Flood us with your Ideas!!!

Whew!!  We have officially met the required down payment for the first due date!!  With three more to go, I know it's going to be personally challenging for me to trust that God will move the hearts of people, and make it possible to provide fully for this trip.  It's amazing to hear the encouraging words from others, and so very much needed - that I can't thank those of you enough that have been backing us up, not just with your words, but with your prayers through this process so far.  And because I want to make sure that I am keeping you all informed - here are the next set of due dates and fees we will need to come up for each:

May 8th - $1000

June 5th - $1000

June 20th - $1800 (eek...this fee scares me most!!)

We are trying to think of ways, outside of our support letters that we can raise money.  Some ideas floating around right now are yard sales and raffling off items.  AJ is amazing at woodworking, so we were thinking of having him build the Jeffersonian Book-stand (sells for anywhere between $500-$2000), out of solid Oak, and then maybe selling raffle tickets to win it.  My only worry about that though is that it's such a 'niche' kind of piece, that I worry about possibly not selling enough raffle tickets to even pay off the price of the supplies.  (Of course - here we go, gotta leave that to God also!!)  Plus, me not being on Facebook anymore kind of limits my reach-ability and networking to people that may be interested, and forces me to rely on word of mouth and this blog.  

 The other possible idea was for me to do photo shoots with people that were interested, and instead of paying a ridiculous amount, asking that they donate an amount towards our trip.  That way, not only would it be affordable, but it would go for a good cause.  But then of course, me being me, I think of all the 'what-if's' and the worries.  "What if the lighting is bad where we go, what if it rains (since I can only do natural light photography with the equipment that I have), what if I get too nervous around people that I'm not comfortable with..." etc.  

Another idea is a bake sale.  Except I have no clue where I would have it!  I love to bake, and granted if I were to sell enough, that would help - but it's all about location and advertising something like that. Two areas that I am at a complete loss about.       

One day at a time, right?

Passport Fun

Let me rephrase that - getting passports is NOT fun!  I think I was in a little bit of denial in thinking the passports wouldn't be that much of a dent in our pockets.  I was WRONG.  Nearly $500 later...they were being sent out, and expedited, to ensure the reservation of our plane tickets.  Eek!  Praying that God pulls through and still provides us with the funds we need for this trip.  While we need to raise $5000, I suppose I neglected to think about, or mention, that that amount didn't include the huge passport fees and the super 'fun' shots we will have to get in preparation before leaving.  Got to trust God on this - already starting to be pretty clear how much he wants us there!  I read this quote today and loved it, "Where God guides, he provides." I will cling to this truth...   

On another note, just saw and heard the news about the earthquake and Tsunami affecting Japan right now.  Wow, how heartbreaking.  Here I am complaining about passport $$, when all over the world, disasters and things like this happen.  Sometimes I think,...how unbelievably spoiled and blessed we are here in America?  ...I pray I never take that for granted.  If anything, I hope that this Kenya trip helps to put that more into perspective for me.  Material possessions are just 'stuff.'  You can't take it with you when you die, so why do we all get so bent out of shape about it all?

We Can't Do it Without YOUR Help!!

Some of the Teen Mothers

Oh yes, it's that time - the time to send out the letters asking for your support!  

It's not easy for AJ and I to ask for $$.  Not AT ALL!  In fact it takes us having to swallow our pride and ask for help (which I'll tell you, is a BIG pill to swallow sometimes!).  Below is a copy of our support letter. I left out our home address for security purposes, but if you would like to send support, please e-mail me and I will give it to you.  (clrewkowski@yahoo.com) 

Dear Family and Friends,

Have you ever heard the story of the Starfish being thrown back into the ocean?  So many had washed up on the shore, and when the man that was throwing them back in was asked why he was doing it, and that he couldn’t possibly make a difference – he merely replied… “It made a difference to this one.”  We want to help make that difference for some of the people living in Kenya. 

Can you imagine walking through the Kibera Slums of Nairobi, Kenya and engaging with some of the one million plus individuals living in tin shacks with no running water and few opportunities for education and employment?  Can you imagine sitting with a street girl from Kitale, Kenya who was recently rescued from a life of prostitution and given a safe home and an opportunity for restoration and hope?  Can you imagine sitting with a five year old boy who has lost both of his parents and his sister to the same disease that he now battles?  This vision is about to become a reality for AJ and I as we embrace an opportunity to travel to the beautiful nation of Kenya, East Africa with a team from Providence Church.  This 14 day trip will be spent working with Transformed International (www.transformedinternational.org), an organization committed to serving the orphans, widows, and at risk teens in Kenya.  July 5^th-19^th will be life-changing days for us, and we want to give you an opportunity to partner with us.

We will be serving Transformed International in a number of ways.  There will be opportunities for us to spend time building relationships with the street girls, orphans, and families that they serve, through sports, education programs, income generation training, manual work projects, and simply being present with those who have experienced so much of a life filled with brokenness.  All of these things will give us a chance to work side by side with those in the village towns and slum areas that we will travel to.  This allows for valuable relationships to be built, which is a vital part of the Kenyan culture.

There are two ways that you can be a part of this amazing African adventure.  The first and most important way is through prayer.  By visiting our blog at www.mountainmovers.blogspot.com, you can keep up to date on our journey as we prepare to go to Kenya, as well as the goings-on that happen throughout our time there.  The second way that you can partner with us is through financial support.  Between AJ and I, we will need to raise $5,000 by June 20^th to cover the cost of this endeavor; a steep amount for us, but not too steep for God!  Of course, if you aren’t in a position to help us, we completely understand.  However, if for some reason we raise above the amount needed, the rest will be put towards either helping someone else with the cost of their trip, or to help to individuals we will be working with while we are over there.

Your financial gifts are tax deductible and can be written out to: Providence Church.  Please write our last name, Rewkowski, in the memo line of your check.  Checks can be mailed directly to our home address:  (e-mail me at clrewkowski@yahoo.com for the address).  If you would prefer to pay online, you can send money through www.paypal.com using my e-mail address listed below.  (Unfortunately if you pay through PayPal there are fees, and so a small percentage is taken from the total amount of your gift.  You also won’t be able to use this as a tax deduction.)   

If you have any questions, or would like to talk more about this trip, please feel free to contact us at clrewkowski@yahoo.com.

Thank you for taking the time to invest in our lives and this adventure of serving people in another part of the world! 

Sincerely,

AJ & Tina Rewkowski

The teen mothers with their children  (photos taken from Transformed International)