$50.00

It all started with $50.00. That's it. $50.00 and a nudge. I just updated www.avanforlucas.com with the latest donation update. As of today, we have raised $13,415.00. I was beginning to get discouraged because if this project was based on my timing, we would have completed it by now. The thing is this, A Van for Lucas isn't about completing anything. It is about reaching. Once the people who are supposed to be reached are reached, then the entire $40,000.00 will be raised. My definition of success has changed since taking on this project. I know that I don't have to have my hand it every aspect of this project for it to be a success. Actually, when I step back and let God work through A Van for Lucas, I see the most progress.

To those of you who have opened your heart to A Van for Lucas, we thank you. We love taking this journey with you. Stay tuned for more miracles!

Merry Christmas!

If you do it, do it now.....

Hello to all of those people who are on the journey of A Van for Lucas. It is a blessing to have you with us. The title of this post has to do with one thing....prayer.
A Van for Lucas needs your prayers for 2 specific things: 1) We have applied for a grant from a local family foundation and are awaiting the response. 2) I have contacted a local branch of Easter Seals to seek their support for our cause. I am awaiting their response, as well. Both forms of support could help us move closer to our goal of $40,000.00. So.....if you pray, pray now!

What direction are we heading?

We are headed up my friend! That's right. In just over 2 weeks we have raised over $11,000.00 for A Van for Lucas. My praise goes to Jesus for guiding this project from the beginning.

Things that are in the works are an anonymous donor who has agreed to match all donations up to $1000.00, Owen Hansen, who is 8 years old, is readying himself to make his second donation which will put his personal total at over $200.00....did I mention that he is 8?, I am working with local agencies to get A Van for Lucas tied into already planned fundraisers who are looking for a local cause to partner with, I have met with a close friend of mine who owns many local restaraunts. He and are I are discussing how his establishments can assist in helping us raise funds, A Van for Lucas has spread across to the country to the state of Missouri. A family member of the O'Healy da Silva family has shared the story with her church....they are aware and that, my friend, is the first step.

Each day, new and exciting ideas are given to me. I follow through when my day permits....currently, my baby is sleeping and my boys are making mudpie. One of the best parts about working on A Van for Lucas is each day my kids will say, "how much money did we raise for Lucas today mommy?" They get it.....Thank the Lord for that.

Stay tuned! And Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!!

The Journey So Far

Let me begin by directing you to the newly released website for A Van for Lucas:

www.avanforlucas.com

From the website you can learn more about the need behind A Van for Lucas. You will be able to meet Lucas and his family through the video that is available on the home page. There is a How to Donate page that will allow you to contribute online or via check, as well as track the financial progress of the project. Lastly, you can read about how this project started, as well as understand the goals and the mission. If you have questions, comments or want to share a story, there is contact information available on the website.

A quick financial update for you is we have received $7500.00 in donations since last Tuesday, 11/10! In addition to this, I spoke with a couple of people after church this morning who have been very touched by the Lucas' story. We must remember the twofold goal of A Van for Lucas; to raise enough money to purchase a van, and for people to witness how God works in all situations. I believe, after the conversations I had this morning, that the second part of the goal is occuring. I am sure it is stronger than I may ever realize. That is the beauty of this entire project.......It is between God and those who are being reached.

Thank you for checking in with A Van for Lucas. We look forward to sharing this journey with you.

Great Way To Start the Week!

I received a phone call this morning that informed me of a substantial pledge that will be made to A Van for Lucas. This person believes in the cause and didn't feel the need to see the video. I will, of course, still send her a DVD so she has a full understanding of who Lucas is. I am sure she will be moved by his story as we all have been. Along with her financial pledge, she is also going to give me names of organizations and individuals who may be able to help support the cause.

After I hung up the phone, there was an energy in me that I haven't felt since the kickoff of A Van for Lucas. When I remove myself, my fear, my inhibitions, I am reminded that this is a Spirit led project and has been since day 1. It is my prayer that He continues to give me the direction and confidence needed to raise the needed funds.

Praise Him!

A Hiatus?

To those of you who have been following A Van For Lucas, I would like to officially tell you that we are back in business. Where were we? Well, let's just say that we are working with God's timing on this project, not our own. Over the last couple of months, we have worked to create a DVD to capture Lucas' story. The DVD is now complete and ready to be viewed, used, and leveraged to help raise the $40,000.00 needed to purchase the wheel chair equipped van.

Currently, I have DVDs of the video that I will use in my face to face meetings with possible contributors. A link to the video will be available shortly for all who are following A Van for Lucas to watch. Stay tuned........

Fundraising Ideas

The ideas on how to generate funds for A Van for Lucas come to me on a daily basis. It is so awesome to be going about my daily life and have an idea drop in my lap, have a conversation with someone who in passing says something that sparks an idea, or simply slow down enough to hear God's will for the direction of this project.

