It sure was a privilege to start 48 by 48 off in Arizona. Many people have asked me why I started there. The answer is simple: I needed someone to take care of my beagle (Elli) while I traveled the United States. My dad, mom, and sister are the heroes here as they so willingly stepped up to help me out. Elli is in super good hands and from what I can tell, she's already being spoiled.

I spent most of my energy in the Phoenix area. Here I had a warm bed, most of my meals provided for, and 4.5 million people to serve. I started the week off by looking for some of the more commonplace areas of service, namely rescue missions, soup kitchens, and homeless shelters. Something that surprised me was the amount of applications and forms one had to fill out to even begin the process of helping out. Not to mention the paperwork the state makes you fill out and the possible fingerprinting and background checks. Monday disappeared in the filling out of online forms and making phone calls to various ministries. I was able to help out a local family in the neighborhood who was in the process of moving. I spent my time transporting boxes and doing a lot of lifting. (A theme that would continue throughout the week.)

On Tuesday, I wanted to experiment with what I called, “A Service Drive-By”. I realize this is a terrible name and am strongly looking for other suggestions, but the thinking behind a drive-by is that there are tons of opportunities to serve others, you just have to have your eyes open to see them. Let's just say it didn't go as planned. I spent most of the day driving around Phoenix, Tempe, Mesa, Chandler, Glendale, and Gilbert looking for people to help out. Honestly, it was like a scene from a horror movie, but no one was outside! I even stopped at a local coffee shop to check my email and to ask around if there was anyone who needed or knew of someone who needed help. A big fat zero there too! The only plus from that day was I purchased a much needed tent (thanks Bryant Dittmer!) and that I was given the connection to Sunshine Acres Childrens Home.

I met up with the volunteer director at Sunshine Acres Childrens Home (SACH) who kindly helped my get involved with their great work. I encourage you to go to their website (sunshineacres.org), read their story, and then find a way to get involved with what they are doing. From the beginning back in the 1950's, their goal has always been “to provide for the emotional, social, physical, educational and spiritual support for the children, so they may learn to manage their own affairs along with maximizing the development of their potential, abilities and interests,” and from what I saw, they do this wonderfully.

I worked all day on Thursday and Friday in the distribution warehouse where I took in donations, sorted through items, transferred materials to other charities, helped load mattresses, furniture, and an assortment of brick-a-brack. I was also able to help one of the on-site workers move new furnishings into his house. The people who work there are absolutely terrific and the volunteers are just as great! If you have 3-5 hours a week to offer, I strongly suggest you spend it here. They have a ton of different positions available and can most definitely use you in your areas of giftedness.

Saturday morning, I headed to Scottsdale, Arizona. Scottsdale is known in area as the one of the more artsy, high-end parts of the Phoenix. Every year, the Franciscan Renewal Center puts on an Adopt-a-thon to help the local rescues find owners for the sheltered/fostered animals. I went there to help with the Arizona Beagle Rescue who had about a dozen beagles available for adoption. I had a blast walking the beagles, getting them water (in the Arizona heat!), scratching their bellies, introducing them to possible owners, and spending time with the many beagle foster parents. I was so fortunate to have one of the dogs, Max, who I was walking around get taken home that night. He had so much energy and was going to add so much to that couple's life. Please take a moment to check out AZBR and if you're in the Phoenix area, I strongly urge you to get involved with being a foster parent to this awesome breed.

With all that accomplished in a week, I said goodbye to my family, packed up the 48 by 48 Mobile, and took off down I-10 for California.