Hey friends, family, and sweet supporters! I am nearly 3 months out from landing stateside in November- CRAZY. Approaching my last continent, I have hit a need for financial support and through careful prayer, have felt led to reach out and ask for help.
I was officially fully funded by the end of January because so many of you sacrificed of your time, money, and prayer in order to help me reach my $17,000 goal. All of the money that was given towards that $17,000 went straight to Adventures in Missions in order to send and keep me on the field. All of that money takes care of necessary living expenses like food, lodging, transportation, and basic team supplies like toilet paper and hand soap. Unfortunately, none of that money was used to purchase my gear, flights to and from training camp, or my travel home once I am inside of the States. All of that has been paid for by me personally or by my mom. Before the Race, I worked and saved money and did a t-shirt sale in order to have personal money for my time on the field. Budgeting monthly, that money has lasted me until this past month. Now, I need your help. Because my personal spending money has been depleted, my budget on field is becoming tighter and tighter.
In order to make up for what I am lacking and to get me through the end of the Race, I have made a personal goal of raising $500. That $500 will cover personal expenses for my last 3 months in Central America and take care of my travel home in November; AIM purchases our flights into America, but then it is up to us to finance the rest of our travel home. My squad and I will be flying into Houston on November 20, so my mom and little brother will be driving down to get me! Instead of purchasing a plane ticket, part of that $500 will pay for their travel down to Houston and our travel back up to Dallas!
The rest of the $500 will help me live on field and go towards things like:
-toiletry and hygiene items (my team and I will thank you)
-wifi in order to check emails, communicate with home, and blog
-pens, journals, art supplies, and stationery
-new clothes: Africa tore mine apart and I’ve been living in the same 15-20 articles of clothing and the same underwear for 8 months. It’s real, y’all.
-replacement gear because all of my things keep breaking
-coffee: one of my favorite things about the Race has been the opportunity to engage and build relationships with the locals and other travelers. Usually, I like to find one coffee shop in the area that I love and anytime I need coffee, somewhere to study, or somewhere to blog I go to the same place. In doing so, I see the same staff all the time and get to strike up conversation, build relationships, and share about the Race and the God whom I love!
-blessing my teammates and squadmates with coffee dates/ sweet notes/ yummy treats to check in, love on them, or just brighten their day.
-healthcare and medical expenses: AIM provides us with insurance coverage after a $150 deductible. I haven’t met my deductible yet and had to visit the hospital twice this month for an exam and x-rays when I injured my hand and for antibiotics to help with stomach issues (thanks Asia.) Right now, over $100 in medical expenses have been paid out of my (empty) pockets and part of the money given would help reimburse that!
-the occasional chocolate bar/ sleeve of Oreos
-souvenirs
-merchandise purchased in order to support ministries we partner with
-extra food: we live on $4-$5 a day for food and depending on the area, we have to exceed that given amount. Touristy areas are more expensive and sometimes we don’t have anywhere to keep or maintain groceries so we have to eat out. My body has struggled with the decrease of nutrition in my diet because of my budget constrictions, so occasionally I like to buy multivitamins, juices/drinks with fruits and vegetables in them, or produce from street vendors.
After reading this blog, I’d encourage you to pray over the possibility of giving. If you feel led or would like to aid financially, it would be easiest to send money to me via PayPal. My PayPal email address is [email protected]. Any money donated through my blog page will not go to me directly, but to AIM (which is still an incredible organization to give to and your money would be well spent, but for the purposes of this blog, it wouldn’t help me haha.)
If you have any questions about giving or would like to learn more about where the money would be going, feel free to send me an email at [email protected]. Though initially timid and uncomfortable when it comes to asking for financial aid, the Lord has taught me well about the comfort and freedom found by admitting areas in our lives we need assistance in, reaching out to the Church and our community, and allowing God to wow us with his incredible provision and love for his people. I thank you in advance for your continued partnership and the ways you have loved me well over the past 8 months. The Lord has kept me present and delighted me here, but it has been a great encouragement to me to have a community and support system at home who reads my blogs, comments on my social media posts, prays for me daily, checks in often, and encourages without ceasing.
Much Love,
Katy (and Katy’s Mom who is wonderful and is paying for all of the things)
(Mom, I love you.)
