Hey everyone! I wanted to give a quick support update and fill you in on some other things as well.
At this moment, I have raised $11,719 including pledges!! This means that I only need to raise another $3,781 to be fully funded. God has certainly blessed this process but there is still work to be done. On that note, I want to tell you about my next fundraiser which will be held on Saturday, May 21st. My church is participating in the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium’s Walk 4 Faith 5K Walk/Run & 1 Mile Fun Walk. Walkers and runners can register for the walk ($20 or $15 if you are a Zoo member) and then raise pledges for my trip (100% of pledges you are able to raise go towards my mission’s trip). For more information please visit my church’s website by clicking on the link below. If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact me.
http://startanewlife.org/index.php?nid=126630&s=ev&event_id=337231&event_start_date=2011-05-21&viewmode=week&viewdetails=true.
Also, many people have been asking me if I have any specific deadlines that I have to meet for my support. I do have four major dates that are significant for me to meet. They are as follows:
· $3,500 before training camp (May 21, 2011)
· $6,500 before Launch (around July 1, 2011)
· $11,000 by 3 months into my trip (specific date coming soon)
· $15,500 by 6 months into my trip although pledges can go to May 2012
Praise God that I have already met the first three deadlines and now there is only one more to meet!
The next step for me in the preparation process is to attend training camp in Tennessee. Camp will be May 21-29th and its focus will be to help prepare my squad for the physical, emotional and spiritual battle that we will face in the field. We will be doing many different things throughout this week including doing team-building exercises to help determine how our squad of 70 people will be divided into smaller teams of about 7-8 people (these 7-8 people will be who I spend the majority of my time with on the race). This will also be the first time that I get to meet my squad-mates in person. Many of us have been communicating over the internet and phone the last several months so it is going to be exciting to finally be together. I would appreciate your prayers for that week. Please pray that my squad will be unified and filled with the focus and desire to bring God’s word to the world. Also pray for spiritual strength as I know many of us are beginning to feel the attacks of the enemy as the race draws near.
I hope to blog while I am at training camp so I can keep you updated on how things are going. Following training camp, I will know more specific information including our official departure date, who is on my team, and much more.
Thanks for everyone’s prayers and support!! Only 1 and a half months left until the journey begins.