The latest in ideas has come from a member of my church. He has some items that he would like to sell via Ebay. He will be donating profit generated from the auction to A Van for Lucas. How great is that?

I could use some help from someone who is close to a computer each day and would like to manage the auction of items. If interested, (no experience needed....we just need someone with time), please send me an email to karynbergen@msn.com.

Him or Us?

Here is the deal. From the very beginning, when A Van for Lucas was presented to me, I knew that it came from a place larger than me. A Van for Lucas was larger than anything I felt I could succeed at. However, God had a different idea. He has driven every inch of the effort so far. He has given me ideas, opened up connections, led me down paths that I would never have thought of on my own. He is behind this entire plan.

A Van for Lucas was created to give those involved and those following our story an opportunity to either praise and glorify God if you know Him or to meet God if you don't. That, my friends is the bottom line. I know this for sure. You may be asking yourself, "What? I thought A Van for Lucas was created to raise funds and awareness so we could purchase a wheel chair equipped van for Lucas." The latter is our goal. "Our" meaning those here with Lucas. God's goal is to introduce Himself to those who have yet to meet Him or to be present with those who already believe. I began to get caught up to deeply in my own plan last week and because of that, I lost sight of what is really happening here. I authorized some of the people involved to proceed without giving God the credit, without capturing where He is present in this story. I did it all so we wouldn't scare away potential supporters of A Van for Lucas. I am ashamed of myself for that decision.

As we know, God will take charge when He has to. He spoke very clearly to Colleen, Lucas's mom, and made it clear that we need to reshoot her portion of the video so her true feelings and experiences, this far, can be captured. Thanks be to God for speaking to Colleen. Thanks to Colleen for standing up for what she knows is true.

The last couple of weeks I have come across more and more people who truly know what they stand for. I admire the courage it takes to see this part of yourself and to be able to voice it. Not all are given this personal insight to themselves. Through Colleen, God has given me the courage to stand taller with Him at my side. If it scares people or makes them uncomfortable, than that is a risk that I will have to take. This I know for sure.

For Lucas's sake, for God's goal and "our" goal, I hope each of you who is following A Van for Lucas, can challenge themselves to look at what you really believe, what you really know to be the truth. What do we have to lose? Not a thing.

Getting To Know Lucas

I was able to spend time with Lucas on 2 different occasions this week; first was when I took my kids to meet him at his school in Alamo. The encounter between my kids, who are almost 5, 3 and 1 and Lucas was one of those things that I hope and pray that they never forget. I know I never will. Again Lucas has touched lives by just being. My older kids speak about Lucas frequently and understand why a van would be such a blessing to the O Healy da Silva family. While we were at the school, we were able to see a van that was equipped just like the van that we are working on getting for Lucas. My kids saw the difference between it and most mini vans.....they now see why time and energy is being spent on A Van for Lucas.

My second encounter with Lucas was this morning at his home. His mom was being filmed for the video of A Van for Lucas so I went over to take care of Lucas's little brother, Gabe. Lucas was being cared for my his full time nurse, Lisa. What a wonderful woman she is and boy does she love Lucas! While at their home, I was able to talk to Lucas, look into his eyes, learn that he loves balloons, see him respond to the swiftness that Gabriel moves with, watch Lisa hook up his feeding tube, brush his teeth, ready him for school, help her carry his wheel chair down the steps. Her actions were endless. The part that happened outside of my eyesight was Lisa lifting the wheel chair into the van, bungy cording it in, and then placing Lucas into his carseat for the ride to school. No, Lucas should not be in his carseat, thus the entire reason we are working on A Van for Lucas. However, with no wheel chair equipped van, what choice do they have. It is a risk to ride the way that they do, both with Lucas in the carseat and the wheel chair bundy corded into the car....again, what choice do they have?

They don't have a choice, but we do......we can help them.

Changing Lives by just "Being"

I had a long conversation with Colleen, Lucas's mom, last night. We spent several minutes talking about how Lucas is changing lives by just "being"; being the person that God intended for him to be. He is a blessing to others by just being. Allow me to share the most recent example of this that happened Sunday, May 10th.

My friend Carrie called me Sunday morning. She asked if we were going to church that morning and if so, could I come into their class (she and her husband teach the 2 year old Sunday school class). Their oldest son, Owen(pictured above), who is 7, had something he wanted to give me. Obviously intrigued, I told her I would see her that morning.

Upon arrriving, Carrie told me that she had read the Blog of A Van for Lucas to Owen. Owen decided, then and there, that he wanted to contribute all of his money to our project. I knelt down and looked him in the eye. He explained to me that he had been collecting cans and bottles for over a year. He had saved $150.00 and some change. He handed me all of his money. In tears, I asked him if I could give him a hug. I was speechless...still am, really.

