Week 7 Getting to know your international contact.

This week I heard from one of the contacts  that I had been trying to get in touch with. The reason why I am just writing my blog was due to the fact that he is right now in California getting ready to make a trip to Chile for the second time. His name is Mr. Bartlett (Bob). We went to the same school in high school. He was about four years older than me. I remember him and  his family always hosting international students and always being involved in international club and traveling. I had reached out to him a few times in the past few years to help him with donations on some of his trips and when I was student teaching he helped me connect with a pen pal down their for my 4th grade class. Recently for this course, I have had a hard time getting ahold of him due to him preparing for another trip to Chile. He is going to be restoring another school like he did two years ago. I asked yesterday in an email about if this is what he thought he was going to be doing this for the rest of  his professional career? "I started off in Chile when I was 18 as a volunteer. When the church found out that I was going to school for International education and policy, they took over my education and as long as I did schooling they would pay for it and let me work there. This is what I have wanted to do since middle school. The church gave me the biggest opportunity of my career.....Since then I have come director of the Language department. I specialize in the correspondence between facilities in the U.S and in Chile." I asked him about professional development and what was the most important thing to keep up on as far as working between two countries. He said that it was policy and monetary. Monetary could get "sticky". "very dangerous". That language doesn't always translate perfectly. I asked him what the near future holds for him, especially going back to Chile. "I leave in a week. I will going to meetings with stake holders and then right onto base to build the new school facility. I am all over the place. This time I am going to enjoy the process more. It is my third time going to South America and I know the process. I hopefully will not be as STRESSED!!!! I can enjoy what I am doing"

Over all the conversation was short. However, I saw passion in his email. He was capitalizing words for emphasis. He was cracking jokes and showing thrill for this trip. He hoped to correspond with me when he could when he goes to Chile through some emails and pictures. I hope to hear from him. to get where he is now took a lot of work, dedication, education, passion, and time! THis is what it looks like to be a professional.