Stationary?!?!?!

This has been another busy year for the Ray family! We finished the Africa Mercy Power the Vision project, went to Sierra Leone for the first few months of the Africa Mercy 2011 Field Service, visited family, friends, and supporters in Texas and Pennsylvania, and completed the first revision of the preliminary general arrangement of the hospital for a new ship project!

Since we've been able to blog last, we've moved back to Mercy Ships' International Operations Center in Lindale, Texas and I've started a new job with a nice, big title: Design Engineer - New Ship Acquisition. 

I'm settling into my new role, I'll be responsible for facilitating a ship design that allows Mercy Ships to maximize its impact on the lives of the forgotten poor in Western Africa while providing a comfortable environment for staff to work effectively and focus on their mission. 

I've dreamed of working on this project since I first started with Mercy Ships and I'm very excited that the day has come! I'm looking forward to playing a part in creating a purpose built, cutting edge, 100 million dollar tool that's sole purpose is the physical, spiritual, and emotional redemption of the most marginalization and neglected people in the world. There are a lot of great opportunities in the engineering world to do rewarding work, but I can't think of a more rewarding, challenging, and exciting opportunity than the one I've been blessed with for this season of my life.

Being back in the States has a lot of benefits that we're enjoying as well. Being stationary (we're very much looking forward to developing a routine and building healthy habits for our children to grow up with.), red meat (I love you, Texas), personal vehicles (we got a 2001 Chrysler Mini-van named Pegasus), more roomy accommodations (a 700 sq. ft. is more roomy than 400 sq. ft. cabin)... but these benefits all cost money, and our budget could do with a bit of help (we've also got a new baby on the way!). So please consider partnering with us by setting up monthly donation here. If you already support us monthly THANK YOU so much! Without your generosity and partnership we would not be able to help meet the needs of so many that have gone unmet for so long.

Blessings,

Justin