This weekend I had the honor to help sponsor an event with Baylor Health Care Systems to help honor and raise money for the Jeff Allen Education Fund, to help fund the education for his 5 children that he left behind this past year, all under the age of 18. A man that I have never met, however can see what a wonderful person he was and all of the lives that he touched, as even after his passing brought both smiles and tears to the faces and eyes of all present.
A special thank you to Lauren Law who chaired the event and did a fantastic job of bringing everyone together and making the daunting task of organizing an event such as this to be effortless. Also to Rick Smotherman of Precision Delivery Services who provided some of the furnishings and donated free delivery services for the event. Precision Delivery Services specialize in local and long distance delivery, home relocations, and hi-end furniture transport all while providing excellent customer care and white glove service. I also want to thank Lauren for introducing me to Rick Whittlesey, Executive Director of GO Nigeria - a Dallas based non-profit organization that provides humanitarian, eduacational, and chairtable support to orphans, widows, lepers and the blind living in extreme pverty in Nigeria.
Rick explained to me that the average life expectancy for a male is 45 years old, when this man dies he often leaves a widow and children. This widow has never been schooled or taught any trades in which to support her family, so the children are taken from her and go to the husband's living family members, however unimaginable it may be to live day to day not knowing where your next meal is coming from, but to have your children taken would be worse than any famine or disease.
Rick has started this organization to help these women learn trades, one of which they learn basic sewing skills and sells their bags that they make on his website. A mere 10 cents provides a meal for these people. You can also sponsor one of these orphans for $50 a month, providing food, water, medicine, care by staff, clothes and other basic needs. That is you basically taking a brown sack to lunch once a week instead of eating out - giving a child their livliehood. I always think that we can not help where and who we were born too, that by chance I was born in America, that if the stars were aligned some other way or by Someone's wishes I could be them, and vice versa. In the end we are all human beings - we all breathe the same air. Please take a look at his website and also his beautiful artwork and make a contribution, however large or small. Even one dollar will provide 10 meals...
