Let me especially thank that last group for the support you've sent to Alabama by praying for strength, comfort, and direction for the future. I think it is safe to say after visiting the Heart of Dixie this past weekend that God has wrapped his arms around that state and is sending so many volunteers & servers to spread His love and I hope that love continues to bring peace and comfort to the many people who are still suffering, lost, heart-broken, and in disarray... as they will be for quite some time but with the spirit that is alive and well in that special place, I see GREAT things in store for the future of Tuscaloosa, Birmingham, and the entire state and it's beautiful, gracious people! I am SO glad I went this weekend.
Seeing the devastation was the most uncomfortable experience of my life. With our load of donations from Central Florida in tow, Dad drove and I squirmmed around in my seat in every effort to find a place of comfort as I looked at my 'second home' in a complete and utter, tragic mess. There wasn't much Daddy and I could muster up to try to explain what we were feeling. All we could keep saying is, "it's nothing like it is on the news, which is bad. But being here and seeing this is WAY worse." We just kept saying that over and over... needless to say, we know devastation on a completely new and heart-touching level.
That place -- that special place -- where I have spent the last 5.5 years of my life and where I called 'home' from August 14, 2005 - December 1, 2010 (straight thru without ever coming home for a summer or anything) was and is forever changed.
Here are the photos I snapped while we dropped off the donations & supplies!
Here's the view from my front porch that I last lived at in University Village...
the neighborhood across the street (Rosedale Community) and the neighborhood adjacent to my last apartment dwelling (Forrest Lake) were completely destroyed and where several residents and UA students lost their lives. Words cannot express my sympathy.
This was a humbling experience and I can't even imagine what it was like in the immediate aftermath and days following the huge tornado outbreak crisis. It was AWFUL, and I was there a week and a half later.
The state of Alabama still needs your prayers!!!
Like always, though, I was able to see beauty even in the most tragic and ruined of places. There is a spirit, an emotion that is so present in that town, and I know now that it's not just championships on the grid-iron that fuel that town's fire... that place is not only moved by the grumble of Bear Bryant's voice but the grumble of mother nature's fury and the path it left behind -- each bringing inspiration to future, but marking it's major spot in history - and both bringing a town, a state, and people of every race, religion, and background together...
and if that's an all-around beautiful thing and what the true spirit of God's word is!!! I can't wait to see what God has in store for the future there and everywhere. Sometimes (and I know this first-hand), you have to lose the life and the things you knew in order to find the life and the things that awaits you... and when it is something like a fire, or a tornado, an earthquake, or another form of nature's fury, you can find trust that it was constructed by the man upstairs for a purpose. Somedays it will be hard to see that because the destruction can overwhelm us, but rewards await he who is faithful.
Trust me.
I want to send a VERY SPECIAL THANK YOU to everyone that helped me in my relief efforts by bringing supplies, food, clothes, money, neccessities, and etc. to me so that I was able to make use of my pre-planned trip to Alabama and turn it into a service opportunity. It is comforting to know that I am amongst friends, family, and a community that is so willing to help out others that are complete strangers... and on a personal level, it means a lot that they know how special Tuscaloosa is to me. It may not be where my roots are - I am back living there, now - but it is where my branches formed, where I sprung to life as a young woman, where I fell, stumbled, and got back up again and where I learned to embrace myself as Baily. I am proud and gracious that the Lord made me a server because I was gung-ho on giving back to the place that helped shape me and to the people who gave to me when I was in a time of need and suffering. I love you Tuscaloosians!! And fellow Central Floridians - thank you for helping me shower T-Town with that love!!! I'm lucky to have been "made" by the experiences I've gained in both places. I couldn't ask for anything better! Orlando to Tuscaloosa LOVE!
Thanks, Dad for your help that day and for the moral support you always are.
Except, I think this experience - seeing "ground zero" in our favorite little college town - was just as shocking and life-changing for him as it was for me. I am glad to have a Dad who taught me how to care for others first! He is the most unselfish man I know and my Mom is the most unselfish and giving woman I know so it's no wonder they were a perfect match :)
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Do you want to know how you can give to the relief efforts in Tuscaloosa in a REALLY nifty way?!? CHECK. THIS. OUT.
This awesome blog is hosting a Blogger Baby Shower for the little tiny victims and their mothers in Tuscaloosa. As a mother-to-be with a little sister who lives in Tuscaloosa (sound familiar!?!) she and other blogger-friends of hers are hosting this fantastic virtual party and I invite you!!!
Here's how it works:
Simply visit the baby registry that they have set up at Amazon.com.
Then, pick out what you'd like to donate!
Amazon will automatically send and deliver the package to a church in Tuscaloosa who has volunteers that are assigning the supplies with the correct needs of each mother and baby.
By doing this, we are able to help the hundreds of mothers who are in desperate need of these basic neccessities in order to care for their infant. Knowing what it is like to be displaced, without a home, and amongst destruction after losing everything - I can only imagine what it would be like to have to care for and worry about the needs of an infant baby being met when it is so often a struggle just to get back on one's own two feet. Pray for these mothers and pray for these babies!!
Items start at just $8.99 at this super-cool e-baby shower, so there is something for every budget!
Plus, by purchasing something to donate, you are automatically entered to win some pretty cool prizes (like a $50 giftcard to HomeGoods by The Insprired Housewife and a $25 giftcard to At The Picket Fence)
Props to these ladies for hosting such a wonderful baby shower and service project!
May God shower them with many blessings!
Peace & Love
Baily
