Pay it Forward

I know that it has taken me a few days to make this post, but we have been totally exhausted from this past weekend. For those of you who don't know the story behind this I will give you a quick update.

Last Christmas my parents gave each of us some money to "pay it forward"(most of you have probably seen that movie or heard about it from Oprah). We were suppose to find someone who we would like to help with the money that we were given, and we were suppose to have it completed by the time Christopher was born (January). As January was quickly approaching Brian and I just couldn't figure out what we were going to
do with our money. I called my mom and told her that I really felt like it was truly a blessing for us to have this money, and that I knew that Brian being on the fire department would also help us to know what we were suppose to do with it. So time passed, and in April we were informed that one of the guys on the department's, someone who Brian worked his first 24 with, wife had an accident. She was on a long board and got going way too fast down a hill, jumped off the board and landed
wrong on the ground breaking her back. The spinal cord was not severed,
but she was paralyzed. This lady was 32 years old and they have 6 kids ranging in age frm 2-12. Brian came to me one night and said that this is who we should pay it forward to. So for the last 2 months we have been working, with the chief of the
fire department, in planning a fundraiser for them to raise money to be able to purchase a wheel chair accessible car for this family. And when I say we I really mean Brian. I did help him, but he deserves all the credit on this one.

On Saturday June 30th we held the fundraiser for them in Alpine. We had a auction, a raffle, there was dinner donated to us from two different businesses, a couple of bouncy houses, a live band, and of course all the fire trucks and a clown named Ember. There were so many generous people who donated so many items for us to be able to auction off. We were so amazed at the compassion that people had on someone that they had never met. So with all the items auction and raffled off as well as the food that was donated to us we took our $500 and turned it into $30,000 and there are still donations coming in.

We feel really blessed to live in such community surrounded with people and business that are willing to give so much. It really has strengthened our family by doing this fundraiser, and made us really appreciate what we have been given. Our challenge to you is to do the same and "pay it forward". You never know how it will effect the lives of people around you.

Thanks Mom and Dad for giving us the opportunity to "Pay It Forward" and thanks to all that were there and helped out. We wouldn't have been able to do it with out you and it really means a lot to us for all the support that was given. We love you.

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