By just "being", Lucas has reached the heart of Owen. Owen reached out to me to donate his money. Our two boys who are 4 and 3 were there to witness Owen donating his money. Our oldest boy has mentioned this story to several other people since it happened. By just "being" Lucas is helping people reach a part of themselves that they, in the case of Owen because he is so young, may not have known that they possessed.

In speaking with Colleen last night, she shared with me that if enduring Lucas's multiple challenges means that people's hearts will be changed, that people will be reached and enlightened, then everything the last 5 + years has held for the Da Silva family is worth it.

We ended our conversation by saying that the story of Owen helping Lucas encapsulates exactly why God wanted A Van for Lucas brought to life. We don't have the van yet, but we will get it. In the mean time, individual people are being reached. Praises for changed lives. Praises that Lucas is being used in a way that is unique and inspiring.

Special thanks to Owen for his courage and ability to see an opportunity to help.

Clarity Regarding Donations.....

I have had questions regarding donations, both domestic and International. Below are the instructions if you are interested in supporting A Van For Lucas, financially:

Domestic:
Please make checks payable to Contra Costa Youth Council.
Place Lucas Da Silva in the memo.
Mail checks to: Moraga Valley Presbyterian Church
Attn: Karyn Bergen
10 Moraga Valley Lane, Moraga, CA 94556
All donations are tax deductible. You will receive a response letter in the mail with the information you will need for 2009 taxes.

International:I have bank and routing information for those residing in countries other than the U.S. who would like to use the wire transfer method.
Please email me at karynbergen@msn.com. I will be happy to provide the details for you.

Again - we also need your prayers.....even if you aren't someone who prays, maybe you can start. Do it for Lucas!

A Story in the Making

As I type this, my friend Jonathan is shooting video footage for the A Van for Lucas project. In a little over a week I will have the story for you to see. My inner most instincts tell me that this video is our way to personalize a story that can be easily left at arms reach. By showing each of you who Lucas is, who his mom, dad and brother Gabriel are, I hope to connect you to this cause. Stay tuned!

Action

It is so interesting.....in the times when things don't seem to be happening, I have this overwhelming urge to create "action", or developments or whatever you would like to call them. I suppose that it is the culture that we live in that tells us that if a day goes by without major steps forward, significant advances in plans, that the plan may fail. I know that even if the changes aren't seen by me, the changes, and advances are happening.

We have a lot of ideas regarding fundraising. Each day we fine tune them. Today's largest challenge was for me to give up my sense of control over how I feel things should be done. Instead I am relying on two people who are active in corporate America; my husband and Rob Giglio. They both know how to look at this objectively...afterall, we women are hardwired with emotions. Luckily, I married a man who also has emotions. However, he has an amazing business mind, as well. Both Donny and Rob have explained to me to line up the ideas, work each one seperately, determine its value and then move on to the next. This is a straight forward approach to raising our $40, 000.00. Feesibly, the ideas that we have been given can lead us to our goal. My prayer at this point is that I can step back enough so I don't get in the way.

Would you like to help us today? Forward this blog out to someone you know.....help us spread the word. In all honesty, the most promising fundraising leads have come from the least likely places......the A Van for Lucas team needs you to help us continue on this journey!

Lessons Learned So Far.....

Each day, I find myself looking around, stopping, and listening for direction. I receive it from many places: God, in conversations with people, the internet, my partner in this project, Rob Giglio....the list goes on and on. I am learning to remain quiet at some point in my day. I am learning that God's timing is not my timing, I am stepping back and allowing Him to guide me through this rather than determing the next step myself. On the days that appear to have little progress, I pray for guidance and direction. He always delivers.....always.

This week He led me to a dear friend, Jonathan Metcalf, who owns Metmedia, a digital media company. Jonathan will be bringing Lucas's story to life so it becomes more personal for those following this plight. We hope by having the story documented that we will be armed with what we need to approach those who can provide financial backing for Lucas's van. Stay tuned.....the video will be released the 3rd week in May.

The Cart before the Horse

Cart = Van
Horse = Funding

The title of this post has a hidden meaning.....For the last couple of weeks we have focused on the van; finding out what type of configuration it needs in order to be useful and safe for Lucas, what type of van (mini vs. full sized) is neccesary, is new or used better....the list goes on and on. The direction we are headed is to purchase (once the funds are raised) a preowned, already configured van rather than purchasing a van and having it converted seperately. Turns out that there are only 2 companies that do these van conversions. Once you ship the van, have it configured, and have it shipped back, we could have found what we need already completed, locally, for less money. Now that we have the van information confirmed, we are now stepping back and looking at the funding(how much the van will cost) and our approach to raising it. Thus, the hidden meaning, The Cart before the Horse.

