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!