I am fully funded. To everyone who has helped me get this far, with every fiber of my being and from the bottom of my heart: Thank You.
Dear Supporter,
Thank you for believing in me · For hearing about this wild and crazy desire of mine for years and years and never once shooting it down · For telling me that I should never let anything stand in the way of this dream · For saying that, of all the people you knew, I am the one you are confident should be following this path · For following up with me through the last few years, asking about my plans for my life and whether or not the Race was still a goal of mine · For celebrating with me when I got accepted, and actually getting excited about donating money to the cause · For believing in me when I often didn’t believe in myself.
Thank you for listening to me · For accepting my invitations to lunch, even when you knew it would likely end with me asking for money (and paying for those lunches when I never asked you to) · For asking questions, regularly, and not being afraid of my long answers · For being willing to sit through my hours of ramblings as I desperately tried to make you as excited about this as I was · For not getting frustrated as I managed to steer every conversation into something involving the Race, and my hopes and dreams for next year and what might come after · For listening to me, when I often wouldn’t listen to myself.
Thank you for challenging me · For going before me in your faith and showing me what it means to follow after God with everything you’ve got, and encouraging me to do the same · For asking me hard questions about my motivations · For standing by me in my doubts, and helping me through them · For making sure that my heart is in the right place – that I’m going so that I can learn and be a partner, not teach and be a savior · For keeping me in check, and making sure that, as I ask for contributions, that I am contributing myself · For challenging me, when I often was unable to challenge myself.
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I never could have asked for a more loving family. I could go on and on for much longer than anyone would want to read about here, but I’ll keep it short and sweet. I would not be here if not for my parents’ support, and I mean that in the sincerest way possible. They have been the anchor behind this entire endeavor. Sure, it was my idea in the first place, and sure, I was the one that continued to pursue it, but they were the encouragement behind it all. I had a goal, and they pushed me towards it and helped me however they could. They prayed for me. They talked with me through my struggles when I needed it, even when it was way past their bedtime. They donated. They encouraged others to donate – even people that didn’t know me. They’ve already shoehorned a visit to Africa into their schedules next year, even though it comes at the most inconvenient time possible. I owe them a debt that I can never hope to repay, and there are no words to properly convey the love and appreciation I have for them.
A special note to my sister: Please know that just because you weren’t able to support me in the way that other people have that I value you any less in this whole process. You have been just as much of an encouragement to me as anyone else, and the fact that we have been able to hang out at all over the last year is a miracle, with both of our schedules being so crazy. Thank you for making time for me. Thank you for bringing me caffeine at work. And thank you for always being someone I know I can talk to about anything that might be going on. I’ll miss you more than most people I’m leaving behind.
I never could have asked for more encouraging friends. The people that I have surrounded myself with – from those I’ve known since high school to those I’ve just met in the last couple months – have seen me at my worst and seen me at my best, and have continued to walk this journey with me through it all. Friends, please know that I could not have made it this far without you, whether you gave financially or not. Your encouragement and prayers mean the world to me, and many times that is what has kept me moving forward in this process. I know – some of you didn’t get it. Some of you couldn’t get your heads around why I would run off for a year after just finishing six years of college. Some of you don’t really get the whole Jesus thing, or why I would voluntarily become unemployed for a year to go spread His Word. To those people specifically: Thank you for supporting me anyway.
And to all of you: However long I’ve known you, and however often we get to spend time together, know that I will miss you next year. I’ll miss being around people I’ve known longer than a couple months. I’ll miss the years of inside jokes and last-minute road trips. I’ll miss our weekly trivia nights and ridiculous conversations at two in the morning. I’ll miss the concerts and the hikes and the dinners out when we all know we shouldn’t be spending this much money on food. I know you will miss it too, so thank you for helping me to leave anyway. I know it will all be here waiting when I come home. It always has been before.
I never could have asked for a greater team of supporters. You range from my youth students still in high school, to elders in my church, to people I’ve never even met, and I value you all more than I could ever express. Your prayers are invaluable to me, so please know that I need them to continue throughout this adventure. To those who donated financially: Thank you for your generous hearts. Thank you for giving cheerfully. Thank you for never making me feel like I was obnoxious when I bothered you about that donation you swore you would make last month and never got around to. You are all inspirations to me, in one way or another, and I pray that you can understand, through our conversations over the last few months, or at the very least through this writing, how much I truly do appreciate you.
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This journey is only just beginning, and I already have no idea how to ask God for more than He has already blessed me with. I am overwhelmed. I am encouraged. And I am so, so incredibly thankful for every single one of you that has come alongside me to make this long-anticipated dream a reality. I could not have done this without you.
The money is all accounted for, but this is not the end.
Please keep following my journey. These posts will hopefully be coming at you once a week, or more, starting now.
Please keep praying for me, and for my team. As I’m leaving in just over two weeks, I need that support more than ever.
Please keep talking with me. Just because I’m half a world away does not mean that I’m inaccessible. Email me. Facebook message me. Snapchat me. Send carrier pigeons. Do what you gotta do. Just please don’t forget I exist. Leaving is lonely when you lose connection with home.
I cannot say this enough: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. And God bless you all.
Colby
