C to Shining C: 8/31 - 9/6

9/2/06

  This was make up day and so we had to do a little backtracking to cover the miles we missed because of the rain last Thursday. Donna headed to Farmville and had a great time talking to DJ Larry Armis of WVHL, 92.9, country music headquarters of the area. He gave us live, on the air time to share what we do and why we were walking. Everyone at the station was great and made us feel very welcome.

  From there the journey began to Pisgah Baptist Church in Rice, VA. Jan and Donna were greeted by the members of the church, who shared that we were joining them for their “usual” Tuesday lunch. This stop was nice because the pastor, Rev. Earl Wallace was Donna’s pastor growing up in Richmond and they had a chance to catch up on old friends and family. We had a good time talking with them about HopeTree and the walk along 460.

  After a good lunch, Jan and Donna drove back to where they had left off the following Friday afternoon to pick up the trail again. Jan walked and it came as no surprise to Donna to see flashing blue lights in her rearview mirror as she sat waiting for Jan to walk to the Jeep. The good thing was this time it didn’t involve any exchange of paper, only checking to see how it was going and well wishes for the rest of our journey and thanks to pass on to our staff who work on behalf of those in our care. Jan and Donna managed to walk to about six miles outside of Ford before calling Rev. Clyde Shelton, who met us and took us to his home for dinner.

  Boy, can preacher’s wives cook! Rev. Shelton’s wife, Valerie fixed a wonderful dinner and we had a great time as guests in their home. Rev. Shelton was on the committee to help open the Southside DDM home, so he and Valerie were very familiar with our ministries, but it was wonderful to sit back and relax with “friends.”  

                                          

9/3/08

  It was a beautiful day for walking. Jan and Donna got an early start and enjoyed walking in the cooler morning air. Donna started walking and got her first mile of the day in. Jan followed her up with a three mile stretch. They picked up the trail outside of Ford and soon realized that bathrooms are pretty important but are few and far between on that stretch of 460. Again, we were saved by the kindness of those along the way – we found a tire place and they let us use their bathroom, even though it had a huge “NO Public Restroom” sign outside the door. The morning passed by quickly and we arrived on the other side of Sutherlin a little after lunch.

  We turned around and headed back to Blackstone for dinner and a speaking engagement at Blackstone Baptist Church. We had a great time sharing a wonderful meal with the members there. Blackstone Baptist Church has been a long time supporter of our ministries and it was nice to be able to tell them in person thank you for being such great partners with us, year after year.  Special thanks to Ruby Royal for coordinating our stop and volunteering to provide us a meal. They collected a love offering and we appreciate that as well as their kindness.

  We should finish our assigned walk route tomorrow and David and Daryl will pick up where we leave off. Please be in prayer for our walkers as they head toward the coast and the pending storm.

                                               
 

9/4/2008

  Keeping with our approved itinerary we were asked not to walk through Petersburg due to the traffic and lack of a shoulder, so an early morning start has us walking outside of Petersburg toward Waverly. Even early on you could feel the humidity. Jan and Donna did not have any speaking engagements scheduled for the day, so it was a day devoted to walking and enjoying the outdoors. Other walkers have mentioned that the walk time being a great time to think and today was that day for us.
  Today was the last day Jan and Donna would be on the road walking and it really has been amazing how supportive and kind people have been along the way. People from church that know about us, to police officers, to complete strangers have approached us along the way and listened to the story of HopeTree Family Services.

  I think about how farmers plant seeds in the spring and have to wait to see if the crops are going to come up – and I think this walk has been close to that. We have talked to a lot of people along the way and we felt very supported by their kindness, we have planted the seed and hopefully we have made someone aware of the help that we offer to those in need – and we will be there when they need us.

On behalf of HopeTree, thank you to all of those folks we met along the way!

9/6/2008

  On Saturday, David and Darryl woke up in Franklin, refreshed and ready to walk.  However, the threat from Hannah kept them on the sidelines for the day.  After the storm had subsided, they were able to spend some time in the community and prepare for speaking engagements at True Word Christian Church and Colosse Baptist Church arranged for Sunday.