I'm excited to start this blog and share with you my experience with the 2012 Carter Work Project (CWP).  Please check out my Carter Work Project web page at  Laura McClellan for 2012 CWP Participants.  On that site, I share why I decided to apply for participation in the 2012 CWP.  I'll keep this post short (for testing purposes).

I've met so many wonderful people who have connections to Haiti since becoming involved with this project and my fundraising for it.  Take Zoe, whom I met at REI in Albuquerque a couple of weeks ago while shopping for a mosquito net (more about that later).  Zoe had visited Haiti and like others said that "the situation there will break your heart and the people are wonderful".  I asked Zoe if she went on some mission trip there and she said not really and that she really had not planned on going to Haiti, it just happened.  It then just happened that she started up a non-profit organization to help out the Haitians and it's now operating within Haiti.  She reminded me so much of Margaret Trost, whose book "On That Day Everybody Ate" I read recently.  I'm starting to wonder if this is a common story....a visit out of the blue to Haiti results in a tie to the people and a need to help their situation in a way that changes your life.  I guess I'll find out...