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Karen and I got engaged during a very heated discussion.

Some might call it an argument—about the nature of service. 

Karen comes from a missionary family who dedicated their lives to serving in Kenya. I, on the other hand, grew up in a blue-collar family that depended upon hard physical labor and a weekly paycheck to get by. Our views of the world were very different. In spite of this, Karen said yes to my question about whether or not she would marry me. I think part of our motivation was so that we could continue the argument and see where it led.

Do you remember the fictional character Radar O’Reilly of the 4077th M.A.S.H unit fame? 

M.A.S.H. was a very successful TV comedy many of us enjoyed watching.

Radar was a corporal, the administrative assistant to the Colonel overseeing the M.A.S.H. unit. If it weren't for Radar’s often unorthodox expertise at managing resources, the M.A.S.H. unit would not have functioned at all.

Catalyzing is a little like that.

In the AT Catalyst context, it involves bringing needed resources together to get people with disability the equipment and programs they need to lead a more normal and productive life.

An example of this has occurred over the last few months.  As a result, a container is almost ready for shipping to Kenya. 

There is nothing like a personal story to bring home the “where the rubber hits the road” understanding of an issue. 

This is very true of the ongoing story of Assistive Technology (AT).  In a sense, we all benefit from assistive technology, particularly as we grow older.  There is, however, a group of people whose lives can be fundamentally changed by AT.  Such is the case of Francesca.  She tells her own story on this You Tube video that is worth your time:

An Invitation

In the parable of the Great Banquet (Luke 14), invitations to the banquet had been sent to what might be called the normal people of the community.  And we are told that they all found excuses not to attend because of other priorities and concerns. The response of the master of the banquet is interesting,

Then the owner of the house became angry and . . . ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets . . . and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the . . . crippled, the blind and the lame.

Karen and I were faced with a problem that needed to be addressed. 

Through Karen’s work with a wheelchair research project over the past decade, she has become aware of many available wheelchair resources that haven’t connected to faith-based hospitals in Africa. Part of this realization is that many children and adults with disabilities are often isolated and in pain. Instead of an “unreached people group,” one could consider this group to be the “overlooked people group.” I just want to get these kids up off the floor so they could grow socially, intellectually, physically, and spiritually.

A catalyst brings things together.

We've already begun to catalyze!!  The group of wheelchairs many of you have been helping with is almost ready to ship!

It’s amazing how we have been prepared for this work.