Christmas is Coming...Can You Be Santa??

YOU DID IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

11/25/08 - I am in awe of each and every one of you who read this blog. Over the past couple of years we have become a family of sorts, this often unknown collection of people who have followed the escapades of this little family in Western Colorado. You have rejoiced with us, you have prayed with us, you have lifted us up when we were feeling low, you have carried us in many, many ways.

But this, this is extraordinary. Do you realize what you all have done? You are giving Christmas to 65 kids who, at least this year, won't have to ask "Why doesn't Santa come to Kyrgyzstan?". From a mommy whose very son asked that question last year as we celebrated his first real Christmas, I can't tell you what this means to our family.

Now, just as I thought we were done and I could jump up and down doing a jig, the gauntlet was thrown down by John Wright over at http://www.actofkindness.blogspot.com/ . He has "upped the ante", and frankly I can't help but give it a try. The 65 kids that will benefit from this fundraiser do not include the kids from Amir's orphanage, Kenny's buddy who was left behind. You all know our prayers for him have been repeated over and over this past year and a half, and I would love nothing more than to have he and all 150 kids at his orphanage have Christmas too. If we could somehow do it, folks, that would be 215 Kyrgyz Kiddos who St. Nick would visit!!!

It's a lot to ask, I know. You've already given so much.

So to sweeten the deal John has started the next $1000 off with a $50 donation. AND, here's the fun part, John has issued a direct challenge to Dominick...if we hit another $1000 and Dominick lets the boys hit him in the face with a pie as well as me, then John will have his daughters splatter him with a pie too! $2000 total for 3 pie splattered faces (heeheehee!) and 215 very, very happy Kyrgyz orphans. I will even try and post video of the event on the blog in addition to photos, and I recommend John do the same thing.

Now tell me, where are you going to get a bigger bang for your donated buck?!?!

If we don't make it, I understand. It's the holidays, everyone is stretched so thin, everyone is busy. But I see Amir's face in my mind daily and I have to give it a try. Kenny's old orphanage at Belovodsk will be taken care of with the first $1000, but Amir will be left out.

Whaddaya say folks? A few of you have spread the word on your blogs and I thank you so much for that. It captures another audience who might not know about Santa not visiting Kyrgyzstan. Could you maybe ask your church this weekend if they want to help out? Your Scout group? Your Book Club? Your co-workers? John and I will make sure that anyone who asks for it who is not part of our little blogosphere will get photos of the kids at Christmas. Their smiles will be so worth it!

And as I type this right now I received a comment on the blog from a regular reader, Peggy in Virginia who said:

"OK fellow blog readers – in less than a week we made $1,000 for the kids in Kyrgyzstan – want to go for the second $1,000 and see if Dominick will go for the double pie whammy?? I’ll start by pledging $100.

How about we start recommending pie flavors? I like chocolate, YUM! Looking at it in the photo would be almost as good as eating it myself."

CAN WE DO IT?????

Stay tuned, I'll update tomorrow and we'll see if we are making progress.

Thank you all, on behalf of John Wright and his family as well as the kids who have no one to speak for them.

And if we do it before Thanksgiving evening I will walk around all dinner long with turkey feathers on my head in front of our friends!!!

Good night, may God bless each and every one of you.



OLDER UPDATES AT THE BOTTOM OF POST


Ok Guys, I am issuing a challenge. So many of you are regular readers, and I am wondering if we can all be Far-Away-Santas for the kids in Kyrgyzstan. John Wright over at Act of Kindess has stated it would take about $1000 for 65 kids to have a special Christmas meal at a restaurant similar to McDonalds, along with a small gift for each and the cost of the transportation. What do you say? Can WE do it?

Dominick and I will start it off with pledging $50...

Will you join us and make this happen? As I ask this I am remembering the excitement in Kenny's face in the days leading up to his first Christmas last year, and I am thinking of 65 kids for whom Christmas will be just any other day when they are anonymous.

And even as I type this the tears are coming as I recall Kenny asking me last year "Momma, how come Santa not come to Kyrgyzstan?".

Let's not let that happen this year for these 65 kids. No, we can't bring Christmas to every kid, but we sure can for this small group.

If my Blog Readers manage to raise the $1000...let's see...what can I offer...I will let all 3 boys splat me in the face with a cream pie and take a photo of it to post on the blog. Yes, I will.

So, if you want to see me with egg on my face, or at least a lot of whipped cream, PLEASE consider donating to John's project for Christmas! You can find the post about this at:

www.actofkindness.blogspot.com/2008/11/another-mcjoyful-christmas.html


At the upper right of John's blog page is the "Canada Helps" button for donations. You can specify your donation for a purpose, and be sure to type in Christmas for Kyrg and add in a mention of the LaJoy blog so John can calculate it and tell me if the boys get to have a lot of fun and splatter me.

