PHOENIXVILLE (AP) — One of the two aid workers rescued by Navy SEALS in Somalia is a graduate of a small religious college in suburban Philadelphia and the head of the school says officials are grateful their prayers have been answered.

The Rev. Don Meyer says Jessica Buchanan graduated from Valley Forge Christian College in 2006. He says she “fell in love with Africa” after doing a student teaching stint at Rossalyn Academy in Nairobi.

The 32-year-old Buchanan and Poul Hagen Thisted, a 60-year-old Dane, were rescued early Wednesday. They had been working with a de-mining unit when gunmen kidnapped them in October.

Meyer says those who know Buchanan want to offer their “deep gratitude” to the people who worked to free her.

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