January 29

Brian at Cheverus told me today that his staff had reviewed the information I gave them and their next step was to take it to the school's President. Moving forward!
I called Rus and left a message about TWCCTW Day on March 7, and asked where they were in the process.
A Sgt on the Pike asked Jim if we would hold another meeting about helping Mike, so we will! I am learning to let things unfold. I'm starting from scratch tomorrow, contacting more schools. This way I'll always have something in focus.

January 28

I believe in my heart that things are moving forward. Today, I sent out an email to the troopers with very specific instructions. I did not intend to insult them, just give tangible action steps.

Mike and Betsy's online mall is:

http://www.mypowermall.com/mall/158711

Here is what YOU can do right now:

1.Go to THEIR mall, click on the "Get Your Own My PowerMall" button in the upper left.

2.Watch the 13 minute video on World Changer Malls.

3.Sign up to become a World Changer by clicking the large button below the videos. There are other options, but this one is truly the most beneficial to you and them. You'll receive $600/year in gas and grocery rebates which will more than offset the minimal cost.

4. Shop through YOUR mall whenever possible.

5. Purchase American Express gift cards through YOUR mall to use for paying everyday bills and grocery shopping. Amex gives a large rebate back and waives the per card fee for My PowerMall. This is a HUGE component of the pay.

6. Tell 2 or more other people and have them become World Changers through YOUR mall.

In a very short time, we can all play a role in providing Mike the peace of mind in knowing Betsy will be financially secure.

Please keep the positive thoughts coming - tomorrow I will call Cheverus and St. Dom's to follow up and see where they are in the process.

January 26

We have our core group set to get things started. Only one person met with us yesterday, but the others called and want to know more so we can get this rolling. The overall response was "Wow! That's a great idea!" So I will be meeting with a few people each day, as schedules allow.
One Sgt. signed right up with a Personal mall following the memo last Thursday. I'm sending him a thank you note today, and will encourage him to upgrade.
I am especially happy about another Sgt. who is very interested in not only helping Mike, but his daughter's school as well. He saw the enormous potential immediately. I offered him my full support in working with the school.
I received a very supportive email from Big Z's Mom, and I am taking her advice branch out. It's important to keep moving forward. A letter came in the mail on Saturday from a non profit called Community Partners, Inc. The first sentence reads,"Non profit organizations are facing many challenges in these difficult times."

I will contact the Director of Operations today to set an appointment to meet.

January 23

This was a challenging day. Things aren't moving fast enough for me, and I need to be patient. I need to learn to let things unfold. Sometimes I focus more on the end result and less on the journey. Jim provides such good balance for me in times like this. I'm a list maker, very task oriented and love a schedule. He's laid back and very spontaneous.

This experience reminds me of one of my favorite times as a new forester. It was January, and a more seasoned forester and I were out cruising timber in Upton, Maine. Using a map and compass, we were walking in a grid pattern over remote, rugged terrain on snowshoes. The day was physically draining due to the cold and amount of distance we had to cover. Hours went by and we trudged on. I loved the outdoors, true, but I was ready for this day to be over.
My cruising partner suddenly took a turn that I knew was not on the compass bearing and motioned me to follow. Of course, it was uphill! I thought he was crazy. Now we'd have to take even more time to retrace our steps to get back on our original line.
But I followed him to the crest of the hill. He had a big grin as he looked on.
Down below, in the cedar swamp,still 500 yards away was a beautiful site. Dozens of whitetail deer bedded down for the winter. I stood awestruck. "Not many people get to see this," he said to me.
The rest of the day seemed to fly. Instead of focusing on being tired and cold, I kept the vision of the deer in my thoughts.
If I had been running the compass line, I never would have veered off course to see what was over the top of the ridge, and I would have missed a spectacular moment.

My challenge for this weekend and coming week is to let things unfold, and realize things may go off course from what was planned. But, as long as I keep the vision of what My PowerMall can do for the schools and Mike in my mind, it doesn't matter.

January 22

Jim had the day off but had to go into the barracks for a few minutes so I went with him. I had printed out a few extra copies of the letter just in case. Boy am I glad I did!

My husband is quite a character with an irreverent sense of humor. When he's serious about something, it catches people off guard. Lieutenant Murdoch stopped in, and Jim handed him one of the letters with a brief explanation. The Lieutenant promised to make copies and give them to all his Sergeants today. They will in turn, pass the information on to all the Troopers in their section.

January 21

I'm anxious to hear from Jim about the reactions to the letter. But he is in a training class until late, so I'll have to wait until morning.
I wrote a letter today to the Director of Stewardship and Development for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland. I actually just modified the same letter I used for the high schools. I mentioned that I had already started the conversation with Cheverus and St. Dom's and now I would like to continue with the K-8 schools in Maine. One thing I learned that I'd like to pass on is to call the non profit first to verify who the contact person is. Some websites are out of date due to budget constraints. Your letter may get round filed if addressed to a person who is no longer there.

Unfortunately...

I was getting some mean, nasty comments on my blog so I had to moderate them. I still receive all the comments but get to choose which I post.