t-shirts make it offical...

We are going to South Africa!!!!!

Last night we had our last information meeting.

• The money was due yesterday. On Saturday, I put in $859 from my bank account, meeting the $3500 goal. I am in awe that I was able to meet that goal and will not go into debt.
  
• We found out who the people on our individual work teams would be.
  
• My gardening group will be on special assignment, doing landscape for Charity and Faith's pastor Titus' home.
• One night while in South Africa, we will be eating dinner and staying overnight with a host family from the church.
• Our flight will leave at 6am from CVG...we have to arrive at the airport at 3am!
  

At the end of the meeting, we were surprised and surrounded in the dark auditorium by people holding candles, who will be praying for us on our trip. My mom is that person for me. It was a really good feeling to be surrounded by people who, back home will be thinking and praying for our trip...pretty comforting.

Donation Deadline Extension

If you still would like to give monetary support, the new deadline is June 10th! I have $1500 to raise still!
All the info about donations can be found at http://www.crossroadscommunity.net/go/
I'm still doing research studies and working longer hours to help offset my costs.

I'm halfway through the book, We Are All the Same, it's been a really enlightening book about South African culture, both tribal poverty and middle class life. I am learning more about the Apartheid and AIDS crisis and realizing how those things impact ordinary people's lives.

more fundraising ideas anyone?

I'm currently at $1771.
Donations I received yesterday pushed me over the $1750 halfway mark!
$1729 to go!
Looks like if I keep working hard, they will let me have until June 10 to raise all of the money...

I feel like the Herlihy Boy

Dog-sitting/House-sitting + research studies + garage sale + ebay sales = $565
Today I have $1904.00 left to raise!

Seriously, if you need to rent me for anything, mowing the lawn, washing dishes, dusting, etc. I will do it! Prayers for more money also appreciated :)

Doing all this work, a Saturday Night Live skit came to mind
...the Herlihy Boy...
Mr. O'Malley: He's a good hard-working boy! Let him bring in your mail!
Herlihy Boy: I'm not gonna beg you. My track record speaks for itself. I'm confident you'll make the right decision.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8hUgTuLQTU


|as always, if you are so inclined, tax-deductible donations can be made at https://www.crossroadscommunity.net/go/Index.aspx |

Enough about money:
They broke us up into our work teams last night.
I got together with my gardening team for the first time. I actually ran into two girls I went to Mississippi with after Hurricane Katrina...they don't even go to Crossroads church! It's nice to know, when I'm working in South Africa, in a foreign neighborhood, that I'll already know some people, and that's pretty comforting.
Paul and Greg will be doing construction, building homes. Mae will be playing with kids!

Garage Sale follow-up

Our garage sale was successful, rain held off until the very end! It was a lot of work, glad it's over...for now. We made just over $500 and we'll split that.

Still more work to do.

My very wonderful friend Jen just called me with a new fundraising idea:
clothes swap + $10 cover/donation at her house.

That's what friends are for! We are clothes swap pros, so we got this! We are ironing out the details tonight...

funds update

Saturday, May 5th, Paul and I will have a garage sale at his parent's house.

We've been picking up donations that family has set aside for us, which is wonderful! I've also been doing some major spring cleaning since I've moved. I'm reevaluating what I actually need and learning to get rid of things that are just clutter.

Why do I hang on to my childhood toys? I don't know...but now I'm getting rid of them, including a giant bag of stuffed animals and dolls. However, I'm feeling pretty torn about getting rid of the My Little Pony salon. I mean, maybe a little pony will need her hair washed and then what!?! Just remind me I need money to get to South Africa... I'd rather not be around when that sells.

I'm excited to see how much money we'll make from the garage sale!
I'll be taking more donations up until that Saturday! We do pick-ups!

As of this morning, I have $771.00 raised, so $2,729.00 to go...

we are all the same

Greg, Paul and I went to a lecture on AIDS in South Africa, taught by a local doctor from Crossroads who has been on many trips to Africa and went on the Mamelodi trip last year. I learned not only about AIDS/HIV, but culture, poverty and compassion.

There are many orphans and many people dying due to treatable illness complicated by AIDS.

I have never been exposed to any environment like that...I can only imagine that it will change me forever. I also know it will be difficult to leave everyone I've met behind and return to the U.S.
I feel like this lecture made everything a little more real for me. It made everyone seem more human to me, instead of statistics or even "South Africans"...people are just people and I am just like them, I just happened to be born in the U.S. and like them, I had no control over where I was born.

I am going to read a book with Paul:

We Are All the Same: The Story of a Boy’s Courage and a Mother’s Love by Jim Wooten
If you only read one book before going to South Africa – read this one. It portrays a wonderful story of a young boy infected with AIDS and his courageous battle, but also gives a great brief history of the country and the AIDS crisis and the government’s reaction at the same time. A quick read that you won’t be able to put down.