One year ago in June I began a journey. After watching the biggest loser and doing a little creative math. I made a decision, a decision that I had made before, I was going to lose some weight. I figures that I could lose 100 pounds by the end of 2009 if I would lose 3 pounds a week for the rest of the year.

Sounds easy enough, right? Not so fast I was weighing in at a whooping 342 pounds. I wasn't a big fan of exercise, duh! But, I was competitive enough to know that I could lose 3 pounds a week how hard could that be? I started exercising. What exercise could a guy do at 342? I thought I would start walking. I would walk, then one day I decided I would go "running." That consisted of running from one telephone poll to the next, a couple hundred feet, then walking the rest of the mile.

Why talk about this, well I will be celebrating a year of excrise at 7:30 am June 5th I will be running the Sunburst mini-marathon, 13.1 miles and ends at the 50 yard line of Notre Dame Stadium, sorry Husker fans. As I have been training I have found it an awesome tile with God. Running has been an emotional, physical, spiritual, and mental blessing. Those of you who know me, know that I haven't last that 100 pounds yet, and that I am continuing the journey.

Why am I telling you this, well I am asking for something again, I am asking that 1,000 of my friends and family donate 1 dollar a mile for my mini-marathon, that's on $13.10. I am asking, ok, pleading with you to this for Tiny Hands International. They have recently purchased land
read the blog post here to build a Dream Center. What is a Dream Center, I am glad that you asked. Below is information gleaned from Tiny Hands website:

For years many of us at Tiny Hands have envisioned forming a Tiny Hands community. Our idea, which we have been calling the "Dream Center", is a community of children's homes, a school, a medical outreach center, and a vision center, where volunteers and friends of Tiny Hands could come and participate in an active, thriving community of believers who live and learn together as followers of Christ.

And for years this has been only an idea - but finally, we are taking steps to make this a reality. Land has been identified outside of Pokhara, Nepal, where we will begin building the first homes and the initial stages of a school.

The principles and practical considerations are:

Community: We plan to build 6 or more children's homes, similar to our current homes, on this land. Each will be separate and discreet family units who will live as friends and neighbors.

Education: An on-site school will be built for the children of Tiny Hands that will also be open for children in the greater community. Our goal will be to educate and inspire the next generation of leaders in Nepal through novel educational methods rarely found in Nepal. The teachers and administrators will be a combination of Nepalis and expatriates who desire excellence in education that goes beyond the rote memorization that plagues many schools in South Asia.

Outreach: Our goal is not to create a community insulated from its surroundings, but rather one that seeks to serve its neighbors. As a an organization of Christians, our goal is to exemplify the humble and sacrificial love of Christ to the suffering and broken. Our plans include building a center for medical and dental outreach on the site that will partner with rural churches throughout Nepal to coordinate clinics in areas with limited or no access to such services.

Vision and Beauty: Beauty inspires vision, and we hope that the Dream Center will be a place not only of rest and reflection, but one that stimulates discussions and helps children and visitors alike find their calling. The Vision Center will be a building that will have housing for volunteers, a small chapel, a center for outreach, and most importantly a space where passionate people can share ideas, music, and art.

Sustainability: While we are raising money for the land and buildings, our hope is that the center will someday be self-sustaining through the use of income-generation projects including the school, which will be open to area children. If such a center could achieve self-sustainability it could be replicated across the region. Other income-generation projects may include aquaponics (the symbiotic cultivation of plants and fish for the purpose of increasing land production), and livestock.

Ok, friends this is where you can help. They have the land, they need to raise $15,000 for improvements to be made so that they can begin building. If 1,000 of you can send $13.10, They will be able to begin work.

Please pray for Tiny Hands, and for me as I try and beat all the other 300 pound mini-marathoners, and chase a "Dream Center."

Please make donations to:
Tiny Hands International
Attn. Jon
P.O. Box 534
Wakarusa, Indiana 46573


I leave you with the words of John Wesley
"Do all the Good you can,
By all the means you can,
In all the ways you can,
In all the places you can,
At all the times you can,
To all the people you can,
As long as you ever can."