Pastor's Challenge Shocks Congregation

Pastor's Challenge Shocks Congregation
By HELEN O'NEILL,AP
Posted: 2007-12-22 07:00:06
CHAGRIN FALLS, Ohio (Dec. 20) - The Rev. Hamilton Coe Throckmorton shivered with anticipation as he gazed at the loot - wads of $50 bills piled high beside boxes of crayons in a Sunday school classroom.

Cautiously, he locked the door. Then he started counting.


Photo Gallery: What Happened to the Money?
Amy Sancetta, AP Reverend Hamilton Throckmorton, right, surprised his congregation in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, when he followed up a sermon by handing out $40,000 in cash.
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It was a balmy Friday evening in September. From several floors below faint melodies drifted up - the choir practicing for Sunday service.

Throckmorton was oblivious. For hours, perched awkwardly on child-sized wooden stools surrounded by biblical murals and children's drawings, the pastor and a handful of coconspirators concentrated on the count.

Forty-thousand dollars. Throckmorton smiled in satisfaction as he stashed the money in a safe.

That Sunday, the 52-year-old minister donned his creamy white robes, swept to the pulpit and delivered one of the most extraordinary sermons of his life.

First he read from the Gospel of Matthew.

"And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his ability."

Then he explained the parable of the talents, which tells of the rich master who entrusts three servants with a sum of money - "talents" - and instructs them to go forth and do good. The master lavishes praise on the two servants who double their money. But he casts into the wilderness the one so afraid to take a risk that he buries his share.

Throckmorton spends up to 20 hours working on his weekly homily, and his clear diction, contemplative message and ringing voice command the church. Gazing down from the pulpit that Sunday, Throckmorton dropped his bombshell.

Like the master, he would entrust each adult with a sum of money - in this case, $50. Church members had seven weeks to find ways to double their money, the proceeds to go toward church missions.

"Live the parable of the talents!" Throckmorton exhorted, as assistants handed out hundreds of red envelops stuffed with crisp $50 bills and stunned church members did quick mental calculations, wondering where all the money had come from. There are about 1,700 in the congregation, though not everyone attends each week.

The cash, Throckmorton explained, was loaned by several anonymous donors.

In her regular pew at the back of the church, where she has listened to sermons for 40 years, 73-year-old Barbara Gates gasped. What kind of kooky nonsense is this, she thought.

"Sheer madness," sniffed retired accountant Wayne Albers, 85, to his wife, Marnie, who hushed him as he whispered loudly. "Why can't the church just collect money the old-fashioned way?"

In a center pew, Ann Nagy's eyes moistened as she considered her ailing, beloved father, his suffering, and the song she had written to comfort him near death. She nudged her husband Scott. "Give me your $50," she whispered. Nagy knew exactly what she would do.

Throckmorton wrapped up his two morning services by saying that children would get $10. And he assured the congregation that anyone who didn't feel comfortable could simply return the money. No consignment to outer darkness for those who didn't participate.

Throckmorton is warm and engaging and approachable, as comfortable talking about the Cleveland Indians baseball team as he is discussing scripture. At the Federated Church, he is known simply as Hamilton.

But as church members spilled into the late summer sunshine that morning to ponder their skills and their souls, there were many who thought: Hamilton is really pushing us this time.

"There was definitely this tension, this pressure to live up to something," said Hal Maskiell, a 62-year-old retired Navy pilot who spent days trying to figure out how to meet the challenge.

Maskiell's passion is flying a four-seater Cessna 172 Skyhawk over the Cuyahoga County hills. He decided to use his $50 to rent air time from Portage County airport and charge $30 for half-hour rides. Church members eagerly signed up. Maskiell was thrilled to get hours of flying time, and he raised $700.

His girlfriend, Kathy Marous, 55, was far less confident. What talents do I have, she thought dejectedly. She was tempted to give the money back.

And then Marous found an old family recipe for tomato soup, one she hadn't made in 19 years. She remembered how much she had enjoyed the chopping and the cooking and the canning and the smells. With Hal's encouragement Marous dug out her pots. She bought three pecks of tomatoes. Suddenly she was chopping and cooking and canning again. At $5 a jar, she made $180.

