Study Abroad

Quito: The First Two Months

October 30, 2025/in Quito, Ecuador 2025

Hello! My name is David Fenske, and I work as a missionary assistant with Academia Cristo in Quito, Ecuador. For those who do not know, Academia Cristo is an organization supported by the WELS dedicated to sharing the gospel and training church planters throughout Latin America. Most instruction is done through applications like WhatsApp and Zoom, which aim to spread the gospel to as many people as possible.
It is challenging to know where to start when telling your story. The path to how I ended up in Ecuador is long, winding, and full of twists and turns. After some reflection, I believe the best place to start is at the end of my time studying abroad in Ireland (you may have read some of those blogs!). So here’s what’s happened since I finished my time in Ireland in April of 2024:

I studied Spanish literature in June of 2024 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
I returned to New Ulm and spent July and August of 2024 working as a line cook at the New Ulm Country Club.
In August 2024, I began studying on the Pastor track at MLC. I fell in love with the Biblical languages and, much to the chagrin of my friends, I spent most of the school year studying in the library.
In December 2024, I was recommended to look into being a missionary assistant with Academia Cristo. I figured it would help me with my Spanish, so I applied, interviewed, and got the job.
I finished the second semester in May 2025, and after a week at home, I returned to Buenos Aires for my third Spanish immersion trip. I had the privilege of taking an intensive Spanish literature course with Profe Bases. We read about 50 pages per day and covered various authors, genres, and themes.
When that ended, I spent a week as a tourist in Panamá City before I went to Antigua, Guatemala, and studied a Mayan language called Tz’utujil for six weeks. I could write forever about the experience, but suffice it to say, I now have an intermediate knowledge of a language that only 72,000 people speak in five towns on the shores of Lake Atitlan.
I was able to return home for two weeks, spend time with family, and then I flew down to Quito on September 1st.

Now that we’ve breezed through the past year and a half of my life, we can talk about how my first two months in Quito have been. I would like to say that it’s been all sunshine and daisies in my first two months, but it hasn’t.
I was welcomed and made to feel like I was a part of the missionary team from the very beginning. However, I had a severe reaction to the altitude and felt a general malaise for the first week. Then, right as I was adjusting to the altitude, I got sick again, this time with a bacterial infection of some sort. I think I got it from some spoiled ceviche– I haven’t felt so ill in years. My symptoms were so bad that I went to the hospital (see the photo below). Fortunately, I recovered within a few days and felt healthy enough to go hiking in Cotopaxi with a group of students.
Cotopaxi was unbelievable. We started our day with an hour-long hike to a base camp at around 5,000 meters (16,400ft). When we reached the base camp, I randomly made small talk with an Israeli who was very impressed when I bellowed the Shema. Unsurprisingly, he asked me how and why I knew it, which led to an opportunity to explain that I am studying to be a Lutheran pastor. Like most people, he asked, “What’s a Lutheran?” So I was able to share what I and other Lutherans confess about the gospel message, all because I had memorized Deuteronomy 6:4 in the original Hebrew. After some time at the base camp, my group and I descended, and we could ride mountain bikes most of the way down. All in all, it was an excellent day.
However, homesickness didn’t take long to hit me like a freight train. A few days after Cotopaxi, I moved from the homestay I was at to a missionary family’s home. The missionary family happened to be going home to the US for two weeks. Then they went on a work trip to Colombia, so I watched their house and dogs for three weeks. I was happy to do it, and I didn’t mind the company of the dogs, but I spent too much time in isolation, so my homesickness started to spiral. Things didn’t get any better when I moved into my own place after the three weeks had passed. It’s embarrassing to admit, but I’m not the independent, autonomous person I sometimes try to be; I need social interaction and conversation with others.
Fortunately, Profe Bases came and visited me (and some of his Ecuadorian friends). We were able to spend plenty of time together. We had long conversations, did tourist activities, and enjoyed meals together. He reminded me of why I came to Ecuador in the first place: to continue improving my Spanish. His encouragement helped me to explore the possibility of taking Spanish classes here. I’m in the registration process and hope to start taking daily classes at a Spanish institute near my home starting next week. His encouragement also helped me seek out social interaction, so I reached out to my former host Mom, and we got dinner last Friday with some other students she’s currently hosting. It was an amazing opportunity to eat with them because I was able to share the gospel with them. Believe it or not, explaining that you’re studying to be a pastor quite easily leads to conversations about God. In my experience, most people walk around with unanswered questions about God and eternity. So, when non-Christians meet a Christian, they’re eager to learn what it’s all about. This lends even more credibility to the importance of 1 Peter 3:15, “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.”
You may be wondering what I do with my time. My work with Academia Cristo is part-time, so I only work about 15-20 hours per week. I consider myself the “loose-ends” guy because my work varies significantly from week to week. Sure, I have some student data entry responsibilities that remain a daily task, but otherwise, I take care of odd jobs here and there. I’ve house/dogsat, cleaned the office, helped communicate with students, helped lead devotions with the missionaries, and taken notes during missionary meetings, among other things. But the 15-20 hours of work leave me quite a bit of free time, so I’ve had to be intentional about how I use my time.
I spent my first six weeks in Ecuador reviewing Greek and Hebrew grammar, and now I’ve started translating through the books of Luke and 1,2 Samuel. I’m far from an expert, but I’m amazed at how much I can understand, especially considering that I didn’t know either language until 14 months ago. If that wasn’t enough language work, I am teaching myself Latin. Latin isn’t hard, mainly because the vocabulary is very similar to Spanish and the grammatical structures are nearly identical to Greek. This means that I use five different languages almost every single day. When I’m not studying languages, I’m spending my time writing. I’m currently working on a book about biblical interpretation. Perhaps I will share more about that in the future. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that I’ve kept up my voracious reading habits; I’ve read or finished reading 16 books in the past two months. However, when I’m not being a nerd, I work out. I lift weights two days a week and run three days a week.
Finally, my favorite time every week is when all the missionaries gather on Sunday mornings to join in worship. Because there is no church here, we gather in one of the missionary families’ homes. The services are an interesting blend of Spanglish. For example, the liturgy is usually in Spanish, the Scripture readings and sermon are in English, but the hymns/songs are a healthy balance of both. It has also been an incredible blessing to take communion with the missionaries.
It has been a pleasure to give you some insight into what has been going on in my life– thank you for reading! I ask that you pray for the gospel’s spread as Academia Cristo seeks to play its part in fulfilling the Great Commission. May God bless you!
David

