in by Ambassador Patrick F. Kennedy. His remarks were inspirational and brief. Then the two groups were asked to rise.

With his right hand in the air, Dan (along with all the others) gave the official "Oath of Office".

It was all very moving. A proud moment for many of us!!

After, most classmates went in different directions celebrating with family and friends in their own special ways. Dan and I did as well; taking quiet time to be together as the impact of our new adventure really hit home.

Now the class is split into many different areas as each begins specific study for his/her new post. Dan starts bright and early Monday morning learning about the region in Africa where we will be living. Then on to security training and consular training. It will be a very busy 2-1/2 months.

And what will I be doing?? I will be creating lists, making phone calls, buying needed supplies, and preparing notes for all we need to know for the move. I think it will be a very busy 2-1/2 months for me as well.
Take care!

Monday, June 23, 2008

And our story begins..... Flag Day

On Friday, June 20 the 139th, A-100 class celebrated FLAG DAY!!
This is quite an exciting day for both the students and families alike.

Everyone can feel the excitement in the air. Friends and family gather in the
old gym on the Foreign Service Institute campus.

Then the ceremony begins.

Ambassadors and others from the institute, who play important roles in
the instruction and guidance of the class, come walking in with 70+ flags displayed.
Each flag represents a country where one of the students will be assigned.
At this point the entire gym erupts into loud cheers and applause.

Next, the ambassador leading the ceremony begins by holding one of the flags high
over head. The class yells out the country that the flag represents, and then they name
the city. Once the destination is established, the ambassador calls the name of the new
Junior Officer who is assigned to that post.
There is screaming, jumping, and running to the front as the new officer receives his/her
flag. Hand shakes and hugs are shared by many.

Of course, I have my cheat sheet. I have a list of the countries we have bid high. Next to
each I have drawn that country's flag. Now, I just wait. As flags are held, and officers are
called, I continue to cross off those countries which are no longer available to us.
I am becoming quite nervous. (Not many of our "high" countries are still on my list.)

After 2/3 of the class has been called, (and we are down to 1 high flag left on our list!)
FINALLY the ambassador holds up the flag for Nigeria.
The city of Lagos is named, and Dan's name is announced.

I was in shell-shock. It did not hit me until that very moment that we are now moving to
Africa. I think I am going to faint. But, all is well. We are both very happy with our post.

We have our assignment and Dan starts different areas of training right after
the "swearing in" ceremony next Friday.

We are scheduled to leave for Lagos, Nigeria in mid-September.

This will be a very busy time as we gather information, fill in countless forms for
our move, and begin shopping for all those things we think we cannot live without.
But the beauty is that I have ample opportunities to make MANY more lists!!!

Stories and updates to continue...