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!)

14 comments:

  1. I am not an Aggie, although I come from a family full of them. I do however love orphan care! Thanks for spreading the word! Heading over to check it out now

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  2. I was born and rasied to be an Aggie. And my mother was once an orphan. :) I rarely tweet or pin or anything like that, but this time, I absolutely did! I love this cause. I love their heart. and more than that, I love that two things I am passionate about are together in this blog! :) Way to go CJ! Thanks for sharing. I will absolutely continu to spread the word. :)

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  3. So, how about I put the picture on Instagram instead of tweeting. Love organizations that care for orphans.

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  4. That's perfect Ruth Ann! And PS - since I never got your coffee to you, I have a nice little surprise for you instead. :) I hope you'll like it!

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  5. I love the Hembergers (met them years ago) and I love reading what they are doing now. I was once an orphan (only for 3 months tho) and what they are doing, how they are loving these children, I want to join in!!!! oh, and I am not an aggie, we are bulldawgs (UGA) in our home, but my heart and mind are whirling about this opportunity to love, to share, to help. Thanks CJ for bringing this to all of our attention and for sharing this story!!

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  6. oh, and I did all four, liked, pinned, tweeted, and commented. i need to rock that shirt over here on the east coast and share this aggie story!

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  7. Hey this is awesome! Love what God is doing with this couple. It's awesome. Did what you asked Ma'am. Thanks for sharing!

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  8. I had no idea Matt was the founder of an organization to help orphans. That's awesome. I virtually never tweet, but I tweeted the pin I added on Pinterest. I also liked the page (don't do much of that either). We are definitely a family of Aggies. Three rings, three diplomas and Ty will be getting both of these in 2013 making it an awesome foursome! Thanks for the post on Facebook.

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  9. Reading up on it now...Taylor knows she is called to go to Haiti for an extended period of time...she just wasn't sure if it was with the current organization...maybe this is it!!!!! And I can't pin or tweet but I can fb with the best of them!!!!!! Checking it out!

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  10. Love this. We need to help people like this helping children. Keep it going on your media pages. God has called us all to help children. Thanks Carol for this awesome story. God Bless you Matt and Meghann.
    Your beautiful.
    Sammie

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  11. Very cool. FB, tweeted and pinned.

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  12. Done, done and done! Great way to spread the word and get involved!

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  13. Very very cool! Gig'em Aggies and get on board!

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  14. Done! Thanks for the information! My husband and I will be adopting one day, and I just left Child Protective Services after almost 5 years doing adoptions, and working with kids with developmental disabilities. If one family in each church in this country answered God's call to take care of orphans, instead of letting the State do it, we would have a VERY different society!

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Thank you for reading. I look forward to hearing from you.