Going to Guatemala

I am very sorry that it has been so long since I posted on my blog. I am going to try to get better about that.

1) I am leaving on Sunday to spend a week in Guatemala for what was initially planned to be a spiritual pilgrimage but is turning into a mission trip. My friend Karen Brown and I will be spending the week with people from Lemonade International in La Lemonade which is the ghetto of Guatemala City. We will be primarily working with children. I have never done anything like this. I am looking forward to moving out of my comfort zone, doing something different and releasing my mind of all things cancer related for the week. Shifting my focus to the severely impoverished will be good perspective for me to gain.
2) Striving for More had their June Board Meeting and we added a new board member. We were all feeling a gap without a member that had experience with fund raising so that was a focus of my prayers for most of May. Deborah Harrell Meehan was voted onto the board and was quickly assigned as the chair of the fundraising committee. Deborah is the leader of the Wild Wacky Wonderful Women of the World and served as the President of the Wake Women's Center for the last 5 years. Her background, experience, contacts and wealth of knowledge make her a wonderful addition to our team. I am really excited that she has joined us.

3) FWV Distilled has agreed to take on Striving for More as a pro bono client to design and develop a new website for us. This is very exciting because they will be doing some market research work to determine the best approach for designing the new site. This has been the missing piece since I don't have a creative bone in my body.

Please pray for Karen and I as we travel to Guatemala. Also, please pray for Vince and Mackenna as they will be alone this week. Since most of you know how spoiled I am, I have no doubt that Vince is perfectly capable of handling things on his own. However, I will not have a cell phone and will not be touching base at home and we have never had time apart where we have not at least spoken to each other. This will be different for us.

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Extraordinary Board in Place for Striving for More

Last Tuesday, I held the second Board Meeting for the Board of Directors for Striving for More. There were 3 new people that were voted onto the board.

I am proud to announce the new additions to the Striving for More Board of Directors. (if you don't know who the equally impressive team that this group is joining, check out the blog with those details here):

• Tom Stevens, MSW - Leadership Coach, Mayor, Author, Keynote Speaker - The way that Tom and I met can only be explained by divine intervention. God wanted our paths to cross and He made sure they did. Ask me about it and I will happily share the story with you so I can enjoy your reaction. Tom is currently on his second term as the Mayor of Hillsborough. He owns his own consulting firm called Think Leadership Ideas where he brings his clients two decades of experience in engaging people to create meaningful change and raise the bar on performance. He previously owned his own family therapy company in Durham. He brings an amazing wealth of experience to our board and I am confident that he will be a key player in helping Striving for More determine the best strategies for moving forward as a successful organization. I am so glad that he agreed to join us.
  

• Melissa Hicks, MS, CCLS, LPC, RPT - Child Life Specialist & Licensed Professional Counselor - I have been told that networking is the key to this business. It is a good thing that I am not shy. I have been telling everyone I know and everyone I meet about Striving for More and what my vision is since October. Well, in Missi's case, it is proof that it paid off. Two separate people told her to call me. Which is so fantastic because she is a goldmine of a find. Not only is she a Child Life Specialist who is highly experienced with Oncology patients but she was the co-founder of a nonprofit organization in Austin, Texas so she brings a tremendous amount of experience that we can benefit from. She is highly respected in her field and it is rare to find a Child Life Specialist with Oncology experience not working at an Oncology hospital. Since I already have one board member from Duke and one board member from UNC, it was important for me not to add anyone else from Duke or UNC so we do not tip the scales in either direction. This could not have worked out better. Missi started providing me guidance before she was even voted onto the board. She is fantastic. We are very fortunate to have her join Striving for More.

• Karla Diener, CPA - Karla and I met during one of my first but her very last Duke Non Profit Certification courses. She quietly asked me for my card during a break but we did not talk very much. I did notice that she seemed to know as much as the instructor and I wondered why an experienced CPA would be in the course. Karla called me a few weeks later and we decided to meet for coffee. We instantly hit it off. She is my kind of woman... driven. She gets things done. She wanted to learn more about Striving for More and after she did she was interested in being on the board. How fortunate am I? She came to me! At this point, I have figured out that God really wants good things for Striving for More. I must be on the right track. Jill is already our treasurer but Karla is an experienced CPA. The two of them met and they got along great. I need idea people around me. I can execute but I lack creativity when it comes to generating ideas. So I appreciate idea people so much and Karla is an idea person. We need that.
  

The board meeting was terrific. What a great room full of intelligent people who speak their ideas. A room full of people who just want to help kids with cancer make sure that their emotional needs are met. What a blessing.

So lets take stock for a minute, shall we? The last 3 board members either came to me or were plopped down right in front of me and they are all perfect fits for Striving for More. We must be on the right path, huh? , God. I will keep listening and keep doing what you tell me to do. Thanks for all the help you have given me so far.

If you have played a part in talking about Striving for More, talking about our mission, thank you so much. I appreciate it and it is clear He is listening.

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