New York Times Bestseller List Here I Come!

One of my longtime dreams has now come true! I just self-published a book about one of my favorite subjects - fundraising. It's a basic how to get started manual for individual or small group fundraisers and is only available in digital format. I've been working on this since May and spent most of the summer in the "research phase." I have gathered a lot of success stories and tips from other fundraisers too. My Aunt Sylvia was even kind enough to lend her own expertise and helped create one of the best chapters in the book!

I do hope to continue to improve the writing quality of the book and add more success stories. I'll probably come out with a new edition next year.

The Beginner's Guide to Fundraising

The Swalleys Visit Tampico St

It was truly a pleasure to be able to spend part of our weekend with our good friends, Larry & Dorothy Swalley from First United Methodist, Lewisville, Texas. They came in Friday evening and ate supper with us (Sandra cooked a Mexican Spaghetti Casserole and I made homemade ice cream). After supper, the Swalley's showed us pictures from their recent mission trip to Chile. It was apparent that they had been busy working and having fun!

On Saturday, Sandra & I went to a Children's Sunday School seminar in Plano with some wonderful people from FUMC Wichita Falls, but upon returning, we went to eat with the Swalley's and their nephew, Lyle, at Casa Manana (our favorite local Mexican food restaurant). After that, we experience the Texas Ranch Roundup Rodeo at the Kay Yeager Coliseum.

Sunday, the Swalley's went to church with us, attending Sunday School with Sandra and sitting with her in worship. Then it was off to Buffet City for some Chinese food with some more good friends, Charley, Diane, & Robbie Pierce. I'm sorry to say I was not able to go to lunch with them as I had a meeting after church. All too soon, the Swalley's had to leave, but we look forward to visiting them and them visiting with us in the future!

Political Soundbites

With the election year upon us, we have already become innundated with political "sound bites" from candidates, news media and advertisements. The problem with many of these messages is that they are the ones the speaker wants us to hear, and not necessarliy "the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth."

While I didn't watch the majority of the The Democratic National Convention, I was intrigued by some of the clips the media kept playing afterwards. Of course the speech from John Kerry was covered well, but it seemed the second most frequently played clips were from Ron Reagan Jr.

Ron's speech focused on his personal cusade, which is embryotic stem cell research and cloning. The sound clip I heard repeated several times was..." it does not follow that the theology of a few should be allowed to forestall the health and well-being of the many." This statement is untrue on both parts. There are more than "a few" people opposed to embryotic stem cell research, people of many backgrounds. And second, stem cell research is not a miracle cure.

As Nigel M. de S. Cameron recently stated, "To suggest that cures for juvenile diabetes and Parkinson's disease are just around the corner, and that voting in pro-cloners will somehow make it happen, is a travesty. In fact, to date, only ethical research on adult stem cells has actually cured people with "incurable" diseases."

For anyone struggling with such diseases, a desire for a cure is understandable. It is hope that keeps the human spirit alive. However, hope should not dissapoint, and placing our hope in unethical treatments that have proven to fail will dissapoint. The fact is that only research using adult stem cells has proven effective.

Hijacking the Reagan Name by Nigel M. de S. Cameron

Stemming the Confusion: The False Sell on Stem Cells by Charles Colson (this article also lists 20 other refrences and resources)

In this debate, as well as the many other issues that face our country and our world today, we have to be vigilant in the search for truth. The "sound bites" are often one-sided and do not take into account the whole of an issue. Many times the heart of the matter, and the solution, is found somewhere in the middle.