Laura's Letter, June 2014

Another reason I love what I do...

There are a few really obvious reasons why my job is pretty great. I get to travel. I work with some really amazing people around the world. I get to be a part of programs that are changing the trajectory of opportunity for literally hundreds of Rwandan families. These examples are just a few of the ways it is easy to see the impact that The Elevation Project has in Rwanda, but sometimes the effect that we have here in Canada is a little less apparent. Let me share what Kyler, a past Elevation Project participant, wrote when I asked him about the impact his involvement has had on his life. Hopefully it will give you a glimpse of the effect our work has, right here in Canada.
 

Kyler on our trip to Rwanda in 2012

I started my involvement with The Elevation Project in 2010. What a great opportunity at age 16 to travel halfway around the world to work with the most loving, caring and giving people I have ever met. Since then, I have gone a second time to Rwanda in 2012 to be an Assistant Team Leader, helping organize activities, run summer camps for the kids and build relationships. And currently, I have joined The Elevation Project team as a social media intern developing campaign that will run for the last 6 months of this year, and hopefully have an impact on the program as a whole.
 
Before getting involved with The Elevation Project I believed that I lived a good life, having family and friends who love, support and care for me. After the Elevation Experience I know I live a care free life of privilege, often extravagant even. I believed I was going to Rwanda to lead and help but I realized coming back that I had been helped and, above all, changed. Partaking in a trip to a place like Rwanda, you see truly how different we live, and not always in good ways. You see how involved and loving people are in their communities. You learn the true meaning of humility and how important human relationship is to people.
 
The Elevation Project has affected my life professionally, personally and spiritually. It lead me to my current field of studies - marketing - with the desire to use my knowledge for a good cause. The experience has also changed how I see the world and the way we live it. It’s helped me realize what is truly important in life and to not be consumed by our North American way of living. I am forever grateful for my experience with The Elevation Project, helping me grow as a person, individual and a man. Accepting God in my heart, soul and mind to lead me down the right path in life.
 
Watching young people like Kyler grow, making the type of life choices he has, and knowing that our work has been a part of that is another one of the many reasons that I love what I do!

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Prayer Points

• Pray for our current Elevation Experience team - that their lives will be impacted just as Kyler's has been.
• Pray for our Rwandan friends as they prepare for our time together.

 Check us out on Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr!

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If you want to financially support The Elevation Project,

PLEASE CLICK HERE. 

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It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are ~ee cummings

Laura's Letter, March 2014

You might be asking yourself, “What on earth is the Elevation Experience?” Remember the youth trips to Rwanda that I’ve been involved in leading in 2008, 2010, and 2012? We’ve worked really hard at The Elevation Project over the past while responding to the feedback from those trips and expanding our “trip” into a full-fledged leadership development program... The Elevation Experience!
 
And what does this look like? It means this year’s team benefits from 5-7 pre-travel trainings in poverty, justice and international development, as well as the practical stuff involved in traveling across the world. They have the opportunity to live what they’ve been learning on the ground in Rwanda alongside Rwandan young people who are also in the midst of leadership training. Finally, there is a year of post-travel mentorship and follow-up as they explore how to apply what they’ve learned back here in Canada. All this culminates in a certificate of completion, a letter of reference, and (God willing) a group of young people who’ve had their outlook challenged and world rocked by being involved in a life-changing project.
 
This year we’ve got an amazing team coming together. We’ve made a big effort to make our program accessible to youth who show leadership potential, but lack support due to challenging family situations. I’m excited to be partnering with an organization that does mentoring on the Downtown Eastside, as two youth in their program are involved in the Elevation Experience 2014. Together, we hope to provide the supportive environment needed for these youth to succeed in a program of this type. I believe this will be an empowering Experience for all the members of our team, no matter what their background, but I’m especially excited to be able to offer this opportunity to youth who’ve been excluded in the past.

Because some of our participants this year come from challenging backgrounds, we are committed to working together as a team to meet our trip goals. In the next number of weeks I will be approaching people and businesses on behalf of the whole team to partner with us in the Elevation Experience. I’d like to invite you to specifically consider what your role could be in providing these life-changing opportunities to disadvantaged youth.
 
Walking with us could mean:

• Committing to pray for our team at specific times, such as meeting dates, fundraising deadlines, etc;
• Volunteering to provide snacks and drinks for our meetings, pre-trip trainings, and post-trip follow-up events;
• Allowing one of our teen participants to contact you regarding their fundraising goals;
• Planning a fundraising event, or making an appeal on our behalf to raise funds for this year’s Experience;
• Making a donation directly to The Elevation Project (see details below).

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Donations
Both monthly and one-time gifts are really helpful in this situation - monthly gifts support the staff hours that go into supporting our team, pre-trip training, the trip itself, and post-trip follow-up; one-time gifts helps us pay for trip-specific costs.

Would you consider partnering with us in one of these ways?

Many of you who are reading this already support my work with The Elevation Project. Without you, The Elevation Project wouldn’t be possible and I’m sincerely grateful for your support. Would you consider suggesting The EP to someone else?
 
If you are interested in making a donation - either a special one-time gift or a monthly contribution - click here to give online or here to download a giving form to mail to Youth Unlimited, 115-12975 84th Ave, Surrey BC  V3W 1B3.
 
With your help, we are looking forward to seeing change in the lives of the Elevation Experience 2014 team!

Prayer Points

• Pray the Elevation Experience team as we begin our adventure together.
• Pray specifically about the opportunities outline in this post.

 Check us out on Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr!

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If you want to financially support The Elevation Project,

PLEASE CLICK HERE. 

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May your adventures bring you closer together, even as they take you far away from home ~ Trenton Lee Stewart