block by block

this is going to read as bizarre. bizarre and true.

about two months ago, i had been pondering fundraising in general -- haiti orphanage? rwanda orphanage? ethiopia wells? i was sitting at a stoplight at a road that "T"s into another road in mooresville. i was staring at this really ugly, block wall covered in graffiti that was on the backside of a long row of businesses. and i had a thought. what if each block was 'bought' by a person/family/business/sponsor for $100 each and each block became part of a massive mural? the mural (of haitian kids? of something bright and abstract? of smiley faces and rainbows -- i'm kidding on this last one :) would 'speak' to people as they went by. i didn't know if the mural would be a stand alone wall that would be built in a public area or if it would be painted on something that already exists. it would serve as an ongoing visible reminder of the needs of people around the world. the idea kept coming back to me.

fast forward to home from haiti. i had somewhat volunteered myself to lead the effort to find a way to get the 21 orphanage workers and teachers at the orphanage school a small salary. cathy said they would be thrilled with $100 a month! right now, they come to work, day after day after day, in hope that someday there might be a paycheck. the school is open to anyone in the area. while there are 41 orphans, over 150 kids come to school each day. for whatever reason, i didn't think the approach of asking people to 'sponsor' a teacher (like we do with the kids) was the right approach. we would need $2,100 a month. sounds like a lot until you realize it is paying 21 people.

and then i remembered the mural block wall idea. in my head, i kept thinking the wall would be here. local. i put an email out to a small group to garner support :)
that night, i was talking with mike smith. he was on the trip and is son-in-law to rodney and cathy. we were just chatting and he says "yeah, i've been thinking about maybe painting a mural on the wall at the orphanage." i said, 'oh, did you see my email?" he said "no, didn't know you sent one." what??? he just randomly throws out a comment about painting a mural on a cinder block wall? and i knew.

God wants us to use the front wall at the orphanage property to make a statement for Him to those who walk by and as a means to raise money to pay the teachers and workers.

so, we are now on a mission to design a mural (the wall is 1,200 blocks big -- about 4 years worth of salaries!!!) and seek donations block by block for $100 each. thank you Lord for bizarre ideas.

p.s. and see the entry right before this for a slide show of pictures :)