"I just never imagined people would pay money for the things I made," Marous exclaimed.

Others felt the same way. Barbara Gates raised $450 crafting pendants from beads and sea glass - pieces she had casually made for her grandchildren over the years. Kathie Biggin created fanciful little red-nosed Rudolph pins and sold them for $2.50. Twelve-year-old Amanda Horner pooled her money with friends, stocked up at JoAnn's fabric store, and made dozens of colorful fleece baby blankets, which were purchased by church members and then donated to a local hospital.

And 87-year-old Bob Burrows rediscovered old carpentry skills and began selling wooden bird-feeders.

But it wasn't the money; everyone said so. It was something else, something far less tangible but yet so very real. For seven weeks an almost magical sense of excitement and energy and camaraderie infused the elegant red-brick church on Bell Street, spilling over into homes and hearts as the parable of the talents came alive.

In her sun-filled studio on Strawberry Lane, Shirley Culbertson felt it - a joyful sense of purpose that she had rarely experienced since her husband passed two years ago. Culbertson, 81, is a gifted painter and watercolors fill her house. But she discovered another talent during this time - knitting whimsical eight-inch stuffed dolls with button noses and floppy hats. She raised $90.

Zooming down country roads clinging to the back of a leather-clad biker, Florence Cross felt it too. For the challenge, Barry Biggin had parked his 2006 Harley Davidson Road King outside the church, offering 12-mile rides for $30. Cross was the first to sign up. Never mind that she is in her mid-80s, had never been on a bike, or that her husband of 60 years had to hoist her up.

"Oh, it was such a thrill!" said Cross, her face glowing at the memory. Her friends now call her "Harley Girl."

Martine Scheuermann lived the parable in her Elm Street kitchen, transforming it into an "applesauce factory" for several weeks. The 49-year-old human resources director would rise at 6 a.m. on Sundays in order to have warm batches ready for sampling at church services.

In his origami-filled bedroom on Bradley Street, Paul Cantlay lived the parable too. Surrounded by sheets of colored construction paper, the 9-year-old crafted paper dragons and stars and sailboats. He set up an origami stand at the end of his street, charged 50 cents to $5 depending on the piece, and raised $68.

Talents began multiplying at such a rate that the church held a bazaar after services on two consecutive Sundays for people to display - and sell - their wares.

The pretty little village on the Chagrin River falls had never seen anything quite like it. Everyone seemed to be talking about the talent challenge: over the clatter of coffee cups at Dink's restaurant, at the Fireside bookshop on the green, sipping drinks at the Gamekeeper's Taverne. Even members of other churches weighed in: Have you heard what's happening at Federated?

"Anyone can open their wallet and give cash," Kris Tesar said. "This was just an extraordinary process of exploration and discovery and of challenging ourselves. It became bigger than any one of us or than any individual talent."

Tesar, a 58-year-old retired nurse, discovered her talent in buckets of flip-flops for sale at Old Navy. She stocked up on yarn and beads and made dozens of funky, fluffy decorative footwear that were a huge hit with teens. Tesar raised $550 for the church, is still taking orders and is thinking of starting a business. Now even her children call her the "flip-flop lady."

People also got to know the "hen lady" - Gabrielle Quintin, who took to raising chickens on a whim 23 years ago when she moved into a 180-year-old house with a barn. Her "ladies," as Quintin calls her backyard flock, provide a welcome distraction from her nursing job in a cancer center. Quintin decided to put her brood to work for the church. For $10 church members could "hire-a-hen" and get three dozen fresh eggs complete with a photograph of the "lady" who laid them.

"It wasn't exactly spiritual, but I had a lot of fun," said Quintin, whose husband, Mike, made glass birdfeeders. "And it was just this great way of bringing everyone together and connecting with the church."

