Ready or not...Here We Go!

I received a question today that made me shake my head.  Not because of the question, but because I can't believe I haven't already answered it! 

Q: How can we support you, your family and your ministry? We are already praying, but do you need financial support?  If so, how do we contribute?

A: YES!  We need financial support. Support for both our family's living expenses in Haiti and for Hoops for Haiti teams and work that will be done.  Right now, we're just trying to get through the costs of GETTING TO Haiti.  It is so very expensive to move a family and household down there.  

We are flying down tomorrow through Missionary Flights International, an organization that is funded through donations for the purpose of flying airplanes to transport missionaries and the cargo they need to do their work.  One trip to Haiti costs them approximately $11,000, and we have to share a portion of that cost, especially since they are flying 700 pounds of our stuff in with us tomorrow (and they'll fly down additional shipments of our stuff next week). We also had a huge bill with UPS for shipment of stuff from our house in Illinois to the MFI warehouse in Ft. Pierce, FL. Once we get to Haiti, we'll have to pay fees in Customs to get all of our stuff moved through and released to us.  

We won't be shopping at Meijer in Haiti or buying back-to-school gear at Target (oh, how I already miss those two stores), nor will we pay much for "utilities" to run our house.  Instead, we'll have to buy gasoline (at about $5 per gallon) to fuel our generator which will power our house and truck, and pay to have access to a satellite so that we can keep our computers and phones connected.

Then, in October, a Hoops for Haiti team is coming down to Northern Haiti to build a basketball court and hold a basketball tournament.  There will be building materials to buy and airfare to obtain for the team, and shipping costs to cover for the loads and loads of donated basketball gear that has been collected (balls, uniforms, and shoes, mainly).

So, friends and family... If you are feeling led to contribute to help support us financially, we would be ever-so-thankful for your assistance! (God is doing a mighty work in my husband right now to help him with some pride/control issues and allow him to accept support graciously, but that is a story for another post!)

You can donate directly to us by sending a check to the address below.  Since Hoops for Haiti is a 501(c)(3) organization, you can make it out to Hoops for Haiti so that your donation is tax-deductible.
      
      Hoops for Haiti 
      411 Hickory Court
      Seneca, IL 61360

You can also set up an automatic monthly donation to be withdrawn from your account by visiting the donations page on the Hoops for Haiti website.

Ready or not, we are set to fly our family to Haiti tomorrow morning at 7 am!  The kiddos are already asleep--maybe dreaming about the beach we visited today or the crabs, shells, fish, and little geckos we saw...  I am shutting down my computer after I publish this post so I can hopefully get some sleep myself.  

I'm giving thanks tonight for all of you who are following along on this journey with us.  Your prayers, thoughts, encouragement and financial support lift us up to continue to step out in faith and follow where God is leading!  We love you.

Psalm 91:11 "For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways."