How Many Aggies Does It Take?

UPDATE:  THE WINNER IS TRACI SAMFORD!  THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU HELPING TO GET THE WORD OUT!

I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am about this post.  I'm excited on so many levels.

1.  Because I love people who step outside the boundaries of comfort to relieve the burdens of others.
2.  Because I have an obvious heart for orphans and the people who help them.
3.  Because I have gotten to watch this couple's story unfold in real time.  And it's awesome.

A little background.  I met Matt Hemberger a LOT of years ago at a church where he was serving as an intern.  During that time, he talked about a girl he'd met that he was pretty sure was "the one."  I remember thinking, "Oh Matt."  But sure enough she was "the one" and they not only married, but have since had a baby and gone on to do some incredible things in the world.

A few months ago, I started noticing this organization, Ags for Orphans, on all my friends' walls on Facebook.  Then I saw a picture of Matt with a sweet little Haitian boy, and something about Ags for Orphans.  Really, I didn't give it much thought, just thought Matt must have taken a mission trip to Haiti or something.

So imagine my surprise when I discovered that Matt Hemberger and his wife, Meghann, were not only the Executive Directors of Ags for Orphans but that they were the FOUNDERS.  Seriously, have I mentioned that I love it when people step beyond the boundaries of comfort to relieve the burdens of others?  This is a young couple.  And even though I'm not all up in their personal business, I know this.  They are young.  They have a baby.  They have a mortgage and cars and jobs and the stress that comes from all of that.  Managing that alone would be enough.  But it wasn't enough for them.

Because there are orphans in this world. ORPHANS.  

I asked Matt why they started Ags for Orphans (which he totally downplays the part where they are the FOUNDERS) and he said, "We started it out of a simple desire to adhere to God's call to care for the orphan - and make a lasting impact on the world we live in. "

Yeah, they started an organization that is BLOWING UP (for my older friends, that means getting big in a hurry) because they, you know, just had a simple desire to adhere to God's call to care for the orphan.  That blows my mind.  I'm sorry.  It does.  Heck, they could have just gone on a mission trip.  But NO.  They founded an organization, leveraging the strength and the passion of the Texas Aggies, and are partnering with Coreluv International.

Did I mention how EXCITED I was about today's post? 

There is plenty, plenty, plenty of information about Ags for Orphans on their website.  You know you're going to be on the Internet clicking around for awhile, so instead of wasting hours deciding what to pin next, click on over to their site and read about what they are doing.

But before you do that, I want you to read about a few simple things that you can do to help.  (Keep in mind that "simple" to Matt and Meghann was to start an entire organization . . . this is way simpler than that!)

• Go to their facebook page and like it.  (For real.  You probably "liked" Grumpy Cat.  This is way better!)   Do this right now.  But come back.            I'll wait . . .

           Awesome.  Welcome back.  And thanks.

• Go get you some gear!
• Donate.  $1, $10, $10,000  Whatever you have that you want to give.  But give something.
• Go on a trip!  There are three or four to choose from.
• Check out their site for all the really great ways you can get involved.

And lastly, just to really entice you to get on board with something that is totally awesome, I'm giving away one of these.  (Yes, there's a catch.  Deal with it.)

 

Here's what you have to do to enter:

• First off, pin this.  If you aren't on pinterest, I forgive you.  But get someone else to pin this to their board.

• Secondly, go to facebook and "like" their page.  I told you to do that already, but some of you were so anxious to keep reading my incredibly well written post that you skipped that little step earlier.  I forgive you.  But do it now.  (I'm incredibly forgiving today).

• Thirdly, Tweet something about Ags for Oprhans and use the hashtag #AgsforOrphans  If you aren't on Twitter, I forgive you.  But ask someone you know who is on Twitter to tweet this for you.

• And finally, comment on this blog and let me know that you did all of these things.  And just because I'm being so incredibly nice today, I will give you an entry for EACH of these things that you do. But you HAVE to comment or you won't be entered!

All that to say, how many Aggies does it take to help an orphan?  One more.

Now go on.  Help an orphan.  Even if you're not an Aggie. 
(And don't forget to comment!)