Our family’s goal of riding from Mt. Bachelor, Oregon to Los Angeles, California is no easy task. There are many parts to a dream this big and as we continue to work through each facet, we hit small bumps in the road. Our approach has been that God will lead us in the direction that we need to go, as long as we keep pushing towards our goals and ensuring that our focus is to transform the lives of many in the developing countries. 
For our family night we challenged our family members to experience a few minutes of what it would be like to not have the use of their legs. We sat down in our backyard that is covered in dirt, rocks, and weeds and encouraged them to drag, scoot, roll, and navigate themselves around. We had all ages and while at first most of the younger kids giggled with delight to be allowed to get dirty, their laughter soon turned to serious struggle. This daunting task left us all with a greater understanding of why wheelchairs are desperately needed for developing countries.
The experiment became more real as Nate’s brothers lowered him out of his wheelchair and sat him on the dirt. I saw him struggle to barely inch his legs out and resist the pull of gravity on his upper body. Tears brimmed a few eyes that night as family members started to understand what paralysis is like without the independence of wheelchairs.
The past month has been a road filled with many unknowns, but as I look at the faces and spirits of these sweet children, fathers, and mothers in Africa, I can’t help but push on. All of the time, phone calls, emails, interviews, sponsors, partners, media, logistics, and so much more are a thousand times worth it to even have one small girl gain mobility!
Can you imagine what we can do for hundreds or even thousands of God’s children if we all pull together? I have found my passion! I can hardly speak or think about these beautiful brothers and sisters without becoming choked up. So I will continue to train on my bike, make the uncomfortable calls, write proposals that I am creating as I go, have some people tell us “no”, and celebrate when we hear our “YES’s”! We are committed to making a change! We will not play small or stand by and hope that someone else will fulfill this role. It is time for us to be the change we want to see in the world! Please join us in our efforts.
All My Love,
Heather
