Melanie Bertges 

Major:Freshman Physician Assistant Major

Hometown:Pittsburgh, PA

One thing you are excited about for Merida:"I am excited to widen my horizons and be immersed in a new culture (and the Mexican food of course)." 
A fun fact about yourself:I love running and new adventures!

Hayley Gannon 

Major:Freshman Physician Assistant Major

Hometown:Buffalo, New York

One thing You’re excited for:"I can’t wait to meet all the girls at Nueva Vida! I can’t wait to explore this whole new life so different than mine. I am excited to see what experiences I will keep with me and treasure for the rest of my life!" 

A fun fact about yourself:This is my first time going on a service trip!

Lauren Williams

Major:Freshman Social Work Major

Hometown:Pittsburgh, PA 

One thing you are excited about for Merida:"I am so excited to experience a different culture and make meaningful connections with people through the service of presence." 
A fun fact about yourself:I have been on 12 mission trips! 

Kaitlyn Lyons 

Major:Freshman Physician Assistant Major  

Hometown:Pittsburgh, Pa 

One thing you are excited about for Merida:"I am most excited to help all of the girls in Nueva Vida! Also, this is my first time traveling outside of the country so I cannot wait to immerse myself in a new culture!" 

A fun fact about yourself:This is only my second time being on a plane!  

Emily Seggio

Major:Freshman Physician Assistant Major 

Hometown:Buffalo, NY

One thing you are excited about for Merida:"I'm super excited to go to Merida because I have never traveled outside of the country, and I am looking forward to having the opportunity to meet and work with a diverse group of new people!" 
A fun fact about yourself:I had my cartilage in my ear pierced when I was in 3rd grade. 

Angelika Chiang 

Major:Junior Biology Pre-Medical Major, Chemistry Minor

Hometown:Novi, Michigan 

One thing you are excited about for Merida:"I am excited to see my group members grow during this wonderful experience. I'm also eager to meet the girls at the Nueva Vida and explore another new culture. I can't wait to grow more as a person and be the leader my group and co-leader needs." 
A fun fact about yourself:I can make 3D origami and I'm a decent photographer.  

Julia Danko

 Major/Position:Sophomore Physician Assistant Major
Hometown:Cleveland,Ohio
One thing you are excited about for Merida:"Being welcomed into the community of Merida and participating in life with them"
A fun fact about yourself:This will be my second ABST experience in Mexico, but my first time leading a trip! 

Emma Oas

Major:Junior Public Health Major, Psychology Minor
Hometown:Girard, Pennsylvania
One thing that you're excited about for Merida:"I'm excited to immerse myself into this completely new culture with some amazing people. I feel as though this trip is an important step in the right direction of my future and I can't wait to see how we all grow from this experience."
Fun fact about yourself:I just recently got accepted to an internship in South Africa this summer!

Becky Perry

Major/Position:Director of the CSC

Hometown:Rochester, NY

One thing you are excited about for Merida:"I can’t wait to experience the gifts of the mission of Friendship and to encounter our neighbors in Merida with this wonderful group of Gannon women!" 

A fun fact about yourself:This will be my 7^th ABST with Gannon!

Up next is Jinhee!

Jinhee Yoo

         

Major/Position:Faculty member 

in the School of Business at Gannon, Ph.D. in Sport Management & Marketing

Hometown:Seoul,South Korea

One thing you are excited about for Merida:"Meeting people in Merida and being part of the service trip." 

A fun fact about yourself:Loves traveling, skiing, research on VR

Introductions

Hello everyone!The Merida, Mexico ABST is coming up in only a few short weeks and we could not be more excited! To help you follow our journey along the way, we will be posting introductions of each of our group members. First up is Maddie! 

Maddie Duschek

Major:Freshman Physician Assistant Major
Hometown: Beaver, Pennsylvania
One thing you are excited about for Merida: "I am excited to meet the girls at Nueva Vida and immerse myself in a new culture! This will be my first service trip and I am so excited to begin this journey!"