Its good to be back!

I am back into the world of blogging. I'm not exactly sure how well I will fit this into my schedule or how often I will blog. But I promise it will be, at the very least, weekly. The reason for my re-entry in to the blogging world is similar to the reason I initially entered. We started this blog a few years ago to include our family and friends in our journey of adoption. We adopted our beautiful son, Teketel Blair from Ethiopia in May, 2008. We kept everyone in the know as we processed paperwork, got our referral, and then eventually traveled. We continued to blog as we experienced parenthood for the first time. Then life got insanely busy! Being a mom, a part-time student, a full-time admin, and a pastor's wife, not to mention being a woman with an incessant desire to be constantly planning some kind of event, eventually it all consumed my time and the blog went by the waste side. I have to say, I have definitely missed it. And I miss my family in Ohio not being able to see pictures of the cutest kid ever whenever they so desire. But more than that, what has brought me back to blogging is my second trip to Ethiopia. I am so excited about this upcoming adventure. I will be leaving December 29th for a three week trip to Ethiopia with my sister and an organization called Mocha Club. Three weeks is a long time (it is beginning to set in how long I will be without my little man!) but I feel very strongly that this trip is right for me. I know I will miss my family but I know that I will be better for them when I return.

Instead of going into detail about my trip in this blog post, I would like to share the email I have sent to my family and friends. I will go into more detail on future posts.


Family & Friends:

I want to share with you my excitement for an upcoming adventure! After much thought and discussion, I have decided (with the blessing of my husband and son) to participate in a trip to Ethiopia this winter. I will be joining the organization, Mocha Club* www.mochaclub.org to work with two of their supported projects:

1. Women At Risk - This is a project in Nazaret that rescues women from the growing world of prostitution and offers them a 10-month rehabilitation program. Within the program, they are offered rehabilitation in many aspects including social, personal, and spiritual as well as job training.
2. Ambo School & Street Boys - We’ll travel to another small town in Ethiopia to visit a church that operates a school for 250 children as well as another project to support the large local street boy population. Our team will organize English lessons as well as games/activities to further relationships with these children.

I will be leaving on December 29th. The trip will be 11 days, but I am choosing to extend my trip for a few days to meet with organizations in the capital of Addis Ababa to become potential partners with our church.

The cost of the trip is $3,200. I will be doing a series of fundraisers (with the help of some amazing friends here in Savannah) but it’s still a fairly large number to raise. I am asking that you please consider making a donation to my trip. Any amount would be helpful and greatly appreciated. All donations are tax-deductible.

Three ways to donate:
1. www.mochaclub.org/africa-trips
a. Click on the icon to “make a donation”
b. Fill out the next page with necessary information (be sure to include my name.)
2. www.tapestrysavannah.com (Select link at bottom of page that says Donate. It will take you to PayPal site. NOTE: This link is a work-in-progress and should be ready to use on Friday.)
3. By check: make payable to Tapestry Church (please include a note with Kate-Ethiopia Trip.)
a. You may mail your check to Kate Blair, 421 E. Jones St. Savannah, GA 31401
b. If you attend Tapestry, you may drop in the offering box as well.

I believe this trip is an opportunity of a lifetime and am excited to see all the work the Mocha Club (an organization we financially support) is currently doing. I am thrilled to see more of and give back to this beautiful country that gave me the most wonderful gift, my son. I plan to blog (savannahblairs.blogspot.com) about my trip so that all of you may share this experience this with me.

Thank you in advance for any support you can offer. Feel free forward to anyone you think may be interested in helping.


With love,
Kate Blair

* Mocha Club is an online community of people giving up the cost of 2 mochas a month – or $7 – to fund relief and development projects in Africa. Mocha Club works in five main project areas: Clean Water, Education, Child Mothers + Women At Risk, Orphan Care + Vulnerable Children, and HIV/AIDS + Healthcare. Based in Nashville, Tennessee, Mocha Club's vision is to provide a way for people who don’t have hundreds or thousands of dollars to make a difference in Africa. The community-based website allows members to start a team and invite friends to join them in giving up the cost of 2 mochas a month to support their chosen project. Mocha Club understands that today's tech-savvy generation can have a huge impact by using the viral nature of the web. So the organization equips Mocha Club members themselves to grow awareness and support for Africa by inviting friends. Mocha Club provides its members with monthly updates to show how their $7 is helping the people of Africa and to keep them connected to the projects they are supporting.