Those of you who read this regularly know how much I love Steven Curtis & Mary Beth Chapman & their passion for helping orphaned children. I just received the latest e-newsletter from their foundation Shaohannah's Hope, and wanted to share these two stories with you. This is the good news alive and well in our world. Enjoy! The Galyean's story The Williams' story
I wrote this last night, and then this morning read a heartbreaking articleregarding a story that I have been following. As we rejoice for the children adopted by the Galyean and Williams families, and celebrate the heroic love of those who adopt and take into their hearts and their homes children who are most in need of love, we pray for the soul of this little angel, Riley Ann Sawyers, and for all children who are victims of abuse and harm from those who are supposed to protect & foster their life. We also pray for all who are entrusted with the gift of creating life, that they would treasure their children as God does.
Mother Teresa, protector of the littlest ones, pray for us.
I had to share these photos from Beth that she took on campus this weekend. Beautiful! Thank you Beth! Some of my best memories of Notre Dame are during advent and winter. Going to the 5:15 mass in the Basilica... coming out at 6:00 in the darkness of night. The peacefulness of it, the quiet and stillness of the night and the cold... and when we were lucky, a magical snowfall that made everything even more beautiful under the dome. These photos reminded me of so many of those moments of grace. Thank you Beth! You are wonderful!
I hope you all had a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving! Enjoy the photos & thanks again to Beth for sharing them :-)
Memory Awakens Hope. . . . . . . . . Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, Seek That Which Is Above,1986
"Advent is concerned with that very connection between memory and hope which is so necessary to man. Advent’s intention is to awaken the most profound and basic emotional memory within us, namely, the memory of the God who became a child. This is a healing memory; it brings hope. The purpose of the Church’s year is continually to rehearse her great history of memories, to awaken the heart’s memory so that it can discern the star of hope.…
It is the beautiful task of Advent to awaken in all of us memories of goodness and thus to open doors of hope."
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Hi everyone! I just wanted to share an e-mail I just sent in case anyone reading might want to help out. Have a great day!
Hi everyone,
I hope you are all having a wonderful day today! Yesterday I got an e-mail from a young man named Precene who I met when I was in Haiti. (His e-mail is below.) He and I have kept in touch since I was there in March, and this time he wrote to ask for help because his family's house was ruined in hurricane Noel that hit Haiti a few weeks ago. I have been in touch with friends at the Notre Dame Haiti program to ask how much his family would need to rebuild, and it will cost them just about $1,400 in US money. ($10,000 in Haitian money.)
I just looked it up, and Noel is a french word referring to the nativity of Christ. This Christmas, I was thinking how amazing it would be to pray for this family & to help them rebuild their house & just wanted to send this e-mail to send an invitation in case you'd like to take part.
Please don't feel any pressure to contribute financially, but for anyone so inclined to make a monetary contribution, we can work through the Notre Dame Haiti program to help make it happen. The whole house will cost $1,400, so even a few dollars would go a long way. Checks could be made out to Fr. Tom Streit (with a memo for Precene) and sent to
The Notre Dame Haiti Program Attn: Alice Cyusa 001 Galvin Hall University of Notre Dame, IN 46556
Alice is the accountant for the Haiti program, and can help us keep track of how much we have raised for them. I'll let you all know the progress, and hopefully by Christmas we can rejoice in knowing that this family will soon again have a home to call their own. Also, please feel free to invite others to join us as well... every little bit will help! (And if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to let me know.)
God bless you all and Happy Thanksgiving!
sincerely, nicole Here is a picture of Precene, with the Keenan Hall t-shirt, with Dr. Emil Hofman, beloved professor emeritus of chemistry from ND, when we were in Haiti in March.
Dear Nicole, how are you doing? and your family. Happy to send that you e-mail to let you know that I 'm at Notre Dame rightnow. I benefite this time too let you know that I have some problemes in my family or my family's house has been destroyed by the cyclone Noel and rightnow I don't know what can I do to help but I know if you have possibility you will help me to rebuilt a small house they are 7 people in my family.I know that you have many reponsabities but you will do what you can to help me with that.
You give what you have and what you can.
What you do for one of smallest of my brothers you make it for me,said Jesus.
Precene
Best regards
From: "Alice Cyusa" Date: November 20, 2007 4:39:13 PM EST Subject: RE: Need help
Nicole,
We (Nick & I) talked( to find out how much money it would cost to build or fix his Moms house) with Precene; and it looks like we estimated it right: He said about 10,000 Haitian Dollars, which would be around $ 1,400 US $.
