Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Faith: Bringing out the best in our community

Dear faith and human spirit,

I use to think that the measure of “given” could only be quantified in two ways…Monetary and time based. The recent tragedy that struck the Chico State Alpha Gamma Rho family when fellow alumni Lowell Forward was paralyzed from the chest down as a result of an unforeseen accident and the events that took place after has changed my thoughts concerning this. Last week I stated that the outpouring of support for Lowell, his wife Jennifer and their children in such a short amount of time left me speechless. Now those of you who know me can attest that this does not happen often. Another thing that transpires about as much as the previously mentioned subject is my ability to generate tears. This usually only takes place for one of the following reasons:

1.       A Cowboys playoff victory.
2.       The loss of a loved one or pet. (Those of you who knew Kobie can attest to this.)
3.       When a bartender or waiter/waitress informs me they don’t serve Tito’s vodka.
4.       Movies including: “Field of Dreams”, “8 Seconds” and “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure”.
5.       The day your dad tells you he loves you.

Well, I’ve got another one to add to that list. Yesterday, I received a message from Lowell’s wife Jennifer and could not get through it without losing it. Please forgive me for not sharing this touching letter with you but out of respect her some things are better left private. Something dawned on me once I read this. There is another way to give and that is through “faith”. The definition of this word has a couple of meanings. The first obviously being; “the existence of God or strong religious beliefs”. The other definition associated with this word is just as unmistakable as the first with it stating; “A strong trust in someone or something”. The given of money and time are always appreciated when it comes to helping someone out no matter how menial or large that task may be. By adding faith to the equation it motivates a person that much more. Faith is what picks up the human spirit and drives most people towards their goals. This is what triggered the outpouring of support for Lowell and his family in this time of need. Speaking of that I would like to update you on where the donations currently stand. Over the course of the weekend the goal of $10,000 was met within a few short hours and currently sits at almost $20,000. Once again…Speechless. As I continue to receive updates as donations pour in from not only here in Chico but from people across the country it brings a smile to my face in knowing that all of us are bound by these things: Chico State, Greek, AGR, Family, Friends, Faith…..If you ask me these are all great things…..

PS. Happy hump date peeps on this cool end of July day. Continue to send donations to http://www.gofundme.com/lowellforward and remember.....It’s not about the number of no’s you hear in life it’s about the times you hear yes.


#lowellforward #gofundme #Chicostate #AGR #faith #family #empireliving

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