Kathy Wellman quilted. Mary Hobbs knit shawls and penciled portraits. Cathy Hatfield auctioned a ride in her hot-air balloon. Norma and Trent Bobbitt pooled their money with another church member to hire a harpist from the Cleveland orchestra and host an elegant evening dinner party. Folks paid $50 each to attend and the Bobbitts made over $1,200.

And physician Peter Yang took over shifts from other doctors in his partnership (he used his $50 for gas to get to the hospital) and raised $3,000.

The deadline to return the money was Sunday, Oct. 28. Nervously, some church council members suggested posting plain clothes security guards at services that day. But Throckmorton would have none of it. He insisted that the spirit of the challenge, which had already inspired so much goodwill, would carry them safely through. And it did.

Organ music filled the church as people silently filed down the aisle, dropped their proceeds into baskets, and offered testimonials about what living the parable had meant to them. Throckmorton thanked everyone for their generosity. Then he started counting.

A week later he delivered the joyful news: They had more than doubled the amount distributed.

The initial take was $38,195 over the loan, but the amount is still growing. Some people didn't make the deadline, or extended it in order to finish their projects.

The final sum will be divided equally between three charities: One-third will go to a school library in South Africa where the church is involved in an AIDS mission; one-third will go to micro-loan organizations that provide seed money for small businesses in developing countries; one-third will help the Interfaith Hospitality Network in Cleveland, specifically programs for homeless women.

Throckmorton is asked all the time if the talent challenge will become an annual event, but he is doubtful. It was a special time and a special idea, he says, and he is not sure it could be re-created or relived.

Yet in a very real sense, it lives on. Church members who never knew each other have become friends. And orders for applesauce, flip-flops and Rudolph pins are still rolling in for Christmas.

There are other, more poignant reminders. Like Ann Nagy's haunting tribute to her father, who died of brain cancer on Oct. 11.

Nagy, 44, has always been a singer with a clear lovely voice. It wasn't until her father grew ill and moved into a hospice that she started writing songs. She found solace in the music and a way of communicating that was sometimes easier than spoken words.

At hospice, patients are taught five simple truths to tell their loved ones before they die: I'll miss you. I love you. I forgive you. I'm sorry. Goodbye.

Borrowing from that theme, Nagy wrote a farewell song for her Dad. She pooled her $50 talent money with her husband's share and cut a CD to sell to church members. Ironically it was finished just an hour before her father passed, on Oct. 11. Nagy stood by his bed and sang it for him anyway.

On Nov. 11 - her father's 72nd birthday - Throckmorton preached a sermon about dying. He invited Nagy to the altar. There, accompanied by a cellist and a pianist she sang "Before You Go."

Her voice soared. The congregation wept. The parable of the talents had never seemed so alive.


Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.
2007-12-20 19:25:53

The World's Richest People
The Frugal Billionaires
Asher Hawkins 11.14.07, 2:00 PM ET


In Pictures:
The Frugal Billionaires

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In Pictures: The Frugal Billionaires



Sure, billionaires fly private jets, live in massive mansions, dine at the world's finest restaurants and shop at Gucci, Prada and Louis Vuitton. After all, they're rich. But some of the world's wealthiest people aren't so flashy. They're frugal--for billionaires, at least.

Take John Caudwell, who got his start as an auto-repair shop owner and went on to create a $2.2 billion fortune (when last measured by Forbes in March) by selling his 85% stake in cellphone outfit the Caudwell Group in 2005. An avid sportsman, he used to bike 14 miles to work every day. He cuts his own hair because going to a barber is a waste of time. He buys his clothes off the rack at British retailer Marks & Spencer (other-otc: MASPY - news - people ).

"I don't need Saville Row suits," he tells Forbes, adding that splurging on extremely pricey bottles of wine is often a waste. "I don't need to spend money to bolster my own esteem."

In Pictures: The Frugal Billionaires
Caudwell does have his indulgences. He owns both a Ferrari and a Bentley.

Jim C. Walton, the Wal-Mart (nyse: WMT - news - people ) scion and member of America's richest family, has different taste in vehicles. He inherited his money--and spending habits--from father Sam. Worth $16.4 billion when we valued his fortune for the Forbes 400 list in September, Jim prefers pickup trucks to sports cars. Reportedly, he drives a 15-year-old Dodge Dakota.

Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad built a $33 billion fortune selling affordable furniture to the masses. Yet the self-made Swedish tycoon drives a 15-year-old Volvo, flies coach, tries to avoid wearing suits and often eats meals at lower-tier restaurants.

Indian billionaire Azim Premji made his $17.1 billion fortune through tech-services giant Wipro. Despite being one of Asia's richest men, Premji drives a Toyota Corolla, flies coach and stays in company guest houses instead of five-star hotels when traveling on business. He even served food on paper plates at a lunch honoring his son's wedding.

Famously frugal investor Warren Buffett has been making headlines recently for railing against the Bush administration's tax policy and sticking up for the middle class. And he walks the walk: Despite earning $46 million in taxable income last year and boasting a net worth of $57 billion, he lives in the same home he bought for $31,500 nearly 50 years ago.

Stanford professor David Cheriton made his billions by introducing Google (nasdaq: GOOG - news - people ) founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page to the venture capitalists at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. He was rewarded with a sizable chunk of Google stock.

Canadian Cheriton says he prefers to ride his bike around his Palo Alto, Calif., neighborhood, and relies on an old Volkswagen (other-otc: VLKAF - news - people ) van or a Honda (nyse: HMC - news - people ) sedan when he needs to get behind the wheel. He says he only flies commercial, prefers jeans to designer clothes and claims to reuse his teabags. He also cuts his own hair to save time going to a barber. His indulgence: two windsurfers.

When contacted about this story, Cheriton cited the Wikipedia definition of frugality: "The acquiring of and resourceful use of economic goods and services in order to achieve lasting and more fulfilling goals." He says, "That's certainly something I aspire to."

Boston? Who cares!!!!

Reports: Girardi Offered Yankees Job

NEW YORK -- Joe Girardi has reportedly been offered the Yankees' managerial job and is expected to accept the position.
ESPN Radio first reported that the Yankees officially presented the opportunity to Girardi, the 2006 National League Manager of the Year, on Monday morning. General manager Brian Cashman informed candidates Don Mattingly and Tony Pena that they will not be hired.

"The Yankees have offered Joe the opportunity to become their next manager," Steve Mandell, Girardi's agent, told ESPN.com. "Discussions are ongoing."

Girardi, 43, was a member of the Yankees' 1996, '98 and '99 World Series clubs in a 15-year playing career with four organizations. He served as former Yankees manager Joe Torre's bench coach in 2005 before guiding the Marlins to a 78-victory season in '06, keeping the club in Wild Card contention into the final week of the campaign.

"I think every managing job is different, because of players and all the parts," Girardi said on Oct. 22 after his interview. "Everyone changes. It's different people and different situations with different expectations.

"I think every job that you take is different, and I believe that every year is different, because the people are going to change. The idea is still to win a World Series and to win ballgames."

Girardi spent the 2007 season as a broadcaster for the Yankees' YES Network and also worked for FOX. He is expected to fly to New York from Denver, where he was assigned to broadcast coverage of the World Series.

The decision likely ends Mattingly's four-season run as a member of the Yankees' coaching staff. One of the most popular players of his era, Mattingly served for three seasons as a hitting coach and spent 2007 as Torre's bench coach, saying that he had an eye on managing the organization for which he played from 1982-95.

Pena, 50, was the American League Manager of the Year in 2003 with the Royals, guiding Kansas City to an 83-victory season. He managed the Royals from 2002 into 2005, and said on a conference call last week that he would be amenable to returning to the Yankees if either Girardi or Mattingly received the job.

This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

I mean it is God's Team :-) Be sure to print out your film questions for all Ethic Classes.

ALIVE DAY MEMORIES: HOME FROM IRAQ.

About The Film

http://www.hbo.com/aliveday/thefilm/?ntrack_para1=feat_main_title

Three-time Emmy® winner James Gandolfini returns to HBO with the documentary special ALIVE DAY MEMORIES: HOME FROM IRAQ. The documentary about wounded soldiers surveys the physical and emotional cost of war through memories of their "alive day," the day they narrowly escaped death in Iraq.

