Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Santa Cruz, San Francisco, and Bakersfield, CALIFORNIA

We had a few stops over the past few days that were surprise visits to the donors.  Luckily, they were kind enough to open their doors to us without notice.  The first was Wilma in Santa Cruz.  She is a lovely 93 year old woman although her age would shock you if you saw her.  She is spry and active…and a lady ahead of her era.  The story linking her to Yarnell is a fascinating one.  On June 30, 2013, Wilma was on a bus traveling from her home in Santa Cruz to Prescott to visit her dear friend Joan.  When passing through Yarnell, she encountered thick black smoke coming from the mountains to her left.  She thought about that scene for the duration of the drive.  When arriving to Prescott she was informed of the fatalities of 19 young firefighters known as the Granite Mountain Hotshot Crew.  Shocked and distressed, Wilma shared with Joan that she had just driven through the smoke from that fire.  Her disbelief and heavy heart created a call to action.  While in Prescott, she made a donation to the families who lost loved ones.  It was an honor to embrace her today and express gratitude for her thoughtfulness and sympathy for the visual from that fateful day that remains in the forefront of her memory.  God bless you Wilma.

Wilma and Juliann
 

Wilma and Juliann
After leaving Wilma's house, we took advantage of the gorgeous Santa Cruz weather and explored the town a bit.  There was beauty to be had everywhere you looked.



Juliann


Juliann


Morghen

Juliann


Tate, Shiloh, Juliann, Choice, and Ryder
We even spent awhile at The Hook watching the surfers ride the waves.  The kids were fascinated by their skills.  
Ryder, Shiloh, Tate, Juliann, and Choice
 

 
Ryder, Shiloh, Tate, Choice, and Juliann
 
 

Our next pop-in visit was in San Francisco. We knocked on the door around dinnertime, on a Sunday, while it was raining.  You couldn’t have picked a more inconvenient time for visitors.  Bless her heart, a lovely lady named Arden opened her door.  She and her husband, Larry, reached out and donated to the Granite Mountain families shortly after the fire in 2013.  Even though our visit was brief, we were grateful to be able to thank her for being one of the extraordinary ones.  She understands the value of charity and supporting those who sacrifice.    
 

Shiloh, Ryder, Arden, Choice, Juliann, and Tate
 
 


Choice, Ryder, Shiloh, Juliann, and Choice
Before leaving San Francisco, we had a couple of must see places.  The first, of course, was the home where the sitcom Full House was filmed...

Shiloh and Juliann

Morghen, Shiloh, and Juliann


And...the Golden Gate Bridge!


Ryder, Shiloh, Choice, Juliann, and Tate


Ryder, Shiloh, Morghen, Choice, and Tate


Golden Gate Bridge

Our last short visit in California was in the city of Bakersfield.  When looking through names of donors and creating our route across the United States, Bakersfield immediately popped out at me.  I was blown away by the generosity of this town.  In Bakersfield alone, there were 129 different donations made toward the recovery of the Yarnell Hill Fire.  I sat humbly, contemplating the good nature of this town and how they lovingly served our community during our time of need.  I wanted to recognize them and tell their elected officials of the magnificence of their great city.  To accomplish this task, we paid a visit to the City Hall.  We were blessed to meet Mayor Hall’s assistant, who sweetly received the cards, bands, and shirts we brought for them.  This expression of compassion from the city of Bakersfield sets the bar high for the rest of us.  May we all strive to spread the better as they have done.  Many thanks to the residents there. 
 
Ryder, Tate, Shiloh, Choice, Juliann, and Mayor Hall's Assistant


Tate, Choice, Juliann, Shiloh, and Ryder



Tate, Choice, Juliann, Shiloh, and Ryder
Following Bakersfield we wrapped up the California leg of our trip with two beautiful places.  The first was driving through the Lake Tahoe area...
Juliann

And the second, was an incredible trip to Yosemite National Park.  Words can not do justice to the majesty of this park.  We hiked three different trails with the kids and they were quite the little troopers.  In fact, they would've loved to keep hiking when I told them it was time to hit the road.


Ryder, Shiloh, Juliann, Choice, and Tate

Juliann



Juliann, Ryder, Shiloh, Tate, and Choice

Ryder

Shiloh, Ryder, and Tate

Tate, Ryder, and Choice
Tate, Ryder, and Choice

Choice, Shiloh, Tate, and Ryder



Ryder, Juliann, Tate, Shiloh, and Choice
Juliann

Shiloh, Ryder, Tate, and Choice

Ryder

Choice and Morghen


Ryder and Shiloh


Ryder and Shiloh


Choice, Tate, Shiloh, Ryder, and Juliann

Ryder, Shiloh, Tate, and Choice


Ryder, Shiloh, Tate, and Choice

Ryder, Shiloh, Tate, and Choice




Shiloh, Ryder, Choice, and Tate




Juliann


Tate, Shiloh, Ryder, Juliann, and Choice

Shiloh, Tate, Juliann, Choice, and Ryder


Choice, Morghen, and Tate


Tate, Morghen, Juliann, and Choice


Shiloh, Tate, Juliann, Choice, and Ryder


Choice and Shiloh

Choice, Tate, Shiloh, Ryder, and Juliann

Morghen
Juliann

Choice, Ryder, Juliann, and Shiloh

Morghen, Tate, Ryder, Choice, Shiloh, and Juliann

Juliann, Shiloh, Ryder, Choice, Morghen, and Tate
Juliann

Juliann and Ryder

Tate, Juliann, Choice, Ryder, and Shiloh

Shiloh, Tate, Choice, and Ryder
Tate, Choice, Shiloh, Juliann, and Ryder

Choice

Choice, Tate, Shiloh, Ryder, and Juliann

Tate and Choice

Choice and Juliann


Choice, Tate, Ryder, and Shiloh

Shiloh


Ryder


Choice, Juliann, Ryder, and Shiloh

Choice, Juliann, Shiloh, Ryder, and Tate

Ryder and Shiloh

Shiloh, Tate, Choice, and Ryder

Shiloh, Tate, Choice, and Ryder
Our visitor at Yosemite

Choice, Juliann, Shiloh, Ryder, and Tate

Ryder, Shiloh, Tate, and Choice

Ryder, Shiloh, Choice, and Tate


Ryder, Shiloh, Choice, and Tate

Ryder, Choice, Shiloh, Juliann, and Tate
Our visitor at Yosemite

Juliann, Ryder, Shiloh, Tate, and Choice
We are heading back to Arizona to pick up the bus.  Keep your "eye" out for the next upcoming adventure.
 


Choice