An explanation of the photos:

My first hospital visit in Ecuador
Hiking the Cotopaxi Volcano
Standing on the Equator
Yo y mis viejitos
Church with the missionaries and their families

Blog 5 – Joy in Jesus

October 29, 2025/in Limerick, Ireland Fall 2025 Gilkey

Smiles, my dear friends!

Smiles indeed! I must say that this past week has brought me many, many moments of smiles, prayers of thanks, and joy in Jesus! It is hard to believe, but this blog marks the mid-point of my time in Ireland – I have just about two months left! My time here has been immeasurably blessed, and I can joyously say each morning, “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24). Thank you for reading this today, and I pray that you are finding ways to be joyful in your own life!

One of my favorite parts of my day is when I give gratitude and pray with my boyfriend, Micah! We share the things that we are grateful for in the day, prayer requests that we have for ourselves and people that we know, and then we pray together! It is such a blessing to be able to find the good in such a broken and sinful world – God is good and therefore there is no shortage of amazingly good things to find through gratitude! Here are some of my “gratitudes” from these past few weeks!

Three things I am grateful for:

The Kopplin Family (Laura’s parents came to visit, and they invited me to come along on their adventures – they are the absolute sweetest!)
The North Wild Atlantic Way (with the Kopplins, we drove this coastal route along the ocean and saw some magnificent sights – the juxtaposition of green hills and rocks with blue water and sand is a tremendous sight to see!)
God’s Strength (there have been a few different moments this past week where God gave me the opportunity to talk to people about Him – He gave me strength and the right words to say when sharing His glorious Gospel message!)

For this blog edition, I have been tasked with answering four main questions regarding my experience thus far. I have so many thoughts as this marks the halfway point of my adventure!

How do you feel about your experience so far? Why?

I feel blessed!

To be honest, many people have asked why I decided to come to Ireland, and I really don’t have a precise answer to give them! One morning in my Freshman year at MLC, I woke up and felt really called to study abroad. Three years later…and here I am! In the back of my mind, I have always felt sure that there is a reason that God wants me here, in Ireland, at this particular time. Why? I don’t know, but I am certain that God is using me in His will. I couldn’t be happier to be in a place where I can learn, grow, and flourish in ways that wouldn’t be possible in my home country.

