STUDENT LIFE I INTERNATIONAL I SOCIAL CLUBS I ACADEMICS I PEOPLE I LEADERSHIP I ATHLETICS I ORGANIZATIONS BAPTIZING BUCHANAN Junior Lea Buchanan asked new friend junior Braden Snyder to baptize her during their semester at HUF. J unior communication sciences and disorders major Lea Buchanan's experience studying abroad was unique. As she traveled throughout Florence, Italy, and other parts of Europe through the Harding University in Florence (HUF) program, she also embarked on a spiritual journey. The journey began when Buchanan and her friends' travel plans did not go as intended, and they ended up on a 15-hour train ride back to Florence because sophomore Amelia Martin lost her passport. During this train ride, Buchanan and junior Braden Snyder started talking about baptism, and her spiritual journey began. On April 15, 2018, Buchanan was baptized by Snyder with che support of her HUF family on a beach in Santorini, Greece. Buchanan expressed the love and gratitude she felt as a result of using her time at HUF to share her testimony of faith. "Overall, my main takeaway from the trip was that I got to see somany things and so many places, but for me, now, I see it as God planning events and placing people in my life at the right time," Buchanan said. Assistant Professor of Communication Dr. Charles Bane, who went to HUF with Buchanan, felt that this experience affected the entire group of students. "I believe that it touched everyone, even those who weren't physically present," Bane said. "By the end of the program, we were one big family. As Christians, we're all family anyway, bur this was something different. Seeing one of your own become even more one of your own was truly special." Snyder and Buchanan did not know each other before studying abroad together. "I didn't expect to be that close with Lea at the beginning of che trip," Snyder said. "I didn't think I would be out in the water with her that day. The HUF culture of family all the time was a big reason for it. ... I think the culture that we had and those 33 people led to the baptism." story by Dailey Thomas Junior Braden Snyder baptizes junior Lea Buchanan in the Aegean Sea offthe coast ofSantorini, Greece, on April 15, 2018. Snyder and Buchanan met on the trip and developed a strong relationship with each other and the other members ofthe group. I photos courtesy of Haley Roth Members ofthe spring 2018 HUFgroup gather to witness junior Lea Buchanan's baptism in Santorini, Greece, on April 15, 2018. Buchanan decided to be baptized after conversations with junior Braden Snyder and other trip members on a 15-hour train ride. I photo courtesy of Haley Roth 38
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTc5NA==