What Are YOUR Possibilities?

Friday, April 18, 2008

Jim Connors and Hastings Mayor, Matt Rossen met with Tracy and Sherry Watson and myself at the hotel for breakfast. We discussed Senator Carlson's legislative bill, LB609, which was passed the day before. The Mayor was excited about this bill. He has been aware of the need for this in his city and it was very exciting for him. As the morning talk continued he offered free office space to "That's It, I'm Going to Grandma's!" I shared with Mayor Rossen about our new project: Make 2 Tell 2. This is a card program for our soldiers overseas. You make 2 cards and tell 2 people to do the same and send the cards to:

Make 2 Tell 2
991 road 325
Harvard, NE 68944

These are homemade cards we will send to our military people, letting them know they are being thought of and prayed for. Side note: We are now doing it for Christmas so please be sure to make your cards and send them to the address above.

At the end of our meeting Jim Connors stressed to me that I need to speak with confidence about the services and programs of "That's It, I'm Going to Grandma's!"

We departed from the hotel and moved on to meet with the Executive Director, Dianne Fowler of the Midland Area Agency on Aging. She was very supportive of "That's It, I'm Going to Grandma's!" and saw true value in bringing the generations together. She could see that it is rooted in and an advocate for "Money Follows the Person" and could be involved in the Nursing Home Transition Project. This is another area we are looking at to get involved in.

She immediately booked me on several of the board's agendas for their meetings to give a presentation!

From there we moved on to the Hastings Public Library, where we met with Library Director, Linda Rae. She was open to bringing new services to the Library. She was especially interested in a Financial Literacy Class. We discussed partnering to provide a class. We discussed several other possibilities with her.

Next we moved on to Grand Island, NE, 25 miles to the North.

There we went to the Center for Independent Living of Central Nebraska, Inc.

Ray Norris, the Executive Director shared with us the services they provide. Their biggest needs at this time are housing and transportation. He said coalitions need to be built. During our visit he offered me the use of their large boardroom at any time. He invited me to their next board meeting to give a presentation about "That's It, I'm Going to Grandma's!"

We moved on to our last destination for the day: Christian Resource Center, outside of Giltner, NE. This is the day camp where my pastor and his wife, Paul and Kathy Nauman, provide many resources for the youth of the surrounding area. They gave us several recommendations and offered their facilities for any classes that we may have.

Then it was a straight shot to our house to pick up my husband to head to a wonderful restaurant in the area for a great prime rib supper. On our way, we had to give them a tour of our great metropolis Harvard, NE, population 998. At the restaurant we discussed and shared with my husband the day's events.

"Just a farmer's wife" couldn't believe what all had transpired in a 10-hour day. First, being offered a free city office in a city that I am not even a resident of and then another offer to use a board room in another facility and another city! We were even offered classroom space not far from home! It was almost more than I could handle. Besides, it was an eye-opening and overwhelming opportunity to see what was ahead for "just a farmer's wife."

These are all possibilities that can happen when you are connected with the right people and desiring to make a difference in the lives of people.

The following quote sums up everything that has happened and will happen in the future for me:
"A true friend knows your weaknesses but shows you your strengths; feels your fears but fortifies your faith; sees your anxieties but frees your spirit; recognizes your disabilities but emphasizes your possibilities." - William Arthur Ward (American dedicated scholar, author, editor, pastor and teacher)

Thanks, Sherry Watson , for showing me these possibilities.

Renita Farrall

Where are you on YOUR legacy adventure?