Next Saturday night there is a wonderful evening of music planed in support of the PVs.
If you live in the NYC area, or know people who do, please spread the word and encourage people to check it out.
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
Eat Out and Help the PVs
GoodSearch
now has a dining out program where participating restaurants donate up to 6% to
the PVs when you dine at their restaurant. In addition, if you sign up with
GoodSearch and dine out, GoodSearch will donate $5 to the PVs. For more info go to www.goodsearch.com . The PV’s are listed under the cause section
as PV Volunteers, Inc. In addition to the Dine Out program, GoodSearch has a
shopping program that could benefit the PVs. When you are on their site, check
it out!
Friday, May 4, 2012
Live with Passion Updates
Be sure to check out our Live with Passion blog and Facebook page for summaries and pictures from the different Live with Passion events taking place throughout the country. We are updating daily, so please visit often!
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
PV Hoe Down Reflection
We asked Dale and Mary Kay DeVries for their reflection as first time PV Evaluation/Hoe down Weekend attendees, and they very generously obliged. Enjoy their thoughts on the weekend.
We have heard many glorious tales about the annual hoe down in Kansas, but until you experience it for yourself no words can really tell the story. Since we had never attended one, we decided to do just that.
We traveled with Chuck and Kathy Koller and Amy O”Dea to Kansas Friday, March 23rd, which is a wild and exciting undertaking in itself. For those who know Amy and the Kollers' no explanation is required.
We have stayed at Bed and Breakfast places before but none can compare to Dan and Lucy’s. They don’t stop with a bed and breakfast… Oh no they also have lunch, dinner and constant entertainment. Webster’s Dictionary description of hospitality is “ The act or practice of one who is hospitable; reception and entertainment of strangers or guests without reward, or with kind and generous liberality.” We think Mr. Webster needs to redefine hospitality that should include Dan and Lucy in his description.
When we arrived Friday we were greeted with the usual warm PV welcome. We had been told there would be food but honestly we had not planned on the bountiful amounts of food. If you want to loose weight do not go to the hoe down.
Our daughter had asked us where are you going to stay? We had wondered that too but in PV fashion it all fell into place. Lucy is very creative in finding room for everyone to sleep. Thanks go to Dave and Jeremy too for sharing their homes with us. How about taking a shower? Again… it all works like magic. We did not even have to request a time slot to shower.
After breakfast Jenny and Jill conducted a short meeting regarding the PV’s.
Saturday afternoon Dan and Jeremy treated us too a wonderful hay rack ride of the area stopping along the way to explain different points of history. The weather was perfect. We did not know you could order perfect weather but apparently Dan and Lucy know how.
We again traveled by hayrack to Dan’s barn where Lucy and her helpers had set up for the community event. The hoe down was a hoot! We have not square danced since grade school and it was so much fun. Never let it be said people in Kansas do not know how to cook or dance. There was so much delicious food and drink. Everyone was so friendly and generous. Someone said there were around 110 people in attendance including the PV’s, neighbors, and good friends.
We were greeted to bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, pancakes, and fruit Sunday morning. What a way to start the day. Some of the PV’s had to say good-bye before the rest of us walked across the road to attend church. After church we shared a spaghetti dinner with the church folks.
Then it was back to Illinois.
This was our very first PV hoe down and hopefully it will not be our last. We cannot say thanks enough to Dan, Lucy and their family for a marvelous and remarkable weekend. It is a truly fun, fun weekend.
We have heard many glorious tales about the annual hoe down in Kansas, but until you experience it for yourself no words can really tell the story. Since we had never attended one, we decided to do just that.
We traveled with Chuck and Kathy Koller and Amy O”Dea to Kansas Friday, March 23rd, which is a wild and exciting undertaking in itself. For those who know Amy and the Kollers' no explanation is required.
We have stayed at Bed and Breakfast places before but none can compare to Dan and Lucy’s. They don’t stop with a bed and breakfast… Oh no they also have lunch, dinner and constant entertainment. Webster’s Dictionary description of hospitality is “ The act or practice of one who is hospitable; reception and entertainment of strangers or guests without reward, or with kind and generous liberality.” We think Mr. Webster needs to redefine hospitality that should include Dan and Lucy in his description.
When we arrived Friday we were greeted with the usual warm PV welcome. We had been told there would be food but honestly we had not planned on the bountiful amounts of food. If you want to loose weight do not go to the hoe down.
Our daughter had asked us where are you going to stay? We had wondered that too but in PV fashion it all fell into place. Lucy is very creative in finding room for everyone to sleep. Thanks go to Dave and Jeremy too for sharing their homes with us. How about taking a shower? Again… it all works like magic. We did not even have to request a time slot to shower.
After breakfast Jenny and Jill conducted a short meeting regarding the PV’s.
Saturday afternoon Dan and Jeremy treated us too a wonderful hay rack ride of the area stopping along the way to explain different points of history. The weather was perfect. We did not know you could order perfect weather but apparently Dan and Lucy know how.
We again traveled by hayrack to Dan’s barn where Lucy and her helpers had set up for the community event. The hoe down was a hoot! We have not square danced since grade school and it was so much fun. Never let it be said people in Kansas do not know how to cook or dance. There was so much delicious food and drink. Everyone was so friendly and generous. Someone said there were around 110 people in attendance including the PV’s, neighbors, and good friends.
