You all donated $3,496.00 to the American Red Cross

$3,496.00.

That is a bunch of money.

Going directly to American Red Cross for tornado victims.



Dear You,
As I contemplated a quilt giveaway for a donation to American Red Cross, I never imagined the response would be so great.  So generous.  So heart felt.  Having gone to high school and college in Missouri I figured that I'd get some donations from fellow school alumni that, much like myself, have since moved away and felt sickened and helpless in light of the destruction in Joplin and elsewhere.  And of course I knew that my family members would step up considering that they know and love my husband and his family and would want to do anything they could do to help as well.  What I didn't bank on was the out pouring of words, stories and generous donations from across our country and to distant shores.

A little less than a week ago I pushed a button on my computer keyboard that published my idea to the world. And within ten minutes I had tears streaming down my cheeks as my computer dinged an alert over and over again letting me know that I had a new email.  A new email notifying me of a donation.  A new email with words saying things like, "I've wanted to help and didn't know how until now."

Your generosity has left me quiet.  And filled up inside.

I'd like to say thank you for supporting my idea but I know that what you've done is far bigger than that. You've seen people hurting and you've helped.  You've thought about what it means for their lives and you've helped.  You've imagined what it would be like if it had happened in your town.  And you've helped.

Thank you for the bottom of my heart.

-dana



Now onto some business.

First of all, after several calls to American Red Cross, I'm getting the donation money transferred so that I can write a check directly to the organization and send to the local chapter that serves Joplin.  That way I can post the receipt here and give you peace of mind that your donation went exactly where I said it would.  It may be a week or more before I get written acknowledgment to show you but I will be patient and hope that you will be too.  Rest assured that I'll post evidence here soon.

Secondly, I asked random number generator to pick one number between 1 and 3,496 to determine the winner of the quilt.

Number 1320 belongs to Jennifer from Morris Plains, NJ.  I'll be emailing you and letting you know it is you.

Again, thank you.

Blog readers ROCK!

-dana