Day 22-Feeling Groovy

4.6 lbs down, 5.2 to go! I’m 3 weeks in and feeling groovy. My muscles aren’t SORE, I’m no longer hungry all the time and I am getting comfortable with sweat. Life is good!

So since I’ve nothing to complain about, I thought I’d take a minute to tell you all about the awesome charity you are donating to through your sponsorship of me in this crazy weight loss fundraiser.

Christel House was founded in 1998. The idea came when Christel DeHaan (the founder) was invited to visit an orphanage in Mexico City. After seeing the horrific conditions in which the children lived, Christel felt moved to do something. Yet, she also knew that while giving the orphanage money would help, it wouldn’t resolve the complex issue of poverty. It was then that the idea for Christel House was born.

Christel chose to build schools and provide the poorest of the poor not only an education but also meals, and healthcare, as well as character building and leadership opportunities. Students are selected with great care and parents are required to help in the schools. Christel House also provides workshops to educate the parents on a variety of topics.

The model works. Christel House now has 5 schools worldwide: a public charter school in Indianapolis, and learning centers in India, Mexico, South Africa, and Venezuela. Every school has excellent test scores and attendance (many top the home country’s public schools). Two of the schools have celebrated their first graduating classes and the graduates are going on to college, technical school or work/study programs. This year we’re building a high school in Indianapolis, and next year a second school in India. See www.christelhouse.org for more.

Part of my job at CH is to interview some of the children/families and write their stories. And all I can say is, when you put a face to poverty, it becomes very real. What you once thought of as an issue, becomes the life the person you are speaking with has, and somehow for me, that changes everything.

So thanks to all of you who are sponsoring me! Because of what you are doing, we can give some very hard working and deserving children a chance to lead a much better life. :)