We were greeted to bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, pancakes, and fruit Sunday morning. What a way to start the day. Some of the PV’s had to say good-bye before the rest of us walked across the road to attend church. After church we shared a spaghetti dinner with the church folks.
Then it was back to Illinois.
This was our very first PV hoe down and hopefully it will not be our last. We cannot say thanks enough to Dan, Lucy and their family for a marvelous and remarkable weekend. It is a truly fun, fun weekend.
Monday, March 26, 2012
PV Hoedown a Success!!!
For the 10th year, the PVs descended upon the Schletzbaum's farm in Atchison, KS for a weekend of fun. This year 32 PVs came from far and wide to breathe in the fresh Kansas air. We could not have had a more beautiful weekend as temperatures reached 80. Needless to say, there were a few sunburned faces after the hay ride. On Saturday morning the PVs were updated on the program and it's going on's. In the afternoon we were treated to a 2 hour hay ride around the farms in the area and given some interesting trivia to boot! After the hayride we headed to the shed for the hoedown. The weather was so beautiful that both doors were left open all night and no fire was needed to warm everyone up. This was the biggest hoedown ever with more than 120 people in attendance. There were so many people that the square dance floor was full! Lots of dancing and lots of laughing (at the PVs dancing no doubt) all night long. A HUGE thank you to Dan and Lucy for putting on another wonderful weekend!!!!
We've included a few pictures from the weekend. Enjoy!
We've included a few pictures from the weekend. Enjoy!
Friday, March 16, 2012
Friday I'm in Love
To continue the weather report, today started out misty and cool, but turned into a beautiful sunny day by mid-afternoon.
Since it is the third Friday of the month, the students were able to help out with distribution day at the Itmann Food Bank. The students worked alongside the wonderful food bank volunteers packing boxes, bringing those boxes out to people's cars, helping clients pick out clothes and housewares and most importantly listening to stories.
After the food bank was over the NIU crew headed over to the house to help us move furniture to the St. Vincent DePaul warehouse. So much was accomplished in a very short time. After a quick climb up castle rock and a stop for ice cream at Dairy Queen, they headed back to Baileysville to rest up.
As is tradition, we had the group over to the PV house for a final meal and a closing reflection.
Thank you to NIU Newman Center for sending us another wonderful group of volunteers! We all had a wonderful week... on to Kansas and the PV Hoedown!
PS: To keep things interesting this week, each blog post title incorporated the day of the week in a song title.
Since it is the third Friday of the month, the students were able to help out with distribution day at the Itmann Food Bank. The students worked alongside the wonderful food bank volunteers packing boxes, bringing those boxes out to people's cars, helping clients pick out clothes and housewares and most importantly listening to stories.
After the food bank was over the NIU crew headed over to the house to help us move furniture to the St. Vincent DePaul warehouse. So much was accomplished in a very short time. After a quick climb up castle rock and a stop for ice cream at Dairy Queen, they headed back to Baileysville to rest up.
As is tradition, we had the group over to the PV house for a final meal and a closing reflection.
Thank you to NIU Newman Center for sending us another wonderful group of volunteers! We all had a wonderful week... on to Kansas and the PV Hoedown!
PS: To keep things interesting this week, each blog post title incorporated the day of the week in a song title.
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Sweet Thursday
Today, the weather forecasters got it wrong (sorry, Nick.) We were suppose to have another sunny, warm day with scattered thunderstorms in the afternoon, but instead had cool and rainy weather, with thunder and lightening.
Our site for today was a whole group affair, all the NIU students, Dan and us. We all met at the old school building in Itmann where UGWA and Groundworks West Virginia are working together to rehab the building to turn it into their offices as well as a museum and visitor center for the area. Last summer a couple of PVs who are also architects, met with UGWA to discuss what needed to be done to get the building move-in-able. Today we went to help to clean and to knock down a couple of walls to expose windows to bring light into the area. When we got there we had an initial challenge of there being no electricity to the building. The NIU students didn't let the lack of light stop them from cleaning though. With the light from a cell phone, they swept and cleaned the dark room. Not too long later the electricity was on at the building and we were able to begin the demolition. The group worked together seamlessly with the contractor and both walls were down, nails removed from the lumber, lumber stacked and the rooms swept within a matter of hours. It was quite impressive. Today we were able to get a good start on a project that the PVs will be helping with throughout the whole summer.
Our site for today was a whole group affair, all the NIU students, Dan and us. We all met at the old school building in Itmann where UGWA and Groundworks West Virginia are working together to rehab the building to turn it into their offices as well as a museum and visitor center for the area. Last summer a couple of PVs who are also architects, met with UGWA to discuss what needed to be done to get the building move-in-able. Today we went to help to clean and to knock down a couple of walls to expose windows to bring light into the area. When we got there we had an initial challenge of there being no electricity to the building. The NIU students didn't let the lack of light stop them from cleaning though. With the light from a cell phone, they swept and cleaned the dark room. Not too long later the electricity was on at the building and we were able to begin the demolition. The group worked together seamlessly with the contractor and both walls were down, nails removed from the lumber, lumber stacked and the rooms swept within a matter of hours. It was quite impressive. Today we were able to get a good start on a project that the PVs will be helping with throughout the whole summer.
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