This experience so far has been blessed in every possible way. God has allowed me to meet new people, make connections, learn a wide range of academic ideas, volunteer for societies and organizations on campus, work on building better personal habits to care for my well-being, and most importantly, share the light of Jesus with others! The depth of perspective that I am gaining from individuals around the world is astounding! I feel myself becoming more aware and compassionate towards others by valuing how they see the world and recognizing that every person walking around me was made by God! Jesus loves them, forgives them, died for them, and wants them to be saved!

2. Which goal have you made the most progress on?

To have a basic knowledge of Irish music and dance.

Well, friends, I can safely say that I will be coming home with a very decent amount of knowledge in the world of Irish music and dance. I have learned loads about the history of Irish dance, explored traditional musical instruments (and how they are played), and drilled the practical components of how to dance a variety of Irish dances! I am being spoiled this semester…hehe! I have classes that are mandatory for me to go to and consist of me doing my favorite thing on the face of the planet…dance!!! 😀

However, may I say, Irish dancing is far harder than it looks! The control needed to keep your upper body stiff and yet move your lower body with such precision is undoubtedly an art! There is also a sense of rhythm that is quite demanding in Irish dance. I find myself at times getting lost in the syncopation of beats because the footwork is about how many different steps or sounds you can accomplish in one beat of music, not dancing to each beat of the music individually. For any of you who know me really well, I actually have the worst time with rhythm – I always have, even from when I was little. I used to get yelled at when I was at dance because I could never count the music very well…ironic, isn’t it?! 😅 Needless to say, not only am I really working hard on learning new moves, but I am focusing SO hard on the rhythm of the dancing that I bet I sweat double the amount necessary!

Anyway, I am super excited because at the end of the semester, I have the opportunity to do a mini performance with each of my dance classes! In my Ceili dance class, our class will get to perform two different Ceili festival dances that we enjoyed. In my Irish Dance Performance Skills class, we are collaboratively creating a dance! All but two of us in the class are dancers of other genres, but have never Irish danced before. We decided on a theme for our dance – Irish Traditional Dance vs. Contemporary. We are having a hoot blending Irish trad with the emotional and fluid complexities of contemporary dance! Dance is about expression, interpretation, imagination, and creativity within the confines of movement – it is brilliant because there is never only one way to dance. The idea of what dance is can be pushed, and the boundaries are endless as long as the body is in motion. What a gripping thought!

3. What are the three areas that you can improve on for the second half of your time abroad?

Comfort zone

Group Work

Balance

Though I have made a ton of progress in becoming more comfortable with the uncomfortable, there are still some areas that I want to explore to feel accomplished. At the moment, my comfort zone includes traveling around Ireland with others and alone, going on spontaneous adventures, and living on my own (though my housemates and I do most things together). I would like to continue to push myself and travel outside of Ireland sometime soon! Navigating the bus system in Ireland is normal at this point, but I want to seek the challenge of having to figure out a different culture’s transportation system to enjoy new places! I would also like to push myself and, at least one time, go to a pub in the evening to see what their nightlife is really like. It is not my cup of tea to be in a location of such sorts at night with alcohol around, but I do feel like it is my due diligence to understand their culture and what is considered “craic” to the Irish people!

At the moment, I have five group projects lined up with a variety of my classes, and I am struggling. I find that the communication style here is quite indirect compared to my own direct communication style, so I easily get frustrated when people do not reply in regards to getting work accomplished. I like to be organized and proactive in completing tasks, but I am unable to do such work until I have people who are willing to work with me. As I continue to reflect on these experiences, I am going to make a conscious effort to acknowledge how other people prioritize their time. I pray that through this shift in perspective, I will stay positive and calm when working cohesively with many different teams…leading me to feel adept at working in groups with people from other cultures, communication styles, and with different perspectives.

I can definitely continue to improve the balance in my daily life. From classes to school work, devotions to reading, and naps to watching “Gilmore Girls”, I do a vast array of things in a given day. As of now, I have created some lovely habits, including: morning and night devotions, reading, journaling, working out, more sleep, getting a good breakfast in the morning, and resting in the evening (watching “Gilmore Girls” or playing sudoku). I am really happy with my progress thus far! At home, none of these things would have ever occurred on a regular basis, so I am thrilled that my days are filled with such activities! But at this point, I would like to take these activities and put more realistic time restraints on them so that I can have better time management, but still take time to live in the moment! I definitely feel like I am succeeding in many of my goals, but I think that I could do an even better job of being a good steward of the time that God has graciously given me!

