Haiti

I am sure you have all heard the devestating news about what has happened in Haiti, by now. In case you live under a rock, here is the jist according to CNN.Com:

"Port-au-Prince, Haiti (CNN) -- Rescue workers struggled to clear rubble and bodies Wednesday from the streets of Haiti's "flattened" capital, where government officials said the death toll from Tuesday's 7.0-magnitude earthquake may exceed 100,000.
Thousands of injured people waited for care outside badly damaged hospitals, while an unknown number remained trapped inside collapsed buildings. Basic services like water and electricity were out, and Haitian President Rene Preval said his government needs help clearing streets so rescuers can reach some of the hardest-hit areas.
"We need medicine. We need medical help in general," Preval told CNN. "Some of the hospitals, they collapsed."
People were digging though the rubble of leveled buildings with their hands Wednesday, looking for survivors or bodies, CNN's Anderson Cooper reported from Port-au-Prince. Other CNN correspondents in Port-au-Prince and its suburbs reported whole blocks of collapsed buildings, with dozens of bodies piled in the streets."

Haiti is considered the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. How did it get so bad? This definitely is not the time to play the blame game, but it's for sure a call for action. I work for World Vision US, and we currently do a lot of work in Haiti from sponsorship operations to providing general aid. A lot of people are calling and asking if they can volunteer with us or donate goods.

I appreciate the hearts of all of the people that have called in, and will call in tomorrow. Honestly, the best thing you can do is donate money. Because we and other organizations are already there, it is a lot easier for us to purchase supplies from places closer to Haiti. Because non-aid related flights have been canceled, it is almost impossible to get privately donated goods to those in need. I know the United States are hurting financially, but could you even imagine being in their situation? I know I can't. Even if you can only donate $1- that is almost $40 in Haitian currency! Think of the impact you can make with even the smallest donations.

Another reason a lot of organizations aren't accepting volunteers is because there is no money or time to train them. It is easier to go through and find volunteers you have already trained, than to fly in new volunteers and take, what could be weeks, to train them. Your only real shot at getting an opportunity to help in the field is if you have medical training. Medical personnel including Doctors and Registered Nurses are in high demand right now. So, if you have medical training, you would be a great candidate.

To find a list of ways to either volunteer time (usually in a call-center setting) or, to donate if you're so inclined, visit http://www.1077theend.com/pages/6109506.php?

The biggest way that you can help aside from donating time or money is through prayer. You don't have to be religious or spiritual to pray. Whether you believe in one God, multiples gods, or you don't believe in a god at all, your prayers will be heard and they will be answered. If you aren't sure how to pray or what to say/ask for, try this praying for these things:

1. Pray for peace, law and order for Haiti.
2. Pray for God's continued blessings on the people of Haiti and the relief workers.
3. Pray that all of the relief organizations will get enough funding to rebuild what these earthquakes have torn down.
4. God's continued guidance and thanksgiving for everyone that is able to provide donations.

My heart is breaking for the people of Haiti and all of the lives that have been and will be lost. I pray that God will intervene and work through all of the aid workers. 

If you want more information you should check out www.worldvision.org or call 1-888-511-6593. You can also contact me directly at Brgray@WorldVision.Org

If you or someone you know is trying to locate family/friends in Haiti CNN has provided this information that may be helpful, http://www.ireport.com/ir-topic-stories.jspa?topicId=381628

Your prayers and support are greatly appreciated! Let me know if you have questions!

God Bless!

RIP 2009

I went through a lot in 2009. Some good, some bad, but I learned a lot. There was a lot of trying times and, to be completely honest, I was not sad to say goodbye to 2009.

Here are some of the amazing things that happened:

I got a job with World Vision US. This has been one of the most amazing opportunities that has ever come my way. World Vision is a non-profit Christian humanitarian organization that is dedicated to, "working with children, families and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice." I absolutely love my job. Our goal is really to improve the quality of life for children and their families, here and abroad. I know a lot of people say that we should be taking care of our own people first. That's a really ridiculous statement. People are people. Whether they are in the United States or not, they are still people and they still need help. The worse things get for Americans, the worse they get for everyone else. God blesses me every day that I am at work. I am constantly learning new things about myself and the world every single day. You can find more information at www.worldvision.org

I moved out! Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, I am FREE AT LAST!! Okay, let's be honest... living at home was not that bad. Free rent, free food, and my laundry was always done! Then what was the problem? Honestly? I needed PRIVACY!! I swear, I would be on the phone at two in the morning, whispering under the blanket and my Grandma or Aunt would almost ALWAYS ask who I was on the phone with so late? Why were you crying? Everything okay? Seriously?! Can't a girl just have a private conversation? The other thing is that I was almost twenty-three and was just ready to be on  my own. My family is too legit to quit, but I needed my own space. I found an amazing apartment- on myspace of all places- and moved in the week before my birthday. It's the perfect size and, almost three months later, I am still putting the finishing touches on it. It doesn't quite feel like home yet, but it's getting there!