Precene also said that he is, the second child in his family and he has 6 siblings. His Mom is now living with her sister.
Hope this helps; and you can send checks (written to Fr Tom) to me like we did for Alix.
Before I write more, I have to take a moment to say that I never got a chance on Sunday to put up a blog to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY SISTER CHRISTY!!!! I love you & can't wait to see you in a few weeks!!
Last night I went to see Steven Curtis Chapman in concert with my good friend Kathy. It was amazing!! Before I talk about him, though, I have to tell you about Bethany Dillon, who opened the concert for him. I first really heard of her at Tisha and Ben's wedding when their sweet first dance was to her amazingly beautiful song "For My Love." She didn't play that one last night, but she did play a song called "You are on Our Side" that I just had to share. It is the Good News if ever I have heard it.Here are the lyrics & here she is singing it at a concert earlier this year. Enjoy...
Okay, so now on to Steven Curtis Chapman. Wow. What can I say? He is such a humble and faithful man, and it feels more like a being on a retreat than a concert when he sings and shares his stories. What I love so much about he and his family is the way that God has called them to adoption, how they have responded, and how their hearts have grown through the whole process. The amazing thing about the concert last night was that it was much more than a concert. Everyone at the concert was invited to share their spare change for the Show Hope project, and at the end of the night $4,500 was given to a beautiful family from Pittsburgh who is preparing to adopt a baby from Ethiopia. It was so beautiful.
Here is a video from a concert earlier this month of SCC singing "When Love Takes You In", along with beautiful home videos of many of the families (which Shaohannah's Hope has helped in their adoptions) receiving their adopted children. As Steven said last night,
"Adoption is the most perfect picture of God's love for us, His adopted sons and daughters."
I also just want to share one more of his songs, a new song called "Cinderella." As he explains in the video, Steven and his wife have 3 adopted young daughters from China, two teenage sons (his backup band on tour!) and a daughter in college. As he explains in the video he wrote this song after a long and stressful day during which he almost missed the miracle of the moment of treasuring the beauty, the innocence and the love of his two youngest daughters. Watch the first video if you want to see the explanation (I highly recommend it!), and the second one for the song itself, because it includes the video that goes along with it. Okay... I think I've left you with enough to enjoy for the day!! Now I'll say goodbye so you can start watching!!!
Okay, so as many of you know, my older brother Jeff is a VP of the Pittsburgh Browns Backers. Browns fans in Pittsburgh aren't exactly the most popular people in town, especially with the Browns/Steelers game coming up on Sunday, but it's definitely made for some funny moments in the past few days for my brother!
PBB'ers,
As Paul mentioned in an earlier email, we had a little fun with KDKA this afternoon. You can watch the interview and view the dunking of KDKA radio host Kevin Miller. You might notice that Kevin remained dry until a certain Browns fan (me) showed everyone how it's done. The video is somewhat long, and not the greatest quality, but stick with it...Paul and I show up at about the 5 minute mark or close to it.
Jeff
--
He also did a radio interview that you can listen to online. Click on "Browns Fans Living Among Us" on the right, and you'll go right to the link. And my mom just sent me a link to an interview he did with a station in Cleveland too. Wow. I think he might officially be famous now!
"We are not called to be successful; we are called to be faithful." - Mother Teresa (quoted by lead actor ofBella Eduardo Verastegui as he explains his mission in life)
Tomorrow night I am going to see "Bella" with some of my classmates. I am so excited!! My friend Ryan (who always has an amazing way with words) saw the movie a few weeks ago in Denver & wrote a great little reviewabout it. I know this is about the third time I've written about this movie in the past 5 days, but I am just so excited to see it. (Can you tell??)
I especially love the story he found about how the movie came to be. Check out the story behind the movie. It's incredible story, a powerful testimony and proof of a favorite quote of mine that hangs on the wall at the Newman Center chapel here in Pittsburgh & that I read as often as possible...
"Cast yourself into the arms of God and be very sure that if He wants anything of you, He will fit you for the work and give you strength." -St Philip Neri
CONGRATULATIONSto Amy and Brian who got engaged last Saturday!!! For those of you who haven't met her yet, Amy is the wonderful person I was so blessed to live with for the past few years in South Bend.... some of the best years of my life!
Amy, you're an amazing person and friend-- I am so happy for you & can't wait for the wedding!!!!!!!!!!!!!
PS. Bella is coming to many more cities this weekend and next!! Click here to find out where you can see it!!!
PPS. Here are some fun photos from the pitt med halloween party!
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