"Everybody makes a big deal about your alive day,' especially at Walter Reed," comments Sgt. Bryan Anderson. "And I can see their point, that you'd want to celebrate something like that. But from my point of view, it's like, 'OK, we're sitting here celebrating the worst day of my life. Great, let's just remind me of that every year'."

First Lt. Dawn Halfaker says, "I think people come away from the war wanting to feel that they made a difference, wanting to feel like their sacrifice, or their time, or their energy was worth it. War is horrible. I don't like the sounds associated with it, the smells I associate with it. But I'm glad I did it."

In a war that has left more than 27,000 wounded, ALIVE DAY MEMORIES looks at a new generation of veterans. For the first time in American history, 90% of the wounded survive their injuries, but a greater percentage of these men and women are returning with amputations, traumatic brain injuries and severe post-traumatic stress. More than half these injuries are too severe to permit a return to active military service.

Gandolfini, who has visited the troops in Iraq on behalf of the USO, serves as executive producer. In ALIVE DAY MEMORIES he interviews ten soldiers who reveal their feelings on their future, their severe disabilities and their devotion to America. Their first-person stories are augmented by harrowing footage from the war-torn streets of Iraq, and from embedded cameras in the vehicles of the soldiers, which was shot when they were injured, as well as disturbing video of IED (Improvised Explosive Device) bombings released by insurgents, and soldiers' personal home videos and photographs.

The soldiers who speak with Gandolfini on a sparse New York soundstage range in age from 21 to 41; six are from the Army and four are Marines. Their injuries range from triple amputees to severe traumatic brain injury to blindness.

ALIVE DAY MEMORIES: HOME FROM IRAQ marks HBO Documentary Films' third production focusing on the war in Iraq, following the Emmy® and Peabody winner "Baghdad ER" and "Last Letters Home: Voices of American Troops from the Battlefields of Iraq."

For Attaboy Films: executive producer, James Gandolfini; co-executive producer, Alexandra Ryan; associate producer, Trixie Flynn. For HBO Documentary Films: executive producer, Sheila Nevins; supervising producer, Sara Bernstein; directed by Jon Alpert and Ellen Goosenberg; produced by Ellen Goosenberg; produced and photographed by Jon Alpert and Matthew O'Neill; edited by Paula Heredia. Web site soldier portraits by photographer Timothy Greenfield-Sanders.

Seeing Joba live a 'blessing' to father

Unable to travel far, elder Chamberlain enjoys son's dominance
By Conor Nicholl / MLB.com

