Carter, why did you decide to join Giving Up To Give?
When it was just my husband and me we were able to be very generous with our money, but when we decided to become a one-income family after our daughter was born we found our ability to give to be more limited and we had to cut out a lot of our regular, monthly giving. It was an incredibly difficult decision, but-in the end-was best for our family. As our family grows, it continues to be difficult to give on a regular basis. Honestly, it grieves our hearts more than any other sacrifice we have had to make. When I read about Giving Up to Give it seemed feasible for us to be able to participate in a financially responsible way-it wasn't a monthly commitment and no amount seemed too tiny!
Do you have a personal connection to the Congo?
We have two Congolese children whom we adopted from the DRC (the Congo). Our daughter, Bailey Dinanga, and son, Henry Kitoko, came home to us in May 2012. We also have friends who are Congolese and go over to DRC a few times a year (some day we hope to go with them).
Explain what you are Giving Up To Give
I teach piano lessons to supplement our income. I am giving up one lesson's worth of income to Giving Back to Africa, specifically my 9:00 lesson on January 11th. I hope to be able to do this with a few more lessons throughout the year, but we will just have to take it on a month by month basis.
How would you encourage others to join Giving Up To Give?
If it is someone who knows my family and me, I would want to encourage them to participate in honor of all 3 of our children, because even though our oldest was born in the United States, she is still deeply connected to the DRC through her siblings. (Just ask her teachers, she talks about the Congo all the time!) For those who don't know us, I am a strong believer in giving-even if it is the 65 cents you were going to use to buy a bottle of water from the machine-as a means of improvement for not only others, but also yourself. Drinking from the tap for one meal may make you uncomfortable (which is a good thing-giving should challenge you!), but you will be stretched and molded as a person while helping to sustain an incredibly organization that is loving and providing for people accurately.
Thank you Carter for joining us in Giving Up To Give and for setting an inspiring example for others!
Now it is your turn!
Sign up on our Giving Up To Give calendar today. Like Carter said, no amount is too tiny!