For September 11th weekend, I went on a trip to Sin City with my best friend Barbara. The first time we went to Vegas was one for the record books. We decided the night before our spring break started to drive to Los Angeles, Ca to visit her cousin and see our men's volleyball team play Pepperdine. Well, if we're already headed that way, why not stop in Vegas? So, we left Denver, Co and were on our way. Nine or so hours and two blizzards later we were in Vegas. It was around five in the morning and we hadn't made any hotel reservations. We drove around for about half an hour debating about waiting until check-in hours and finding a decent hotel, or, stopping at the next "hotel" we see and checking in. This brings us to the Todd Motel in the shadow of the Stratosphere. The many amenities included a pool filled with green water, beautiful towels crumbled up into balls, probably containing crack, in the drawers, and an amazing view of the date-rape van sitting outside our room. Long story short, the second time around was a lot better and is now a yearly tradition.

Barack Obama officially became the President! Woot woot! I started following Obama during the 2004 DNC. I feel that he has the best plans for the issues that affect me. I agreed with a lot of the ideas that Senator McCain had. The only problem with McCain is that he chose Sarah Palin as his running mate. I am sure that Palin is an intelligent woman and a great mother, however, if you are going to run for Vice President then you should probably know what your running mate's views are before you start doing television interviews. Also, I would personally stay away from comments like, "I can see Russia from my porch". No, Sarah Palin, you cannot see Russia from your porch. I am not a huge fan of Joe Biden either, but, they're a package deal so what are you gonna do?

Britney Spears had a major comeback!! Okay, for all of you shaking your heads at me right now- you can stop. I'm so tired of people constantly saying bad things about celebrities that go through trying times. We should be praying for these people instead of tearing them down and laughing at their demise. It's not like Britney was running around acting like Lindsey Lohan or Tila Tequila. Britney was diagnosed as being bipolar. It's not something she can change overnight, but she's doing her best. I went with a friend to see her Circus tour- the highest grossing tour in 2009 btw, beating out U2.. just saying. It was amazing! I am so proud of her and how she is making the choice to make a better like for her and her beautiful children. Other musical comebacks of the year that I thoroughly enjoyed were New Kids on The Block and Jay-Z.

So, what happened that I didn't really enjoy this year?

A ton of celebrities that I LOVE passed away. Farrah Fawcett, Brittany Murphy, DJ "AM" Adam Goldstein, Bea Arthur, Ed Kennedy, John Hughes, Natasha Richardson, and the most shocking Michael Jackson. There is a website that has six pages of celebrity deaths for 2009! It's insane. I just pray for all of their families and I hope that now, in death, they can all get the peace that most of them were not able to have in life.

Lakewood, Wa a small city between Tacoma and our captitol Olympia suffered the most violence against police our state has ever seen. On Halloween a police officer was shot and killed in his squad car. Shortly before Thanksgiving, a man walked into a Forza coffee shop and shot and killed four police officers. Just before Christmas, two more police officers were shot and one died after being removed from life support. We have never seen this kind of violence toward police officers. Lakewood is such a small and quiet little city. It was a very sad and tragic end to 2009. Lakewood came together and mourned the losses of these officers, and the outpouring of support for their families was very heartwarming.

My purse and keys were stolen as we rang in the new year. Then, my 80GB iPod was stolen out of my car. Music is my life and now I have no way to listen to it :o( Very sad.. that's all I want to say about that LoL. That just happened so I am still a little bitter about it!

We had to layoff employees due to the economy and budget cuts. We also just recently found out the other departments had to layoff more people so that no one had to be sacrificed from my department. I am very grateful for my job but am very sad that so many jobs have been lost this year. Not just at World Vision, but in the US in general.

There were so many hits and misses in 2009. I learned a lot about myself and the people in my life. I learned that I can handle a lot more than I thought and that God wouldn't give me anything I couldn't handle. I learned what true friendship is and what it is not. I learned about what it takes to really make a relationship work and that I should not have to settle or compromise. I learned that it's okay to cry and I don't always have to wear a smile on my face. The biggest lesson that I learned is that everything is going to happen eventually. I have to wait on God's timing and stop trying to accelerate the process. If God just gave us everything we wanted right now, then we would never need Him again. Also, if He told us His plans for us, then we would rush towards them and inevitably ruin it for ourselves.

So hello to 2010- I can't wait to see what ups and downs you have in store for me! I don't make resolutions because I break them. So my goals for 2010 are to let go and let God. Spend more time with my family and friends. Travel way more. Last but not least, take the time to remember what is important and that everything will happen in it's time.