“The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson
This Post comes to you from hot and balmy Washington, D.C. where I have been located for a few days. As announced in my last Post, my cousin William Martin (Marty) Clark died
suddenly on Memorial Day. He is survived by his wife, two daughters, a sister, and his dear mother. All are wonderful and loving people who shared their lives with Marty each day and witnessed Marty’s love for family, his extensive community service, and Christian faith. The “wake” and the funeral service accounted for several hundreds of guests who paid their respects, shared their “Marty” stories, and offered comfort and support to the family. Marty was praised for his very strong family values, being a leader and an “exceptional force” as a strong advocate for kids with “special needs”. His faith as a Christian was evident in all aspects of his life and community service. Being here with family during this time has been a true blessing and honor for me. Marty…thanks for making a difference!
Angela, Noelia, and Celeste arrived in Washington, D.C. on Saturday and by all accounts, have had a really great time touring D.C. and experiencing life in our country’s Capital. This is was a tremendous start for the two students who are seeing our country for the first time. Yesterday, they traveled to the E&H College campus (about 6 hours away) to meet up with their host family and other college representatives.
Unfortunately, our schedules did not allow us to meet here in D.C. during their time here. I leave D.C. tomorrow and will catch up with them later in the week when I travel to the college. Next week’s Post will provide a lot of information about Noelia and Celeste’s great US adventure.
Casey and Xavier made it back home safely and I want to share some of Casey’s thoughts about her trip. You can read it all for yourself by clicking on Casey’s link: http://caseyincopey.weebly.com/my-story/casey-learns-to-communicate
It is totally heartwarming to read Casey’s compliment to Angela; “Angela is an amazing woman who will continue to do great things…”. Then she spoke about her host family; “There are no words to describe the love and joy for my host family after spending a mere month with them”. Finally, Casey writes about the volunteer teachers and what they meant to her future. She says, “Markki and Marguerite are fantastic role models of whom I’d like to be after I’m finished with school–going wherever life takes me with open arms and knowledge to share. I owe them all that I know about teaching and more.”
Then, there are the students and photos say it all…! Spending time teaching students and expressing the importance of education provides for all the students an encouraging message. These students can believe they are important when they meet those who will travel to Copey to teach and inspire them to learn.
There is simply no price you can put on this obviously rich experience. Who thought this could be possible in a small remote community with not much to offer? Who thought two college and sophisticated students would leave Copey feeling they learned so much? 
Well, I certainly thought all along it was indeed possible and it really only took about 15 minutes during my first visit to Copey to figure this out. I continue to believe there is something very unusual about Copey, its people, and its vision. I now have the proof with Casey and Xavier. They witnessed firsthand and can verify how warm and receptive the community is to all who come to work and visit. And, they have witnessed the leadership and commitment to making a better life for kids in a community that is trying to make it happen. We, the “Friends of Copey” are absolutely proud of Casey and Xavier. They are collegiate pioneers who have taken on a huge challenge and came home victorious.
May God continue to bless the entire “Friends of Copey” venture.
Amen and AMEN!
Thanks…!