For the next few days we will be eating, sleeping, and playing all-things New Smyrna Beach, Florida!
Pardon the sand that will no-doubt wreak havoc on the blog!
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After church this morning we will load up our final beach-supplies and begin the trek South to Sunny (hot, sticky, etc.,) Florida!
I’m looking forward to being “that Dad” today that keeps track of gas-mileage, moves the family along during potty-breaks, and attempts to drink 3-or-more 5-Hour Energy Drinks in one sitting.
I know for a fact that songs will be sung (“Hey, I just met you, and this is crazy…”), stories will be read, movies will be watched, and tears will probably be shed.
If my calculations are correct and my travel-plan-A works as planned, we should be arriving just in time for the sunrise Monday morning!
HELP! If you happen to read this post between 1PM Sunday and 6AM Monday, consider leaving a comment and giving us some travel-tips. We are traveling with a 6-year-old and a 3-year-old and many of you seasoned families have some tried-and-true travel tips you could share with us. We would LOVE your input from your road-trip experiences and whoever is riding shotgun will be able to read the comments, so go-ahead, let us have it!
We’re heading to the beach in Florida in just a few days. There are MANY things I need to accomplish here in Shippensburg before then but I can’t help but also looking forward to some of what we’ll be experiencing while away on our family vacation on the Atlantic Ocean.
Some of the things I’m looking forward to while we’re away:
- With the help of Ella and Ezra I’m looking forward to giving this guy a run for his money.
- I’m definitely looking forward to possibly witnessing (or participating in) something like this.
- I should be able to complete some much-needed (and desired) reading. I look forward to finishing this, this, and this specifically.
- The chance of witnessing something like this from a safe distance.
- Most of all, I’m truly looking forward to just being Husband and Dad and spending time with these people.
What am I missing? This is our family’s first true-vacation and it’s the first time since I was in High School that I’ve spent longer than a day or two at the beach… What would you say are the must-do’s while vacationing as a family at the beach near Daytona Beach? We would welcome your input!
My sister Sherilyn is up to some God-sized things in the heart of Uptown Chicago. She has been there for a few years now living in community with many of the “castoffs” of our society showing them Christ’s love in action by doing life together. She has established a non-profit organization called “JUSTembrace” to help manage the finances and administration of this community.
In her words:
“I remember the first time that I came to this neighborhood… I was overwhelmed with the vulnerability that I saw all around me – I felt like every person that I passed had a story…everyone has a story, but not everybody wears it on the outside…
This neighborhood has an overwhelming concentration of vulnerable men and women. …this is the part of Chicago where we have just shoved all of the forgotten and unsightly and unruly people in our society. That made me fall in love with this neighborhood immediately.
I believe our vulnerability puts us in a position to be able to experience healing and love and authentic community in a way that is more difficult when we haven’t been in touch with authentic vulnerability.”
Last year I went up with my Dad and Uncle to help her move from her first Uptown apartment into the upstairs apartment of the community-friendly house she currently lives in.
Just recently the bottom (larger, more suitable) apartment became available and she desperately needs help to afford to rent out BOTH the upstairs and downstairs to increase her reach in positively affecting her community there in the Uptown neighborhood. The cost to rent the downstairs apartment for one year is $18,600. I have encouraged her to try and “crowd-source” this fundraising need and am trying to help by posting about it here on my blog. Originally we though Kickstarter or HopeMob would be places to do this with a wide-audience, but both fell through.
Watch this video for a better understanding of the impact Sher and her team at JUSTembrace are having within their community:
So, will YOU consider helping to make a WORLD of difference in this Chicago neighborhood and “JUSTembrace this place”?
How YOU can help right now:
- Make a donation of ANY amount. You can make secure donations via credit card or e-check by way of their website here.
- Help share the “JUSTembrace This Place” campaign with any/everyone you can. Tweet this blog post, post about it on Facebook, send emails to your friends and family – anything you can do to help get the word out will help JUSTembrace continue making a HUGE impact in their community!
- Pray! Pray for JUSTembrace, pray for this “JUSTembrace this place” campaign. Pray for my sister Sherilyn. Pray for the other team members. Pray for Uptown Chicago.
This afternoon the Shippensburg Vigilant Hose firehouse at 129 E. King Street closed and the new “Shippensburg Emergency Services” building at 20 Walnut Bottom Road opened.
Between closing one and opening the other, the Vigilant Hose Company and the Shippensburg Area EMS made their way from the old to the new in symbolic fashion and paraded their vehicles and equipment down Orange Street for all of Shippensburg to see!
The new Shippensburg Emergency Services stands as a welcoming site as folks enter our great town and it has been quite fun to watch it being built over the past couple of years since we arrived. I remember the morning I was driving to the office and they were beginning to tear down the abandoned motel that used to sit on the lot. I even pulled over to film it for a few seconds.
This parade and grand-opening was an event I didn’t want to miss.
Some photos I took during the parade:
A video I also took:
We didn’t have time after the parade to wait around in line for a tour of the new facility, but as soon as I have the opportunity I’m getting a tour of that place – I can’t wait!