4. What has surprised you about the culture of your host country? What have you improved on? How have your opinions evolved?

How much they care for their environment.

Giving myself grace.

I miss aspects of American culture.

From the moment I arrived in Ireland, it was evident how conscious the people of Ireland are about the environment. There is not a lot of trash anywhere outside, rubbish bins are few and far between, they sort their garbage into waste, recycling, and compost, they don’t use paper towels, and they have a huge emphasis on reusable materials. These are just a few of the many examples that I see on a daily basis of how they strive to care for the environment that God has blessed them with! I know that I will be much more aware of how I am recycling and disposing of materials when I go home!

I am really pleased with my progress while being in Ireland! All of the goals that I set for myself are most certainly being reached and continuously worked on as I adjust to a different culture and put more focused time into improving my mental, physical, spiritual, and emotional well-being. One thing that I have greatly improved on is giving myself grace. I am a perfectionist by nature, and I have always struggled when things didn’t work out exactly the way I intended. I don’t know about you, but I like to have control and to know that when things are complete, they are completed with the best quality possible! Here, I don’t have control. I have to rely on learning the ways of others, going with the flow, and just doing the best that I can in a given moment! This is really becoming an area of growth for me, particularly in my group projects. I know that I have previously touched on that, but I am learning to have grace with myself when people don’t respond right away, and I can’t complete my work when it is convenient for me. This is not my problem or their problem. This is how the culture is – full of indirect communication, which is neither right nor wrong – just different. Therefore, there are many times that I say a quick prayer and surrender my frustrations, worry, stress, and anything else on my heart and mind to God! I trust that God is helping me grow through these tedious moments of surrender.

The first few weeks I was here, many people asked me, “How are ye finding yourself?” I am not sure what is going through your mind right now, but I can certainly say that I was a bit confused by that question. Like, what do you mean “how am I FINDING myself”?? I found myself in Ireland, and it is beautiful! But no! They were really asking me, “How are you doing? How is Ireland?” Oh! Well, with that tidbit of golden knowledge, there would have been a lot fewer awkward moments at the start of this adventure! Once I figured that one out, my answer looked a bit more like this: “Oh my, I love it here! The land is gorgeously green, and the people are so kind! I would move here, if I could!” Interestingly, many people gave me curious looks when I said that I would move here. Apparently, they don’t see the beauty of the place they live. But isn’t that true for all of us? It is really hard to see the blessings you are given when you are always surrounded by them. Sometimes it is healthy to take a step away from what is “normal” and look with a fresh, outside perspective to see the absolute love that God has bestowed upon us! This couldn’t be more true for me right now. I want you to know that I still adore Ireland, but I do think my answer has changed from the beginning. I don’t think that I would want to move here after all.

Think about your favorite season or time of year. What makes it your favorite? What smells, tastes, and vibes give you that feeling of excitement and joy that you wait all year for? For me, September through December is undoubtedly my favorite time of the year. I love the fall, the drinks, snacks, and homey feeling that comes with fall into Thanksgiving into Christmas! While I am not feeling homesick, my feelings at the moment would be best described as feeling culture sick. Ireland does not engage in all of these fall moments like America does. Partly because they don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, the feelings that I wait all year for in America are not the feelings that I am experiencing. This is not a bad thing, it is a different, new experience that I am blessed with! I am just really thankful to call America home. With a fresh perspective, I think that I will not take the specialness of fall into Thanksgiving into Christmas for granted, ever again!

Highlights of my many days include:

The BeMindfUL Programme (there have been some amazing insights, and I have been blessed with the opportunity to share the Gospel message with a lovely gal)
The Cliffs of Moher (it has always been my dream to go there and they are STUNNING – also, many movies have been filmed there and I got to see the “Cliffs of Insanity” from “The Princess Bride” – hehe 😁)
Killarney National Park (I took a trip to Killarney and hiked around the National Park for a wee bit – it is absolutely beautiful)
Pilates (I try to do it once a day, and it makes me feel so rejuvenated)
Chats (I have been having so many chats with friends and Professors, and I always feel a surging rush of joy getting to talk with people who give such good perspective)
Bible App (I started doing more daily devotions, and I am feeling God’s love and power in such intense ways – He is so good)

Low-lights of my many days include:

Anxiety
Time Management
Missing People

Learned Insights from the Low-lights:

My counselor always says, “Katie, anxiety is a control disorder. You need to surrender to God.” Boy, isn’t she right?! That is exactly what I explained earlier: I am a perfectionist, and I want control that I can’t have, so it causes me to feel anxious. But she is also spot on. God is the only one who is and can ever be in control. I must continue to learn to surrender to Him and give myself grace in the process. God says, “Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7).
Due to the fact that the time I have here is more loose than it would be in America, I find myself wasting time every so often. But then I get upset with myself that I didn’t use my time as wisely as I could have. The difference is that Ireland is more of a “being culture” than America is. America is a “doing culture,” and it is a strange adjustment to make, having more time than normal. Having more time is an absolute blessing, and I am going to continue to do my best to make the most of it, give myself grace, live in the moment, and pray for motivation to complete the tasks that I need.
I find myself missing the familiarity of home and people that I would typically see on a regular basis! I am not homesick, but I definitely miss my friends and family, and I think about them all the time! This is such a blessing that I have so many people that I love so dearly that I can have this feeling of “missing”! When I do have the opportunity to reunite with everyone, there will be endless joy – just as there will be endless joy when we come together and meet our Creator in heaven someday!

Scripture that has been close to me these past weeks:

Judges 6:12 – “When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, ‘The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.’”
John 6:35 – “Then Jesus declared, ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”
Matthew 9:37-38 – “Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.’”

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, these are all of my thoughts, reflections, and things that have been on my heart and mind! I pray that God continues to bless you immensely and that you can look to God in everything you do! Not every moment of life can be happy, but every moment can be joyful because you have been given the gift of forgiveness and salvation by your Savior! Rest in the joy of Jesus!

Blessings,

Katie Gilkey

Halfway Done???

October 29, 2025/in Berlin, Germany Fall 2025 Munson

I can not believe I am writing this blog post right now. Looking back at my experience so far, I am overwhelmed with good memories, ones that I’ll cherish forever. Not only have I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and tried new things, but I have learned so much about myself. If you ever find yourself traveling abroad, especially if it’s solo, you are going to learn SO much about yourself. You’ll figure out how to navigate your feelings better, and get a clearer understanding of who you are as a person. I came into this experience of study abroad fairly comfortable and confident with myself, but, wow, has this experience taught me so many things, and these are things that I would never have found out about myself if I had stayed where I was.

During your time traveling, I’ve found it’s so important to take time to experience things for yourself. Slow down, process, and cherish every moment. Day in and day out, I feel very blessed to be able to be here studying in Germany.

When I first arrived, I gave myself some goals to try and improve. I feel like I have made the most progress on speaking German and really taking time to slow down and appreciate moments.

It’s crazy how helpful and beneficial being in Germany has been for improving speaking German. It definitely makes a world of a difference to be able to learn it in the morning and immediately be able to speak it with locals the rest of the day. On that same note, I am really proud of how my confidence in approaching German people to speak with them has improved. That was a dream of mine, and it is awesome to see it become more of a reality every day.

Looking ahead to this next final part of my semester, I hope to keep improving this even more. I would also like to maintain a better sleep schedule, fingers crossed, as well as make sure I’m eating breakfast every day (food is fuel!). Getting enough sleep is not only essential for brain function, but it also helps keep you healthy and gives your body time to recover, which, as Berlin starts to get colder and more rainy as we approach winter, is something my body desperately needs. As for breakfast, it’s important for me to eat something, even if it’s not a lot. No one wants to have a rumbling stomach in their morning German class 😉

All in all, my opinion of German culture remains high. They have surprised me though! After being here for several months, I do not find them cold or uninviting at all. In fact, I have been treated with so much hospitality that I wish to carry that mindset, how to host and treat others with hospitality back with me to the US. If you take the time to talk to and get to know a German, they are so friendly and welcoming. Before I arrived, I had only learned that the Germans were a “cold” culture, but I do not believe that to be the case. As a whole, they may be more reserved, yes, but I have had too many lovely conversations with Germans to label them as “cold.” This factor has helped me greatly improve my confidence in approaching people, which was a major goal of mine coming to study abroad.

I hope everyone at home is doing well! I miss all of you so much!

Tschüss!

(Below is a panoramic view of Berlin in fall and a picture of my chai, which I have started making as a nice warm treat as the weather begins to get colder.)

Blog #5 We’re halfway there! Wo-oah! Living on a prayer!

October 29, 2025/in Limerick, Ireland Fall 2025 Kopplin

It’s the halfway point blog! In this blog, I’ll reflect on experiences and goals and evaluate the last half of this experience.