Pre Packing Meeting

We met for our pre-packing meeting last night at Monica's. She made chili and spinach dip and we talked about all the issues we are having to deal with as the trip quickly approaches. Only a few weeks left.

O'Fallon Progress

Monica's shoe drive hit a new milestone and our trip made the front page of the O'Fallon Progress newspaper in St. Louis. The story is not online, but when I get a copy I will post it here. The basics story is that LaVerna Evans Elementary in O'Fallon, IL promoted her shoe drive and came up with hundreds if not thousands of shoes.

We dropped these off at the shipping agent who will be putting them on a pallette and shipping them to California. The original idea was to bring big duffle bags and bring them back on the plane. There were way too many shoes to make this possible so we had to find other arrangements. This picture of the pallette doesn't do it justice since the boxes are not yet stacked and most of them are beside and behind the pallette. There was enough to fill an entire pallette.

Thanks to Team Worldwide in helping us get these back to California. Next we will be working on a way to get all these shoes to Africa. Hang on! It's getting to be a wild ride but everything has been falling into place.

What's your most valuable posession?

I was thinking more about our photo project. We still don't have the means to print, but I'm working on it. I was thinking about disasters like fires and floods. What is the first (non-living) thing that people think of when they prepare to evacute a fire or flood? In every case I have heard, people talk immediatly of their pictures. Either they grabbed them first or they were lost.

It looks like it costs around $0.27 for something that has more value to a human than any other non-living posession. It makes perfect sense when you think of it in those terms. This is something that could make the smallest change, but have the biggest impact. The more I think about it, the more need I have to make sure this happens. I found an Epson portable printer at Costco today for $149. It's a little bulkier than the HP, but it has a better price. I need to keep doing my research. Does anyone know anyone at HP or Epson? I could really use some contacts.

Choose To Wait

The Choose To Wait curriculum is moving along nicely. We have 7 days planned out and will be bringing stickers and crosses for those that make the commitment. These are some of the options we are looking at for gifts.

These are a few of the cross necklaces we have been looking at.

http://www.dollardays.com/detailview.asp?itemid=166307&N=62
http://www.christianarea.com/ChurchSupplies/displayproductExtended.asp?productID=778
http://www.sav-on-closeouts.com/cart/cart.php?m=froog&p=13783

I'm posting them here in case someone has some they want to donate or can find a better deal. I think we need 100-200 necklaces and at least 200 stickers.

Thank You LA Galaxy

Thanks to the LA Galaxy for donating 50 soccer balls and jerseys for the Ark. We'll have a lot of pictures from our trip here with big smiles at this donation. With all the shoes we have been donated I'm sure we'll have enough cleats to field a few teams as well. This is going to be an incredible experience.

Bowling for Namibia

Last night we the Namibia team met for bowling. It was a lot of fun and Lailanie won the second round against Wood, Chuck and Amir. Way to go Lailanie. It looks like this is going to be a great group to go to Africa. It sure seems like it is getting close and everyone is coming together nicely and getting everything done. Great work team and great bowling!

Family Pictures

Here is one (of many) photos that were taken of people in Blok-E on the last trip. This family ran inside to grab a radio (with a frayed cord and probably not working) and a dog. They took this picture just to look at it on the lcd. Imagine if we could have handed them a print. This is the type of picture we would like to take and give to people as we also deliver food, hygiene items and a tiny bit of hope to those dying of AIDS.

We are looking at digital printers with batteries. If anyone has experience in this regard, please contact us.

No thanks Polaroid

This week we called Polariod after they had us fill out a long application. We originally sent them the letter below and they replied and had us fill out the application. We finally had to call them about the application and they told us they do not do any international charity. It would have been nice to know this before they had us fill out all the paperwork! It would also have been nice if they had called us instead of waiting until we called them. Now we are short on time and working on other options. I just wanted to save others the time. If you are going to ask Polaroid for help only do so if you are not international. Otherwise they will just be wasting your time. I would never have said anything if they had just said 'No'. Instead they had us fill out the application when they knew ahead of time they would say no. Very bad policy Polaroid.

We're currently looking at digital printers that can operate on battery. If you know anyone that can help, please contact us.

Here is the letter we sent them.
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July 28, 2005

Dear Polaroid,

I am leading a trip to an orphanage in Namibia Africa in November. I would like to present you with a unique opportunity which I recognized on a trip to the same orphanage last year.

I brought a digital camera with me and never expected the response of joy when I would take someone’s picture and show them the back of the camera. There was laughter, giggles and hope in a place that you would never expect it. I have enclosed some of those pictures from an area called Block-E where the orphanage is located. This is a shanty town of approximately 10,000 people where entire families sleep on the ground inside small shacks made of all types of refuse.

On the next trip, I would like to bring a Polaroid camera and as much film as I can possibly pack. I want to take a picture and instantly hand the families and children their picture. I believe this will be an extraordinary experience to these people. Most have never seen themselves in a mirror and could never afford a simple photograph. For people who have absolutely nothing, a simple family picture made by Polaroid will bring them pride, hope and joy.

It is my hope that Polaroid would somehow like to sponsor this portion of our trip. We can video tape and photograph and would be happy and willing to report back on the results. This could not only promote Polaroid, but could also promote a region that is experiencing social and economic devastation.

The tip leaves on ___ and is organized through Rock Harbor Church (http://www.rockharbor.org) in Costa Mesa, California. They run numerous mission trips around the world. This trip is focused on the AIDS epidemic where over half of the children are currently growing up without parents. We are teaching a choose to wait program and bringing health and teaching resources to the over worked staff that run the orphanage. It is a life changing experience for all participants.

Please help us.

Sincerely,

St Paul's Donates To Africa

St. Paul's Elementary school donated their monthly tithing to our Africa trip. Monica and Kim met half of the students yesterday morning and Wood and Kim met with the other half of the students this morning. We told them about our trip and thanked them for their generous support. This money will go a long way to help the Ark. We really appreciate the outpouring of support from the local community.

Roadblocks (not here)

From my perspective, it seems there have been a lot of road blocks in getting this trip organized. I just wanted to make note that this is just par for the course and we have to make sure we keep a positive outlook. In the end, this trip is not about us at all. It is about a lot of kids who need some food, time and spirtual guidance. No matter what it takes, we are committed to making even the smallest change in this crisis no matter how much work or frustration it requires.

Group Meeting

We had another meeting as we prepare for our trip. Only six weeks left and individual fundraising seems to be on target. The airline tickets were purchased last week. We spent a lot of time discussing the Choose To Wait program we will be teaching in Namibia. The more I read the booklets we have, the more impressed I am with the curriculum. It really does teach kids what they most need to know to make an informed and adult decision.

As I was writing this, someone just dropped off a big bag of Old Navy flip flops. All brand new. Made my day. This trip is going to be a great experience and I think we will make a difference to some people who could use a little hope.