Sometimes a photograph just really gets you. There’s something about this shot (by my friend, Rebekah) that does just that. And with that I’m going to go finish up some stuff and get some peace and quiet. I can’t help but get really nervous about being away from all of my favorite people for six weeks this summer:( I need lots of prayer about that.
In quietness and in confidence will be your strength.
This morning has been a very lazy one… I don’t have babysitting till this afternoon, so I’ve been sitting on my bed drinking coffee and browsing Pinterest boards just like every other college girl on summer break who doesn’t have anything else to do.
I ran across this graphic by USAID on a quote board, and it really struck me. Take a look at it below.
Girls who stay in school for seven more years marry four years later and have two fewer children. However, 1 in 5 girls in developing countries who enroll in primary school never finish, even though when 10% more girls go to school, a country’s GDP increases on average by 3%.
Just think about it.
Went to a vintage thrift store on the square in my town, and found some sweet vintage earrings! I just listed them in my store, www.artbringshope.etsy.com.
And may I mention, they’re just $6 per pair!
Sale of these items benefits an orphanage in Port-au-Prince, Haiti! My current goal is to raise $1500 for that orphanage. We’re getting close! :)
[Oh hey, that awesome print in the background is for sale, too, along with another coordinating print - see below!]
Now that school is over, I’ll be posting on here MUCH more frequently. I thought I’d start off by posting a couple pics of new items in my store (www.artbringshope.etsy.com)!
There will be a lot of other new items in the coming week! :)
To finish off tonight, I want to share some artwork that a really cool friend of mine, Justine, created. She posted it, and I thought it was so breathtaking!
Three weeks from the Convoy of Hope intern trip! Getting nervous, getting excited.
Hi everyone!
First of all, it’s less than a month till the Convoy of Hope internship! If you didn’t know already, my sister (Jo) and I will be spending six weeks with a group in Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
Secondly, I’m about to list a whole slew of sweet vintage finds in my Etsy store, (www.artbringshope.etsy.com)! Proceeds go towards helping an orphanage in Port-au-Prince.
Love,
Willa
Seek peace and pursue it.
My sister Marianne is a fabulous artist, and she said that she wanted to create a piece of art for me to sell in my Etsy store www.artbringshope.etsy.com to raise money for an orphanage there.
I was going through my photos, and I discovered this one, which I haven’t published yet. I was looking at it up close, and I realized that the little boy in the alley is actually grinning! It made me smile that I’d skimmed over this photo so many times but never noticed that he’d let me capture his beautiful smile:)
Not sure if Mari is going to use this photo for her artwork or not, but I thought I’d share it with everyone!
In two months I’ll be beginning the six-week internship in Haiti/the Dominican Republic with Convoy of Hope! Very excited about this opportunity to serve.
It’s official… I’ve finished my application for the six-week internship with Convoy of Hope this summer! It will be from mid-June through the end of July. Please be praying for me. Now that it’s official, it’s starting to sink in and of course I’m getting nervous. PLUS I keep getting these selfish second thoughts, like, “Wow, that’s a realllly long time to be away from home. And wow — I’m going to miss a friend’s wedding, my family’s 4th of July get-together, and so many other things that I really love about summer:(.” That being said, I’m so excited for what those six weeks have in store. New places, new people, new experiences, and more than anything, a chance to be the hands and feet of Christ - to be an instrument that He uses to show his love to the hungry and hurting. That’s my prayer, and I hope that you all will pray with me!
On another note, check out the great organization Locks of Love (http://locksoflove.org/). What is Locks of Love? “Locks of Love is a public non-profit organization that provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children in the United States and Canada under age 21 suffering from long-term medical hair loss from any diagnosis.” Last Friday I decided that it was time for my long hair to go, and the hairdresser cut off an entire foot! A great organization — maybe you should think about making the change;) short hair will just be so much nicer, especially with all of the traveling that I’ll be doing this summer!
Before:
After:
Love,
Willa
Great News! To date, Art Brings Hope has raised $1300 to send to the orphanage! Thanks for making that possible:) (http://www.artbringshope.etsy.com)
On another note, I received an email asking me to release one of my photos to Convoy of Hope for their use! That was very exciting for me, as I’ve never had anything like that happen before. This is the photo!
One more thing! I’m SO excited that my sister and I will be traveling with Convoy of Hope’s intern team to Haiti and the Dominican Republic this summer! It is an intense six-week program. You can read about it here: http://cohinterns.org/
That’s it for now… I will do my best to post more often with updates!
Love,
Willa
“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”
It’s hard to believe we’re already well into the first month of 2012. It’s even harder to believe that it’s been two years since the 2010 earthquake in Haiti.
Yesterday I ran across an incredible story by The Big Picture about the nation’s slow recovery from the devastation. Please check the story out here:
http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2012/01/haiti_slow_to_recover_from_201.html
Two years later, over half a million Haitians remain homeless. But there is always hope.
[This photo was taken last summer at an orphanage I visited in Port-au-Prince]
If you’re looking for a great read, please check out my friend Dr. Doug Harty’s book From the Roof about his experiences as one of the first doctors on the scene after the earthquake back in 2010. It’s available for purchase on Amazon [click here].
On another note: thanks to all of you, Art Brings Hope has raised well over a thousand dollars for Fodah Foyer des Orphelins d’Haiti. So incredible! Thank you. If there are ever any suggestions for artwork that you’d like to see, please feel free to email me at willa.artbringshope@gmail.com. There are also a bunch of very cool bracelets (plus a lot of other cool things!) that are just $4 each that are available in my etsy store [www.artbringshope.etsy.com]. Please check it out! I’ve also just added some Valentines day cards:) Only two left!
Love,
Willa
Hey everybody! Finals are over, and I just reopened Art Brings Hope on Etsy!
(www.artbringshope.etsy.com)
I will do my very best to mail items the day after they are purchased so that they will get to you in time for Christmas! :)
New items are about to be added, including handmade bracelets, gorgeous vintage photographs, new artwork, and more!
Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas!
Love,
Willa
p.s. Thanks to you guys, $800 has been donated to Fodah foyer DES orphelins d’haiti so far!