KANSAS CITY -- Harlan Chamberlain started crying.
He had watched his son, Joba, "hundreds of times" in person. He played catch with him every day when Joba was growing up, watched him in high school and junior college. He saw him become the ace at the University of Nebraska and help the Cornhuskers reach the 2005 College World Series.
But he had never seen him like this -- watching him pitch in a Major League game, live, from the stands. Harlan, who has polio, is confined to a wheelchair.
He doesn't travel often and has watched his son pitch for the Yankees only on Major League Baseball's Extra Innings television package. But when Joba and the Yankees came to Kansas City, Harlan had to make the trip from his Nebraska home.
And when Joba entered the seventh inning of Friday's game against the Royals at Kauffman Stadium, Harlan became emotional.
"I will never forget this night," Harlan said. "September 7, 2007. To actually be here was pretty neat. It was a real blessing."
Joba continued his incredible scoreless streak, tossing two shutout innings. He allowed just two singles and still hasn't allowed a run in the Major Leagues. Through 11 appearances, Chamberlain has tossed 14 1/3 scoreless innings. These two, though, were actually a little bit easier for Chamberlain.
"We had a tight game going on and it is a situation where I want to be in," he said. "Doesn't matter what is going on. It is a big game for us no matter who we are playing."
About six hours before his son appeared in the game, Harlan pulled into Kauffman Stadium. Along with family members and friends, Harlan made the three-hour trip from Nebraska to Kansas City.
He reached Kauffman about four hours before first pitch and spent time with a Sports Illustrated photo crew, met Yankees manager Joe Torre and talked with lefty Andy Pettitte's father.
Joba was certainly happy to see his father -- as well as most of the state. Joba and Royals third baseman Alex Gordon are longtime friends, teammates and Cornhuskers legends.
In 2005, Chamberlain went 10-2 with a 2.81 ERA and Gordon won the Golden Spikes Award as collegiate baseball's player of the year.
Neither player knew how many tickets he asked for. Chamberlain couldn't even estimate the number -- "I haven't even counted; I just put my name and number next to a list" -- and Gordon received a barrage of phone calls and text messages asking for tickets.
Because the Cornhuskers football team is traveling this weekend, this Yankees-Royals series is the must-see event for many Nebraskans. Harlan put the number of Cornhuskers fans in attendance on Friday night at 10,000.
However, no fan was likely happier than Harlan.
"I think that if you stand, like, 35 feet away, you can probably see his smile," Joba said with a smile and laugh.
Harlan has always helped Joba. He taught him all he could about pitching.
"What I know about pitching will fit in a thimble; what I don't know will fit in the Smithsonian," Harlan said.
But Harlan did teach his son one piece of advice -- advice that helped Joba hone a dominating fastball.
"'If you throw a curveball, I will take you right out,' and he never did," Harlan said. "A kid growing up, a curveball is not something that he needs to be throwing.
Harlan saw Joba take his talent to Nebraska, win 16 games in two seasons and be picked as a supplemental first-rounder in the 2006 First-Year Player Draft.
When -- on Aug. 15, 2006 -- his appendix failed, it appeared that Harlan may not be able to see his son pitch again.
"When your appendix blows up at 54 years of age, there is a lot of other stuff that happens," Joba said. "When a 21-year-old man's appendix blows up, you are in and out of the hospital, but when you are a 54-year-old man who has polio ..."
Harlan's body didn't react well to painkillers. But he kept fighting, didn't give up. He wanted to continue living -- and continue watching his son play.
"A year later, he is finally back to where he was, and he is finally 100 percent," Joba said.
Harlan could watch his son skyrocket through the Minors. First, there was the 4-0 record and 2.03 ERA in seven starts at Class A Tampa. Then, 66 strikeouts in 40 innings at Double-A Trenton. Finally, 18 strikeouts and one walk in eight shutout innings for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
And then the Majors. Harlan watched his son pitch 10 games and throw 12 1/3 shutout innings.
"I knew he would always make it," Harlan said. "I felt in [my heart] that he would always make it, but to move this fast, it is always surprising. He has jumped right in and become a part of it, and the rest is history. Now we just make new history."
Harlan saw on TV the incredible ovations and "Joba, Joba" chants his son received at Yankee Stadium. He wanted to see his son play in person, and this weekend offered an opportunity.
When he arrived at Kauffman Stadium, Harlan was greeted by Torre and his son's teammates. Torre approached Harlan, who extended his hand. Torre asked Harlan to call him "Joe."
"When each of the players came up and introduced themselves to me, it meant a great deal to me," Harlan said. "It was indeed an honor to meet [Torre]."
Harlan enjoyed another incredible experience when his son came in to protect a 3-2 seventh-inning lead. Joba threw 98-100 mph consistently and pitched a scoreless seventh.
"I understand somebody told me that he hit 100 six times and 101 once," Harlan said. "That is bringing [it] up. It amazes me, whether it is Joba, or [Carlos] Zambrano or [Joel] Zumaya."
In the eighth, Chamberlain faced his former teammate, Gordon, with one out. A few days ago, Gordon told him to throw him a first-pitch fastball. That is exactly what happened.
It was 100 mph. Gordon swung and missed.
"I got my first pitch to hit, and I was swinging," Gordon said. "You can't let those go by against a guy with this kind of talent."
Gordon eventually singled, but Chamberlain finished the inning with no damage. After Mariano Rivera closed out the ninth, Chamberlain met his dad and family, capping a night his father would never forget.
Conor Nicholl is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Noa and Dwyane

Noa and Dwyane
By Trudy Ornellas
Noa Ornellas's mother
(Archive)

My Wish: Dwyane WadeI first heard about the Make-A-Wish Foundation when Noa was at the Painted Turtle Camp, a camp for children with life threatening illnesses. Noa had his interview and said that he would like to meet Dwyane Wade. I didn't know who that was and when I told Noa he looked at me like I was from another planet. I was then informed that Wade played for the Miami Heat and that he was the best NBA player ever.

