525,600 MINUTES ♥
How do you measure a year?
January 17, 2010
Dear Friends,
Before I sat down and wrote this message, I wasn’t sure if this was the right thing to do or not… but I guess I would never find out if I don’t give it a try. As you may have known, the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck the country of Haiti on Tuesday, January 12, 2010 not only damaged many buildings, but it also injured and killed hundreds of thousands on innocent lives. The one life I know of that was taken away from the Haitian earthquake was Molly Hightower. I met Molly through my participation in the Border Plunge program of my freshman year at the University of Portland. We both went to Tijuana, Mexico to learn about border issues as well as help building a youth center (The LOVE picture above was taken when we drove through California to Mexico). Through these services, I got to meet and learn of Molly’s wonderful personality and soon we established a ‘buddy-ship’. (Since we, and our friend Stephanie Chou UP’10 always referred to each other as buddy and not by our names.)
Molly graduated from the university last year with three majors (Sociology, Psychology, French), and left to become a volunteer through Friends of the Orphans, a program that sponsors orphanages in Haiti and other countries. There she spent her time working with orphaned, abandoned, and special needs children. Many of you might wonder why would she give up a year of her life and volunteer when she could have been out there making money. Why would she leave a life full with family, friends, great food, clean water and accessories to a life filled with cold showers, bug bites, rice and beans everyday? (Trust me, I have had rice and beans mixed with salt for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for days before and it was not that of a tasty meal.) The answer is very simple; it’s because of the children. The simple faces that she worked with, and the moments that she shared with them gave her happiness and planted smiles on her face.
I am writing this message to you because I want to continue fulfilling little steps of her dream and I’m hoping that you will help and support me. Prior to writing this message, I was picking out different organizations such as UNICEF, Red Cross, or Doctors Without Borders to donate $100. Then I asked a friend of mine if he wanted to donate money too and he said that he would support me. I came up with a bigger goal, to get all of you to help me. My goal is to raise at least $500 dollars by Sunday, January 31, 2010, and donate it to Friends of the Orphans Haiti Earthquake Relief Fund. From now until then, I will carry an envelope with me to keep all of the donated money then at the end of the month, I will write a big check to Friends of the Orphans.
Yesterday, I had to spend $65 on a book for my theology class when I could have spent that amount on one or two pairs of jeans. Today, I know that I don’t need another pair of jeans added to those pairs that I already have and I have raised $100 out of $500 because I know that I will survive without another pair of jeans, while others might not survive without a cup of water to drink, or a blanket to cover them up when they sleep at night. You can help me by not drinking your cup of Starbucks, or by not adding extra clothes to your closet. Please help me out by donating any of your daily change or any amount you can ( a penny, a nickel, a dime, a quarter, up to $1, $5, $20, $50, $100, any amount you can). Remember, your gift will help distribute life-saving relief supplies, including food, clean water, hygiene kits, mosquito nets, blankets, tents, etc. to children and families devastated by the earthquake and aftershocks in Haiti.
I thank you in advance for your generous contributions and prayers.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Therese Ngoc Pham
UP, Mehling 610
5000 North Willamette Blvd.
Portland, Oregon 97203
Note: I'll provide the receipt and proof of donation to Friends of the Orphans Haiti Earthquake Relief Fund. Check should be written to THERESE PHAM, noted as 525,600 Minutes (Or Friends of the Orphans Haiti Earthquake Relief Fund and noted as Therese Pham). All checks can be mailed to the address above. We can all do this to help continue Molly's journey.
MOLLY HIGHTOWER,
Measures her year with love,
You can begin by continuing where she left off.
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