Awesome!

awe⋅some  /ˈɔsəm/ –adjective
1. inspiring awe: an awesome sight.
2. showing or characterized by awe.
3. Slang. very impressive: That new white convertible is totally awesome.

January was an awesome month for Hilarious Givers!
We had planned on about a dozen loads of nutritious food and drink for the kids in Baja and their families. Knowing that my planning is almost always overcome by God's plan, we prepared 25% more pallets than we were going to need. 16 pallets of food is a lot! Each pallet is typically about half a ton of food, so a pallet fills a small pickup or SUV.

Then came the rains. Baja California received 7 to 10 inches of rain in a few hours, accompanying by shanty-destroying winds. Villages were cut off, houses damaged, shacks destroyed. Reports of children being swept away, never to be recovered, made the local news. From experience in prior years, we knew of the misery being suffered by those least able to endure.

And then the earthquake in Haiti. As many as 1/3 of the residents of Port au Prince killed or injured. We all had our hearts touched by the suffering and devastation.
We struggled to not be torn by the two centers of suffering. Through the providence of the Lord and the generosity of our donors, we can make a big difference in suffering lives impacted by both disasters.

Our Mexico feeding mission swelled from 12 pallets to 20. Volunteers stepped up, the food was available, and we were able to nearly double the amount of sustenance we expect to provide in a single month. This despite the barriers, natural and man-made, thrown up.

Here's a shot of our truck crossing an arroyo during one of our caravans. Sometimes there is the little stream you see here, but most often it's just dry.


 
 
 

 
 
 
 
Here's the same crossing last week. Nobody's crossing, and if this is the only way in and out, you're stuck.
 
Just hearing the torrent rush by inspires awe.
 
 
 
 
 
And the kids have to eat every day. So, being able to respond on a few hours' notice is, well, awesome!
  Meantime, we were privileged to be able to help move 17 pallets of desperately-needed medical supplies to Haiti, thanks to the generosity of friends and associates of one of our corporate sponsors, Miramar Freight. Totally awesome! And, we're working on a cooperative endeavor with the U.S. Navy to provide continuing relief to that devastated nation.
  We never feel we have enough to get the job done, but somehow, some way, some body steps up and volunteers, or donates, or just prays for us.
 
Awesome.