Sunday, April 22, 2012

With a little help from our friends


 A week ago, my Colorbox quilt went up for auction, and sold for an amazing $5,900, with money going to Third World Relief. If you have been around the past week, you have read that repeatedly. Mark and I decided to issue a challenge, and donate $1 for each comment left on this post. So many of you took left comments, and we ended up with a total of $504! Thank you all so much. Additionally, someone will win some scraps left over from making Colorbox. That doesn't seem like much of a thank you.

Family and friends have helped us to reach our goal. I never put it down in writing, but our goal was to reach $500.

Our son, Aaron, took it upon himself help push the comment total a bit more quickly, and left forty one-word comments. He has never lacked in creativity, so it didn't surprise us when he did that.

Aaron, who is an optometrist here in Fresno, has participated in three medical mission trips himself through the AMIGOS organization. He went to optometry school in the Portland, Oregon, area, and AMIGOS is "dedicated to providing quality vision care at no cost to underserved people in the Portland area and throughout the world." He spent time in Honduras, Guatemala and Belize.
He and I had a texting conversation the other day about the people volunteer to go to impoverished areas around the world, and those who help with funding. I agree with him that sometimes it's just so easy to write a check and then kind of put it in the back of your mind. In fact, the other day, I was taking my hot shower, which is one of my favorite parts of each new day. We recently had water meters installed in our neighborhood. I told Mark that regardless of the cost, I don't want to give up my hot shower in the morning.
Then I stopped short and thought to myself: how many people not only don't have unlimited hot water, they don't even have safe drinking water. We take so much for granted.

I admire all the people who are willing to give some of their time, short-term or long-term, to be of help where the needs are great, and the people who give financially.


Thank you for telling me about the charities that are near and dear to your hearts as well. It was great learning about some I had never heard of, and nice to read that some of you are familiar with MCC already. It made me realize the immense scope of people and organizations that need our help.


Thank you to my friends who have helped spread the word this week about our efforts to raise additional money. Lynne and Krista even blogged about it. I am thankful for them, and for the blogging community in general, people I may never meet in real life but yet consider them to be real friends.

Lynne has been instrumental in getting the word out about Siblings Together, a wonderful organization whose goal is to forge a bond between siblings who have been separated from each other through no fault of their own.

She has been asking for donations from the quilting community in the form of fabric, blocks, completed quilts--something that these kids can hold on to at summer camp as they spend time with their siblings.These two quilts, which Mark and I purchased at an MCC sale several years ago, will be making their way to the UK this week, essentially paying it forward.
Sheri Wiedenhoefer, West Coast director of MCC, often mentions the Rule of Threes to emphasize how great the needs are: A person can only survive for three minutes without air, three days without water and three weeks without food. Take a second, or three, to think about that.

A couple of weeks ago I took our grandchildren, Charlotte and Levi, to see The Lorax in the theater. Here is a little piece of Dr. Seuss wisdom that certainly applies to more than saving trees.

Thanks again. We could not have achieved our goal without each and every one of you.
 

15 comments:

05 08
Sunnybec said... #

Congratulations on reaching your goal. Hugs Linda x

Amy Friend said... #

What a wonderful post.

Katy Cameron said... #

Congrats on reaching your goal :o)

Mrs Flying Blind... said... #

You are both amazing x

Archie The Wonder Dog said... #

I agree with Hadley!!

Carla said... #

Such a wonderful thing to raise all that money. Yes, we do take lots for granted here. Hopefully we give out of that gratitude : ) Blessings on you.

M-R Charbonneau said... #

Yay on reaching your goal, Cindy! Congrats!

Needled Mom said... #

I really have to hand it to the people who will step up and go to the places where they are so badly needed. The money is fabulous, but the people who are there in the trenches are such heroes.

Congratulations on having surpassed your goal.

Shocking Hocking said... #

congratulations cindy - a wonderful reminder :)

Aliceart said... #

Thank you for sharing some very special people. Thank heavens they are here.

Lynne (Lily's Quilts) said... #

Wow Cindy I just watched the auction video and it made me cry my eyes out so I don't know how you were feeling on the day. And thank you too for this wonderful post and for your incredible generosity. XXX

Lucy | Charm About You said... #

Wonderful Cindy!

Doris said... #

I watched the "bag It Movie" the other night, a documentary that starts with our use of "single use" plastics like shopping bags, but then goes on to explore so much more. It was a serious eye opening moment for me, sort of like your hot shower moment.

Mama Pea said... #

I have been so busy the past couple of weeks, I have not read blogs. Sorry I got behind and missed out on your fundraising efforts. You really nailed it with this post. Congratulations on your Colorbox quilt! That is quite an accomplishment. You should be so proud of that quilt!

sarah elizabeth :: {no} hats said... #

Cindy this is such a beautiful and humbling cause. (Yes, this is extremely untimely, but I somehow link-stepped my way back here after seeing a snippet of your stunning colorbox quilt over on Lynne's blog). Really, just beautiful.