Instead of just reading about it, make a difference...give a gift to someone else this Christmas that matters, print out a picture from John's blog and wrap it up telling your parents or siblings that have plenty of aftershave and cologne that you are giving a gift in their name that is making 65 kids feel special for once in their lives. Do the same for your kids' teachers who have enough gifts with apples on them, and spend that $10 for John's kids. I know if I received that kind of gift I would be thrilled.

Come on guys, the little we all have to offer can really add up. Can you think of any better gift for yourself for Christmas?

11/21 - PM - Woo Hoo! $150 so far including our family donation, $850 to go! Come on guys, $10 here or there even would add up!

11/21 -Later PM - John added another link for donations specifically from the US so you can obtain a tax receipt: http://actofkindness.blogspot.com/2008/11/lajoy-family-challenge.html

11/21/08 - Even Later PM - "Hello Cindy (or if someone else reading the comments can help), I'm having trouble navigating the "Canada Helps" website. It asks you to designate a "Fund/Designation"--which is the right fund to select. Also, it show the donation amount is in Canadian currency. Can you please provide some guidance?Thanks!Marcia"

Marcia, the fund designation should be "The Wright Stuff" and then in the notes section you can put Christmas for Kyrgyzstan - Lajoy Challenge. I have not yet donated myself using the new site where you can click for the US receipt so can not explain that if someone has a problem.

THANKS SO MUCH MARCIA!!! ROCK ON GUYS!!!

11/22/08 - AM - "We would be honored to support such a wonderful cause!I can not wait to see a pie face!Will it be chocolate?" - It will be any flavor that is requested!! I mean, I have no preference as long as it is messy and puts on a good show! However, the boys might prefer chocolate...as long as there is an extra one they can eat!

11/22/08 - 9:00 AM - Per John, we have $200 donated total towards Christmas in Kyrgyzstan!!! $800 more to go!!

11/22/08 - 6:00 PM - I told the boys this afternoon about the Challenge, and they were all grins at the thought of having the opportunity to throw a pie at me!! We all worked today in our restaurant which we closed down for a deep cleaning, and the boys worked SO hard! Seriously, they are such incredibly hard workers...hours of scrubbing and moving stuff around and not a whimper or complaint out of any of the three of them. So, we decided to pay them each $15 for their labor which is unusual but they certainly earned it...and it gives them a little Christmas spending money as well.

They all decided they wanted to contribute a little towards the Christmas in Kyrg challenge, so we added another $10 tonight! Now if a 5, 9 and 10 year old can cough up $10...can't you do the same???

11-24-08 LOOK WHAT YOU HAVE DONE SO FAR!!!


You guys ROCK!! Can we do it? Only $570 to go...PLEASE help if you can! I have never asked for anything from any of you who have enjoyed the blog over the past 2 years...but consider me on my hands and knees begging to make this dream come true for these kids. I know not everyone will feel called to help with this, but if you have been reading the blog every day and have this niggle RIGHT NOW that maybe you could help a little bit, then please do it. We all know that John will get us plenty of photos to see the resulting smiles and joy that your $5 or $10...or $50 gift will bring. If you'd like to help but don't want to send money via the internet, contact me at CyndiLJ@aol.com and you can mail me a check and I'll get it to John.





Remember guys, one person CAN change the world...one person CAN bring hope to others. If you were going to drop $5 in the Salvation Army bucket this week, why not send it to John instead?

And thanks from the bottom of my heart to those of you who have contributed so far. I have never met any of you in person, and I probably don't even "know" any of you via anything other than a one way ongoing conversation I have with myself here on the blog, but your generosity is so appreciated.

CAN WE DO IT BEFORE THANKSGIVING DAY?????

11-24-08 10:00 PM - OK, you guys are totally outdoing yourselves!!! Another $110 came in this afternoon and evening so we are now only $385 short of our goal of $1000! If there is anything extra than Amir's orphanage can be included...need I say more about how I'd love to see that? I know, shooting for the moon, perhaps. We were at the store today buying dinner items and the boys all looked at the pies asking "Which one do we get to throw at you, mommy?". Only Joshua was the lone dissenter, as it seems to disturb him to think of throwing a pie at my face. Not Matt and Kenny...noooooooo...they are debating the flavor and amount of whipped cream.

I wish I had made it $2000 and included Dominick as a target as well!! At least then I wouldn't feel all alone :-) It will be worth every lip smacking, eye wiping moment if you all come up with it. And John, if you are reading this...you had BETTER get us TONS of photos!!!

COME ON EVERYONE, KEEP IT COMING!! $1000 BEFORE THANKSGIVING OR BUST!!