Landed

Gus has landed.

His adventure started yesterday afternoon at Dulles airport. An unplanned stop in Hawaii added a few hours to an already long trip, but the delegation of 40 students and their People to People leaders made it safely to Sydney.

So now, 12 action packed days of fun, learning and adventure. Many interesting stops including the Opera House, Olympic Center, Great Barrier Reef and the zoo founded by Steve Irwin (the Crocodile Hunter).

It is amazing to me when I reflect on how quickly the time went. Commitment in July, 2013 and started raising funds in August. Lori and I had no idea what to expect in terms of how much he could raise. One thing is for sure, he knew going in that this wasn't a free ride.

He worked hard. Sometimes he grumbled a little when there were other things he would rather do, but for the most part when something related to this trip needed done he just did it. This experience really stretched him some creatively and taught him a lot about the generosity of others.



I am so glad that he gets to have this experience. He earned it. We helped of course, mostly with planning and keeping things moving though, because in the end, he raised nearly all the funds he needed for this trip. $7,000 was the goal. Seemed huge at first and there were times when we thought he might not even come close. But now he is there. I just checked his Go Fund Me page. $6,955. Thanks to two last minute donations from friends, this is his fund raising progress as he starts his adventure. 99.357% achievement. Not bad for a 11 year old boy. I guess I can kick in $45 to call it done. He actually still has some video transfer jobs waiting for him when he gets back. These will definitely put him over the top.


Thanks again to everyone who supported Gus and those of you who still are by praying for him and us while he is away. He couldn't have done this without you. We are so grateful for your generosity.

Look for a few more posts after Gus returns. He will share some details about his trip on this blog.

Gus's Dad

97.6% and 7 Days

97.6% with 7 days until I leave. I have raised $6,835. This is my current achievement. Our yard sale and bake sale raised $322 and I have a lot of people that want me to work on their old videos. My parents say that I have pretty much achieved my goal. Whatever I don't get done before I leave will be waiting for me when I get back.

I want to thank everyone again who supported me. I could not have done this without lots of support from family, friends and neighbors.


Flamingos
Now that I have nearly reached my goal and will be leaving soon, I have retired my flamingos. They deserve a break. They first landed in September and have been visiting many friends and neighbors ever since. They helped me raise almost $1,000.

Statistics
My dad is an engineer. He does a lot of math. He kept a spreadsheet tracking all my donations. He thought I should share some statistics about my fundraising.

I did win a $500 People to People scholarship for a video contest. I also received $154 in tips from my Applebee's breakfast fundraiser. Besides these, there were about 140 different persons, families or businesses that contributed. The average donated amount was $44.

My Trip
I leave next Friday and will be gone for 15 days. I will be visiting the Sydney Opera House, the Olympic Center, Parliament and the Great Barrier Reef. I will spend a few days on a cattle ranch. I will be learning from Aboriginal peoples.

I am very excited to share with you when I get back.

Gus