It is hard to believe that 2009 is almost over. This year has just flown by for me!
This past Monday we had a chance to meet up with some college friends from Moody. Our friends, Rob and Cara Lane, were visiting from California. It was fun for both of our whole families to be together. Below are some pictures we took on campus.
This is me with my Senior picture in the Moody Arch Yearbook for 19994
We enjoyed a beautiful Christmas Eve service last night at Trinity Church in Livonia.
Today was the first Christmas that Syndie and I woke up before the kids.
Enjoy the special moments with family and friends as you celebrate the possibility of peace on earth because of the King born in a stable many years a go!
CHALLENGE:
The Salvation Army has seen dramatic increases in requests for its services over the past few years due to a confluence of reasons, including a weak national and state-wide economy, a slumping housing market and automotive industry lay-offs/cutbacks
GIVE:
The Salvation Army urges you to donate to the $7.8 million Red Kettle holiday campaign to maintain vital human services in Metro Detroit.
WHY:
Our services are needed now more than ever, and we can’t afford to fall short on our fundraising goal.
>> The number of Michigan jobless climbed 18,000 in April 2009 and 234,000 in the last year.
>> An estimated one in three Detroiters is in poverty, making the city the poorest large city in the country.
>> Michigan’s poverty rate rose to 19.4 percent this year with no sign a turnaround is at hand.
>> About one in five Michigan children live in poverty.
>> Michigan leads the nation with an unemployment rate of 15%. The last time unemployment was in double digits (the early 1980’s), the state was helping three times as many families with cash assistance as it is today. Measured alone, the city of Detroit has a 28.9% unemployment rate.
HOW YOU CAN HELP:
We urge you to continue your generous support:
1. Donate Now using our online secure servers.
2. Donate at more than 300 red kettle locations throughout Southeast Michigan.
3. Call 877-SAL-MICH and donate by phone.
4. Volunteer to ring a bell. We’re trying to fill 50,000 two-hour shifts. Visit ringbell.org to find the location nearest you and sign up today!
5. Host an Online Red Kettle at OnlineRedKettle.org. More information on hosting an Online Red Kettle.
Thank you for your continued support. You truly are Doing the Most Good.
Last night Emily had her winter band concert at Wayne Memorial High School. Emily and her classmates did an awesome job! It is amazing how much better it gets after Middle School. Emily also was able to through a pie in the band teachers face because she was a “top seller” in the pie fundraiser.
It was very, very cold, this morning. This was my first cold weather race of any kind. Below are the official race results for my age bracket.
Male 35 to 39
Place Name City Bib No Age Overall Time Pace
1 Roman Krzyzanowski Plymouth MI 320 38 5 16:45.3 5:24/M
2 Craig Dolecki Redford MI 816 36 11 17:30.7 5:39/M
3 Rich Shearing Canton MI 574 35 60 20:54.1 6:45/M
4 Andrew Talby Northville MI 627 38 79 21:51.1 7:03/M
5 William Buckley Commerce Township 88 38 101 22:44.3 7:20/M
6 Scott O'Rourke Highland MI 753 38 103 22:46.6 7:21/M
7 Jeff Shepherd Northville MI 580 37 143 23:57.4 7:44/M
8 Jayston Weitzel Madison Heights MI 675 35 225 26:19.6 8:29/M
9 Craig Deroche Novi MI 836 39 245 27:03.2 8:44/M
10 James Best Westland MI 49 37 283 27:47.3 8:58/M
11 Bruno Lombard Royal Oak MI 887 39 298 28:22.4 9:09/M
12 Winson Wang Farmington Hills M 664 39 316 29:04.2 9:23/M
13 Sam Baker West Bloomfield MI 28 36 328 29:17.0 9:27/M
This is a picture of Syndie and I taken in November of 1992 and November of 2009. The occasion in 1992 was our wedding engagement and in 2009 the occasion was our formal dinner on the Kivell Family Cruise.
Today is World AIDS Day
Did you know that a few simple measures can dramatically reduce a mother’s risk of passing HIV to her child? Help us mark this World AIDS Day by learning more about mother-to-child transmission and how you can help protect moms and kids. Learn more …
World AIDS Day action alert: Call your senators today!
Mother-to-child transmission can be prevented. Call your senators to voice your support for programs to protect these innocent children. Make the call today …
Preventing mother-to-child transmission: Alice’s story
Alice is HIV positive. Her son Reagan is not. In a world where some 1,000 children become infected with HIV every day, Reagan is a walking miracle. Even better, this miracle can be repeated. Read more …
Video: Speak out for moms and kids World Vision’s health policy advisor, Craig Jaggers, explains the importance of advocating for resources to fight global AIDS and prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV.
Give a gift: Help prevent mother-to-child transmission
In honor of World AIDS Day, you can provide essential care to mothers and babies in Zambia to stop the spread of HIV to the next generation. Donate here …
Featured resource: Hope, Joy, Love, Peace: An Advent Study Guide
Celebrate Advent with us. Our new study provides you or your group with tools to move from reflection, meditation, and celebration to action and engagement. Read the foreword: Looking both ways (pdf) | Download the study guide
Check out the End Malaria blog
Visit our new End Malaria blog for the latest news, stories, and videos about our newest campaign. Check it out …
Share your advocacy stories with us
What are you doing in your community to raise your voice for the poor? Tell us your stories by contacting us at advocate@worldvision.org.
December 31, 2009 | 
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