How Can You Help?

The ultimate goal of A Van for Lucas is to raise enough money to purchase the van.

What does this mean?

Simply put, it means raising $40,000.00.

I want to thank those of you who have reached out wondering how you can help us reach the goal of A Van for Lucas. Below I will list a couple of different ways we could use your help.

Jump on board with us.

It has been an amazing journey so far!

1. Donations:

Please make checks payable to Contra Costa Youth Council. Place Lucas Da Silva in the memo.
Mail checks to:
Moraga Valley Presbyterian Church
Attn: Karyn Bergen
10 Moraga Valley Lane, Moraga, CA 94556
All donations are tax deductible. You will receive a response letter in the mail with the information you will need for 2009 taxes.

We can also accept International donations. If interested, please email me at karynbergen@msn.com.

2. Pray!

If you do it, do it for Lucas! In regards to this project, we need prayer for funding. God knows where the money will come from.....pray that he prepares the hearts of the individuals who will be involved. Always keep Lucas and his family in your prayers. Their daily life is riddled with challenges that most of us can not even fathom. The van would help them in ways that are unimagineable.

3. Remain connected to this cause by reading through this site daily.

4. Always be on the lookout for connections you may have that could help us obtain the van. If it crosses your mind as a possibility, pass it along to me. My email address is karynbergen@msn.com.

Why Does Lucas Need A Van?

Written by Colleen O' Healy da Silva, aka Lucas's Mom

My son Lucas is an amazing child who is faced with a variety of challenges. He has a rare chromosome disorder (only case worldwide) that has made him completely dependent on the aide of others and his wheelchair. Lucas is unable to walk, crawl or even sit on his own. His wheelchair allows him to participate in the activities that others take for granted, such as attending school, going to the park, and going for other outings with family and friends. In his chair Lucas can sit at the table with us, he can be at a desk with his classmates, he can see the animals when we go to the zoo, he can look at books and work on puzzles and play with toys. Despite his disabilities Lucas is a joyful child and always has a smile for everyone. One of his favorite activities is going grocery shopping. Lucas loves to greet the other shoppers, who are quick to return his smile and shake his hand. Lucas wears a back brace to stabilize his spine which has a curve greater than 60 degrees. Without his brace his lung is starting to be crushed by this curve. Unfortunately, due to financial setbacks, we haven't been able to purchase a ramped van for Lucas. Whenever we travel, we take him out of his wheelchair and place him into a standard children's car seat. While his wheelchair is fitted for Lucas in his back brace, car seats are not and he can't travel in his back brace. This means that for the hours that Lucas spends in the car each week going to and from school and appointments his lung is being crushed and his spine is worsening. For Lucas, being able to travel in his wheelchair would be lifesaving. As parents, we are heartbroken that we can't provide for Lucas in this way, and are saddened even more knowing that each trip is putting his life more and more at risk. Lucas also has a lot of equipment that goes wherever he goes, and takes up a lot of space, making a van the ideal vehicle for him. We would love to be able to go on roadtrips and travel as a family, which also includes Lucas' baby brother, Gabriel, but Lucas can't handle those hours out of his brace and wheelchair. While his wheelchair allows him to take part in daily activities that others enjoy, a larger set of wheels is necessary to get him where he needs and wants to go. On behalf of our entire family, thank you for considering Lucas.

A Van for Lucas - What is it?

Welcome to a Van for Lucas blog! Thank you for checking in with us.

A Van for Lucas is a project that was created out of the need of Lucas Da Silva, a severely handicapped 4.5 year old boy who I know through my church. His mom, Colleen, and I sit together at our mom's group. Lucas's parents have been on the hunt for an affordable wheel chair equipped van for Lucas to ride in. They had located one, went to buy it from a private party, and learned that the individual had sold it out from under them. Heart broken, they were back at square one. Colleen shared this story with us at our group. The idea was planted in my heart that there had to be a way to get this family the van that they need......the idea swirled around in my mind from time to time. I kept pushing it away, back to the corner of my mind, but it stayed present and palpable in my heart.

On Easter Sunday, the pastoral team at our church asked for 10 volunteers to commit themselves to helping out someone in the community. Then and there, A Van for Lucas was born. I raised my hand and accepted the challenge of serving someone in the community who was in need. Scared, emotional, and excited, I left church that day knowing that this plan was not mine, but God's. I was being used as an instrument in the journey....a means to an end, if you will. I write this almost 3 weeks after accepting the challenge and I am so honored that He chose me. I have learned, grown and am refreshed daily by the experiences and opportunities He has provided.
I hope you enjoy this blog. I will try and recreate the journey for you so you feel connected enough to stay tuned. Amazing things are on the horizon. This I know for sure.