One Saturday, Deep in an Orchard...

Today, Michelle and I met bright and early at a beautiful orchard in Middlefield, Lyman Orchards. The scenery was so beautiful and peaceful, just perfect for my first cup of coffee Saturday morning. We were there for more than the view though. Today was the second annual Pedal for Pies cycling event to benefit The hole in the wall gang camp.

If you have never heard of the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, let me tell you the gist of this amazing facility and program. The camp was founded by Paul Newman many years ago to give children with serious illnesses the opportunity, as the campers proudly say, to "Raise a little hell"! Children come to the camp with various disabilities and challenges. The compassionate staff members make miracles happen every day as they watch these children do things that were considered impossible. As I listened to the awe-inspiring stories about the children today, I realized that the men and women that staff this camp are not working; these folks are fulfilling some sort of calling. They are not medical staff like nurses and doctors, and they are not care-takers. They are miracle workers that use all their available resources, love, creativity, compassion, and hope to help these children say "Yes, I can!"

The event today was a fundraiser for the camp. You see the camp does not extend any cost to the family when their child partakes in the camps offerings! We had a beautiful day to be in the orchard and over sixty riders showed up to the event. Michelle was assigned to registration and children game set up. She was BUSY! I helped set up the tent at the start/finish line and then helped the Ham radio-guy set up his tent too. My assignment, as a greeter, began as we guided the bikers into the parking lot and said a warm hello. Once the cyclists took off from the starting line, we quickly jumped in our car to get to the cheer station at the top of the orchard before the riders went through. This is where we had a little blip in the day. Three of us in my car, with me driving, thought for sure we knew where we were going. The instructions were pretty easy and only included one turn. After a few extra miles, a hand-full of U-turns, and several interjections of, "This can't be right from passenger, Holden", we called to admit we were lost. We made it to the cheer station just as the bikers started to come through. Phew!!! With clappers in hand, we cheered, encouraged, and whoot-whooted! Exhausting work :)

Our cheer squad finalized our assignment by riding back to the finish-line to see the cyclists complete their ride. We had a nice lunch before the replacement volunteer crew came in. I met so many wonderful people today and even saw channel 8 news personalities (see below)! I had a great day giving back, I wonder how Michelle did? Be sure to watch for her blog of the day as well.