A Picture is worth a thousand words by Theresa Wilson
Wow - what an incredible year we have had together as a Fellows program! I am humbled and honored to have spent the last nine months with 15 God-focused, intentional, teachable young adults who are beginning their life post-college with a focus on how their faith impacts all of their life. We've approached the year with what my Fellows call a "ride or die" attitude (I had to look that up in the urban dictionary... it means we decided to be committed to each other through thick and thin... a biblical concept contextualized, right?!). I'm so proud of the growth I've seen in these 15 Fellows; here's to many more years of growth together!
I'd like to take you on a journey through our year via pictures... enjoy some of the highlights of our year with us!
Opening Retreat - we even got to experience the eclipse together!
Roundtables became a favorite each week - eating dinner together and spending time in worship and sharing.
Classes were another highlight! We studied the meta narrative of Scripture (we can explain "creation, fall, redemption, restoration" like bosses!) and how it applies to our lives and the culture within which we live.
Our first retreat together focused on understanding one another better through the MBTI and Enneagram... gotta love those numbers!
Our second retreat we headed to Memphis for a retreat focused on Biblical justice - what a treat to hear from Tim Johnson who is doing great racial reconciliation work in Memphis!
Thanks to Nashville Institute for Faith and Work for some wonderful events this year focused on faith and work!
Our community Christmas party downtown focused on thanking the multitude of people who invest in our Fellows!
We participated in the MLK Jr March downtown and are blessed to have learned much from his example.
We learned the importance of mentors - may this be a practice we continue for years to come!
On our Vocation and Calling Retreat we looked at how God has made us and what that means for our lives... here's to being emotionally self-aware - thanks EQi!
We got to meet Governor Haslam and hear from a few of our legislators!
We hosted our first annual benefit event - what a great night together!
In March we went on a retreat focused on ending the program well together.
Leadership Lunches were filled with incredible local leaders like Council Lady Brenda Haywood!
We went to a national conference (with 275 other Fellows!) in DC in April.
Closing Retreat - much "heart water" (a Scotty Smith-ism) flowed as we reflected together.
Our last class with the wise and humble Scotty Smith - thanks for teaching us each week!
We pulled everything we learned together about redeeming work and culture through Capstone Projects and presentations!
And that's a wrap! Now on to graduation and ALL that God has in store afterward. Amen.