Sunday, February 26, 2012

Children's Museum

Yesterday I took Emily to the Children's Museum for an afternoon of fun with Daddy. We had been looking forward to it for a while, and occasionally Emily would tell me things like "Daddy, sometimes I just can't sleep because I'm thinking a lot of things about the children's museum". Part of the fun was getting to ride the bus on the way there and back, which Emily got quite excited about. The museum turned out to be even more fun than the bus, and had new exhibits since we'd been there last.

Waiting eagerly for the bus.

Crawling through the giant tires in the garage room.

Emily climbed the rope net all the way to the top without getting scared (unlike last time).

We made a wheel to roll down the track.


The water room was once again a BIG hit (despite some wet socks and shoes).

Emily overcame her fear of the giant tunnel system and discovered it was lots of fun.


The only exhibit that was a bit of a dud was the craft workshop where the two of us spent fifteen minutes wandering around wondering exactly what we were supposed to make until we decided to just go ride the virtual car again. We agreed that Mommy could take Emily there to try some crafts some time. It was a great afternoon, and Emily told me when she went to bed that she was thinking about the museum so much she just couldn't fall asleep. Somehow, she was tired enough that she still did.

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Fader Fundraiser Letter

Dear Family and Friends,

On May 6, 2012, I will be lacing up my sneakers to run the Pittsburgh Half Marathon. And while many of you know that running is one of the things I love best, you not be as familiar with something else I love: the Fader family. Eric and I first met Jason and Heather Fader when they came to live with Eric and I briefly in the fall of 2000 in Ann Arbor while they were searching for a more permanent home. Heather is the sister of one of my best friends, so Eric and I were more than happy to have them be our guests for awhile. They have been dear to our hearts ever since, and I can say with complete sincerity that they are two of the people whom I admire and respect most. They live out their faith and their calling with such dedication and joy!

Here is a bit more about their story:

Both Jason and Heather Fader sensed that God was preparing them for medical missions even as children— Heather in Wisconsin, and Jason in Kenya, where his parents were medical missionaries.

In 1995, Jason and Heather first met in a general chemistry laboratory at Calvin College in Michigan. They were married shortly after graduating in 1999. Then, while Jason was in medical school at Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine in Chicago, Heather completed a Master of Arts in Teaching and began teaching high school chemistry and Spanish. They moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 2003, for Jason’s residency in general surgery. In 2005, their daughter Anna was born, and in 2009, they adopted Abigail from Ethiopia. It was also in Ann Arbor that they met two other families from their church who similarly felt called to medical missions. The three families decided to begin
working together to serve God as one team.

From 2009 to 2011, the Faders and their team served at Tenwek Hospital in Kenya. Jason and the other physicians in the group cared for patients and also trained and discipled Kenyan interns and residents. During those very fulfilling two years, the team added two more doctors to their numbers and explored options where they could continue teaching medical trainees in a long-term setting.

The whole team feels called to move to Burundi, in Central Africa, to be the clinical teaching faculty for medical students who attend the medical school at Hope Africa University. These eager students have had no permanent faculty since the medical school began in 2006. This is an opportunity of tremendous potential to train and disciple African medical students who will be the leaders of this underserved, impoverished, post-war nation.

Of all the many worthy causes to support, I find myself first and foremost wanting to invest in the Faders and the McCropder team.Jason and Heather told us recently that the entire country has a total of nine surgeons! Can you imagine that?! Talk about being able to fill a great need! However, given our current financial situation (Eric in school full-time and me as a mostly stay-at-home mom to Emily and Sophie) we aren't able to support them financially as much as we'd like. So instead, I am pledging to fund-raisefor them while I train for this half marathon. I think of them often while I run, and the good work that they are committed to doing in the Lord's Kingdom.

If possible, would you prayerfully consider making a donation to their cause as I run to raise awareness of their good work? As little as $1 per mile that I will run (13!) would be so much appreciated.

To donate on-line, just visit this website:
http://www.whm.org/give/missionary?ID=51320
Or, if you would prefer to give or send me a check, you can make it our to World Harvest Missions with Fader in the subject line. I can make sure you get a tax-deductible receipt.

Thanks so much for considering! Please let me know if you have any questions.

Blessings,

Sarah