Email: Joshua Peck

Greetings from Atlanta!

I hope this letter finds y'all (that’s how they say “yinz guys” down here) doing well. It's been a busy and exciting first month down here, and I couldn’t be happier with my placement. For those of you who don't already know, in September I began my year of service with the PC(USA) as a Young Adult Volunteer (YAV) in Atlanta. It’s a program for college graduates age 21-29 that operates in 18 cities nationally and abroad.

Atlanta is an awesome town, with so much going on all the time—in a lot of ways it actually reminds me of the Burgh! The hills and the trees help make you feel at home, but it has only rained three or for times since I’ve been here, so it’s not exactly the same. That and slugs move faster than the average pedestrian. I live with five other folks (and several animals) in a newly restored historic district very close to downtown called Grant Park (note: practically anything older that 85 years old is considered historic in Atlanta). It takes me a little over five minutes to bike to work everyday. During rush hour it’s quicker than driving. Our house is one block from a Frederick Law Olmstead park; while he’s most famous for designing New York’s Central Park he also laid out the campgrounds at good ol’ Denidoo, too. We have a very energetic black lab named Kai who I enjoy running with in the park almost everyday. I have never seen an animal as obsessed with retrieving as this dog—he’ll actually dive down to the bottom of the deep end of swimming pools to fetch toys!

My housemates and I are getting along famously and have already formed a little family. It’s a little like living at home in the sense that I’m still living with two Presbyterian ministers ready to put a stop to the fun at any moment. The others are a nursing student, a translator, and a graphic designer. Ours is the nursing home of all YAV sites however, because Aline and I are the youngest here; Tom and I figured out that I was his daughter’s age (7) when he headed off to college! Jannan, our program director, is also awesome, and has helped make my transition go so well (she is younger than two of our housemates). Later this month we’re all looking forward to our first house retreat, where we’ll head up to the North Georgia Mountains for some good hiking, pancakes, and fellowship.

Unlike the rest of my housemates I have already had the pleasure of skipping town once so far. Recently, I attended the YAV year-opening retreat in Ghost Ranch, New Mexico. It was amazing to say the least. It is a 21,000-acre nature preserve that someone donated to the church in 1955. To get a mental picture, think Georgia O’Keeffe—she spent her last 30 or so years living and painting at Ghost Ranch. It was great fun to meet other YAVs from all over the country and to take what amounted to an awesome little end-of-summer vacation.

But, it’s not all fun and games.  In my next letter, I’ll talk about my church and my job there.

Thank you all so much for your support of me in this endeavor; I appreciate it more than you know. As much as I enjoy the new family I’ve found here and this opportunity to serve the least among us, whenever I pause to think about the family I left behind I cannot thank God enough. Please continue to keep me in your thoughts and prayers and do drop me a line if you get the chance.

In Christ,