Since we're from Hawaii, the time difference makes it hard for us to watch East Coast games. But that didn't stop Noa from watching as many of the Heat's games as he could and watching highlights of the ones he missed on SportsCenter.

After one and a half years of waiting Noa was told by the Make A Wish Foundation, that it looked like he was going to have to wait another year to get his wish, if at all, and that maybe he should consider changing his wish. It was heartbreaking to tell Noa and when I did he refused to change his wish. He wanted to meet Dwyane and he was willing to wait another year no matter how what even when I tried to get him to change his mind.

Two months later Make-A-Wish called to tell me that Dwyane was participating in the ESPN My Wish series and that Noa was going to get his wish. We were so excited that Noa's wish was going to come true and the countdown to the big day began. ESPN came to Honolulu and filmed Noa at school and shooting hoops at a local park.


Dwyane and Noa got along famously.
The time finally came for the big meeting so we packed our bags and flew from Hawaii to Chicago not knowing what to expect. Well, the reality was beyond our wildest dreams. On the day of the meeting, a limo picked us up at the hotel. Noa was so excited that he had a grin from ear to ear. We drove for over an hour to a restaurant where we were going to meet Dwyane for lunch. At first he wasn't there and Noa started getting a little anxious. We decided that we would order lunch while we waited. When we went to the counter to order our burgers Dwyane suddenly appeared behind the counter to take our order.
We were shocked… speechless.

We couldn't believe it was really Dwyane Wade. After that the whole day was magical. I thought he would give Noa maybe 20 to 30 minutes, but Dwyane shared two and a half hours with Noa doing everything from ordering hamburgers, playing videos games and just talking at the restaurant to a game of hoops on his "home" court.

Dwyane even shared some of his childhood memories and showed us a picture of his newborn son. He talked about everyday things and answered all of Noa's questions. For the most part Noa, who is normally a very outgoing and talkative little guy, was at a loss for words, just in complete awe that he was sitting there having lunch with the man he believed to be the greatest basketball player, ever!

Then Dwyane told Noa that we were going to his house to shoot some hoops. As we left the restaurant, he turned to Noa and asked if he wanted to ride with him instead of in the limo. Noa had a huge smile on his face and he couldn't believe he was going to ride with Dwyane Wade!
After we got to Dwyane's house he gave Noa a new pair of Dwyane Wade basketball shoes and they set off to the court for a game of HEAT and then a short basketball game to 10. Dwyane did some fancy footwork and made a few of his amazing shots while Noa just stood and watched with admiration and awe. After the game they drank Gatorade together and then Dwyane graciously signed anything my son wanted. Dwyane gave him an autographed basketball and lots of other goodies. Then Dwyane's wife and family came out to meet us and they too were so warm and welcoming we felt like we had known them forever.

Meeting Dwyane was absolutely worth the long wait. During one of their conversations he told Noa to always dream big. Well, Noa's biggest dream has come true and he couldn't have been granted a better wish than to meet Dwyane Wade.

I don't think he will ever know what an impact he made on Noa that day. He gave him hope to dream big and look forward to all the great things life has to offer. He is a superstar on and off the court. Dwyane showed Noa the true meaning of caring and sharing with one another and I know that Noa will remember that day for the rest of his life.




If you want to know more about the Make-A-Wish Foundation or donate to the cause click here.

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I will mostly be using the podcast and youtube to keep you up to date! But I will use this BLOG to post articles and other intersting material to help you learn! God Bless and thanks for visting!


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