Final update...

The past two days have been pretty amazing.

When this project started, there was no way to know how it would end, who would win or where the prize would go.

Throughout the last few weeks, we all hoped that the prize would grow, someone with a great cause would win and that the world would be a slightly better place because of it.

Well folks, I believe that we accomplished all of those things.

For my last post, I want to share some words from the executive director of the Dr. Marnie Rose Foundation.

Lanie Rose is Marnie's mother and the founder of the foundation.

Lanie Rose

From a comment on the blog -

"I am Lanie Rose, Marnie's Mom. I am speechless and in tears. What a lovely, most generous gesture you all have made!! M. D. Anderson will be able to multiply your donation 5 to 10 times through matching funds and grants. Think of how many patients you will help. You could not have chosen a kinder, more beautiful woman than Kimberly to support. Thank you so much!!!"

From an email -

"I was just speechless in amazement at the wonderful story behind this most generous donation. Myles sent me the link. I just couldn’t take it all in. You are all so wonderful. Kimberly is a beautiful and most special lady and most deserving of this honor.

We are honoring our survivors and those we remember this year because Kimberly let us know how important and meaningful it would be to everyone"

I am so proud of everyone that contributed their time and money to the project.

You should all be very proud of what you did and the difference that you made.

PQ

Thanks!

A huge thank you goes out to everyone who encouraged me to create this project and then participated with their time, effort and money.

Together, we were able to donate over $7,000 to a wonderful cause and a great organization.

Just being a part of this was a huge blessing.

Your participation allowed me to be touched by so many stories and to witness so much generosity.

Thank you all again and keep an eye out for an email the next time The Kingdom Assignment rolls around.

PQ

What this whole thing was about...

When I started this project, I worried a little bit about asking the participants (and me) to trust in people they didn't know and to have their money go to a cause that they probably wouldn't get to choose.

I wasn't sure how people would respond, but I was amazed at how quickly and generously people got behind what we were doing. The faith in God and the faith in other people that was shown was very encouraging and something that I was thankful to be able to see up close.

The Williams Clan

After the drawing last night, I spent some time talking to Ed and Sarah Williams. They live in Houston, attend Grace Presbyterian Church and are the parents of four beautiful children.

When I learned what they wanted to do with the prize and why it was important to them, I knew that everyone who had contributed had made a good decision.

Ed and Sarah wanted to support the Dr. Marnie Rose Foundation.

This foundation, based in Houston, supports brain cancer research at M. D. Anderson Hospital. The support given to this foundation goes to fund individual clinical trials and other related research.

Please take a look at the great work this foundation is doing at http://www.runfortherose.com .

Ed and Sarah also let me know that the Run for the Rose (benefiting the foundation) was coming up this weekend, and that they were participating to support a particular person, Kimberly Richter. They asked me to make their donation to her team.

I asked Ed and Sarah to put into words why they supported the foundation and specifically Kimberly.

Kimberly Richter

Here it is in Sarah's own words -

"I first heard Kimberly Richter speak to our Women In the Word group last year. She spoke about her battle with brain cancer and having participated in the Marnie Rose Foundation's Run For the Rose. I was touched by her strength and her committed faith in Jesus Christ. She is a living testimony to the power of God's healing hand and his abundant blessings. Kimberly spoke of a disease that had taken my grandfather just a couple of years earlier and for this reason I felt a deep connection to her story. Kimberly probably doesn't know who I am, but I've had her and her family on my heart ever since I heard her speak. When I saw a notice about sign-ups for this year's Run For the Rose, I was nudged to participate. Our family will be walking in honor of Kimberly and in memory of my grandfather, Herschel Kilpatrick."

This morning, I made a donation for $1,746.42 in support of Kimberly.

And now, for the thing that I didn't tell anybody...

Throughout the project, I had a little surprise up my sleeve.

It turns out that my company will match this contribution 3:1. That means that The Dr. Marnie Rose Foundation will receive an additional $5,329.26 in honor of Kimberly Richter.

This makes a total contribution of...

$7,075.68!

