"Jacklyn first found occupational therapy (OT) in high school after experience as a volunteer and then personally as an outpatient -- there seemed to be a door opening for her.  She then pursued her degree at Towson University in Maryland and graduated in 2006 with her Bachelors and Masters of Science in Occupational Therapy. Since then her heart has been captured by the profession and the opportunities it has brought to connect with people of all ages, cultures, and parts of the world.  Through her practice she has held on to a passion for traveling and continuing to learn, share, and cultivate all that comes with those experiences.

Well we've arrived! A long 13 hour journey for me and about 25 hours for Brandi.

The people have been wonderful and helpful since the moment we stepped on the plane.

We arrived at around 8:30am on Sun. We dropped our bags at the guest house and headed out to a church service. It was a nice way to calm from fatigue and culture shock all mixed together

From there we headed to lunch with some US families in Ethiopia to bring little ones home.  It's already been so interesting to hear their stories and journeys- actually quite emotional.

Well here we are, only hours to go before our journey begins.

Brandi will begin her travel in Arizona and meet me in Dulles (DC) on Sat afternoon.  We both leave behind our strong husbands and mothers to take care of our precious little boys (Jack, 19 mos and Haden 22 mos).  If not for our families, this trip would not be a reality.  Brandi and I both have concerns about leaving our boys and missing them, but we know they couldn't be in better hands.

Well here we are, DAYS away from our departure.  Brandi, Jackie, and I are busy packing away and running last minute errands.  We are texting, emailing, and talking on the phone, and I think we can all agree- our heads are spinning!  I’m not sure what the floors and bags of the other ladies look like right now, but…

As promised, I’d like to introduce you to one of the volunteer occupational therapists joining the Embrace Service Team to Ethiopia…

Brandi Buchanan knew in high school that the field of occupational therapy seemed like a good fit for her. She liked education but was intrigued with medicine, and found OT provided a way to bridge the two fields. She studied Spanish at Pacific University (Forest Grove, OR) where her first international “mission” type of experience took place as she volunteered in a leprosy hospital in Guayaquil, Ecuador. She then pursued occupational therapy at USC (Los Angeles, CA). Angie Lynch Fannon and Brandi met during their time at USC, and completed their doctoral degrees in the same graduating class.