Before making these donations, I was able to speak with Terry Richter (Kimberly's husband) to let him know what Ed and Sarah had asked me to do.

Here is Terry's reply to the news -

"Ed, Sarah and Paul,

Kimberly and I are simply in awe… This is the single largest contribution we have had in 3 years (since we began). I want you guys to know that what you are involved in is REAL.

Kimberly was diagnosed 3 ½ years ago. She had some real success with treatments and went for almost 2 years treatment free. When she was re-diagnosed last November, MDA began treating her with protocols that were not available 3 years ago…. All because of research funding…. AND… brain cancer is not like “breast”/other cancers where it is high profile. RFTR (Run for the Rose) began a short time ago and has made a significant difference in the lives of the growing population affected by this terrible disease.

All that to say.. Thank you… and “God is Good”… I’ll let you know when I write about this on Kimberly’s Caringbridge site. http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/kimberlyrichter

See you guys soon."

And the winner is...

Today is the big day! The day we find out who the winner is!

First, I printed out all of the names and began cutting out almost 350 tickets...


...and then I kept cutting...


...and cutting...


...and then I took a break for dinner (my wife is out of town)...

...and then I finally finished cutting up those tickets.



Second, it was time to do the actual drawing.

I had hoped to make this pretty cool and dramatic, but the family is out of town, and I was on my own.



And finally...

The winner is...

Congratulations!

A huge thank you to everyone that participated.

Keep an eye on the blog, and I will post as soon as I get in touch with Edward.

PQ

FINAL PRIZE - $1,746.42!

Final Prize

$1,746.42

Nice work, folks! Thank you so much for making this little idea into a big success!

I will have a drawing this afternoon after work and will post the results here and then contact the winner.

As soon as I find out where they want the money to go, I will post that, too.

Start thinking about where you would make your donations and keep an eye on the blog.

Good luck, everyone!

PQ


Note: The chump change on the end of the total is there because PayPal takes a small fee on each transaction.

Just Broke $1700!

Current Prize

$1,713.04

THIS IS THE LAST DAY TO PARTICIPATE!!!

I will have a drawing tomorrow and announce the winner.

If you haven't donated, please do! Time is running out.

If you know someone who might be interested, please tell them about the project!

Good luck, everyone!

Remember -

Donations for a chance to win the prize can be made with the Donate Button at the top of the blog. You can use PayPal or any major credit card. Checks can also be mailed to me at the address in my profile, or you can give it to me when you see me. If you send a check, I will email you to let you know I got it.

Note: The chump change on the end of the total is there because PayPal takes a small fee on each transaction.

The prize is over $1500 and it is the last day!!!

Current Prize

$1,524.06

THIS IS THE LAST DAY TO PARTICIPATE!!!

I will do a drawing tomorrow and announce the winner.

If you haven't donated or know someone who might be interested, please let them know about the project!

Good luck, everyone!

Remember -

Donations for a chance to win the prize can be made with the Donate Button at the top of the blog. You can use PayPal or any major credit card. Checks can also be mailed to me at the address in my profile, or you can give it to me when you see me. If you send a check, I will email you to let you know I got it.

Note: The chump change on the end of the total is there because PayPal takes a small fee on each transaction.

Why Andy partcipated in the project...

Andy Luccasen is a professor at Mississippi State and is the father of three children.

I asked Andy why he was participating and this is was his reply -

"There's a long answer to your question, but I will give you the short version if you have not heard. When Zach was 6 weeks old, we learned that he had a type of muscular dystrophy known as SMA. He had the most serious type, which is terminal. We lost Zach a few days before his 3 month birthday, but our time with him was a gift.

Again, long story short, Kathleen and I have since had two healthy children. Alex (a boy) was born (just over 1 year ago now). Alex's big sister is Caroline, who will turn 3 this summer.

So...I would probably choose one of the MDA organizations, MDA itself or Families of SMA, should I win the prize."

This is one of the reasons why that no matter who wins, it is worth playing the game.

Please participate if you haven't yet and spread the word if you have.

The last day to get in is April 5th.

PQ