***VIRTUAL SPONSOR #3***

***VIRTUAL SPONSOR #3***

Thank you so much to the Kiwanis of Pinellas Park for their virtual sponsorship.    

This is the 12th year Kiwanis has been a sponsor of GTD’s Annual Fundraiser Banquet!  We love what they do and are blessed to receive their donation.  

 THANK YOU Kiwanis for all you do for our community!

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Kiwanis of Pinellas Park conducts a variety of events, projects and fundraisers to help support initiatives that benefit the children of our community in conjunction with Kiwanis, a global organization of volunteers dedicated to changing the world, one child and one community at a time since 1960. We meet for lunch every Thursday at noon and host a monthly social on the third Wednesday of each month. Everyone is welcome. We hope you will enjoy our hospitality and learn about our many service projects. No invitation is needed to attend a meeting.

The Kiwanis Club of Pinellas Park has been serving the community since 1960. We find that being a member of Kiwanis is one way we can help keep Pinellas Park one of the best places to live. Whether you’re raising a family or retired, The Kiwanis Club of Pinellas Park is a great way to stay active, give back to your community and make new contacts.

To learn more about the Kiwanis of Pinellas Park visit their website at:

https://www.pinellasparkkiwanis.org/

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If you'd like to become a virtual sponsor please contact us. Details regarding GTD's Annual Fundraiser can be found at: GTD BANQUET

 

GTD VIRTUAL BANQUET... ...RESCHEDULED FOR DEC 6th @ 6pm!! .....at 6 on the 6th =)

We needed more time to prepare for our VIRTUAL BANQUET and I didn't want to use the family vacation time we've been planning for a while when we could simply move the VIRTUAL BANQUET back one week. So I've rescheduled our VIRTUAL BANQUET for Sunday night December 6th at 6pm.

 
We hope you will join us for this special event! 
More info to come!!

 
Happy Thanksgiving week from The GTD Crew =) 

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GTD SURPASSES $30,000 RAISED! ...THAT'S NEARLY 1/3 OF OUR GOAL!! ....ONLY $824 REMAINS ON THE DONOR MATCH CHALLENGE!

It is definitely the season of Thanksgiving, and we are so thankful and so grateful for our amazing & generous supporters! GTD just surpassed the $30,000 mark for funds raised!! 

  

Last week we received a hulk sized $4000 Donor Match Challenge from some pretty special people. Over the past few days those donors have matched several donations totaling $3175.96 and doubled them all to the tune of $6351.92!! Now that's a powerful impact! ...Aaaaaand it only leaves $824.04 remaining in the Donor Match Challenge!

 

The gratitude in our hearts overflows for our incredible supporters! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

 

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It's fundraising season for GTD as we strive to raise 100k by the end of January 2021 (which is also the beginning of our 25th year of ministry!!!)

 

We would love to have your partnership in this ministry! Your donation is an investment into GTD and the many youths, young adults, and people of all ages that we serve =) 

 

Here's how you can support GTD: 

 

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Click on any of these links to support GTD and help launch us into our 25th year of ministry!

 

* Become a VIRTUAL BANQUET SPONSOR for this year's Virtual Banquet

 

* Make a one-time donation

 

* Become a monthly partner

 

(You can track our daily fundraising progress on this link)

***********************************

 

From the bottom of our hearts - THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!

 

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Going The Distance Adventure Ministry

God-awesome adventures since 1996!

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***VIRTUAL SPONSOR #2***

 WOW! We have a PLATINUM Virtual Sponsor who would like to remain ANONYMOUS!   This sponsorship comes from a family who has been an incredible support to GTD over the past years!  They have blessed us in many ways and for that we are very grateful!  Thank you so much your support!  We appreciate your generosity  

If you'd like to make a one time donation to GTD or become a virtual sponsor to help us reach our fundraising goal of $100,000, please go to: 

MAKE A DONATION / BECOME A VIRTUAL SPONSOR

 

EMPTYING THE GREEN MONSTER! ...WHEN I SAY ROACH, YOU SAY POOP!! ....ROACH! (DID YOU SAY YOUR PART?)

 It took a couple of days, but Carson & I cleared our newly donated 40' cargo container. It was full of old equipment I intended to one day repair as well as a lot of our old island camping gear, mountain boards, and outdated supplies. Unfortunately several years ago I didn't fully tighten a gallon canister of turpentine and it had evaporated out of the can and was absorbed into everything that's inside of the cargo container. The heavy odor is like "the beast"... it's in everything! In the past, if we wanted to salvage anything, we had to thoroughly clean it and let it sit outside and air out for about a month. In addition to the beast there were hundreds of carpenter ants and countless ant eggs... not to be undone by the multitude of roaches and roach turds everywhere... let's just say that I haven't stayed on top of the upkeep of the contents of this container for several years. We removed about 85% of the stuff (3 truck loads & 2 trailer loads). Much of it went to the dump and the other portion went to The Salvation Army. We kept about 15% of the stuff that was inside along with a ton of empty plastic containers we can clean and use to store gear. I see a whole lot of pressure washing in our future! Even though it was a nasty job and one of those chores I haven't wanted to tackle for years, it went soooooo smoothly and way faster than I anticipated... plus the weather was nice. I'm so happy to finally have that task checked off! Aaaaaand I was so happy to take a few thorough showers to de-nastify! Now on to the next step =) 

 

FIRST VIRTUAL SPONSOR!!!

THANK YOU SO MUCH to our first virtual sponsor!  We are so grateful for your support of GTD and for helping us to kick off this event!  You've been a great support of this ministry over the years. This sponsorship is made "IN MEMORY OF BETSY SARGENT".

To learn more about our Virtual Event, go to: GTD VIRTUAL FUNDRAISER

 

Reflections And Thankfulness

So much has changed this year with Covid on so many levels. 

It’s so strange to think that tonight would have been GTD’s Annual Fundraiser banquet. We would have loved to of seen our GTD family tonight. Unfortunately, with everything going on in the world we’ve had to adjust to a new format this year (as many of us have had to do), a virtual banquet scheduled for November 29th @6:30pm. 

This is a photo taken right after our set up for the banquet last year and right before people started coming in. It was that last moment where we paused to give thanks for all that God would do through the event to support the ministry. It was also a time for me personally to give thanks for each person who gave of their time that day, evening, and the weeks leading up to the banquet to ensure it was a successful event. 

Today as I reflect on that particular moment and the significance of this day, we continue to give thanks for all God is doing to continue to support this ministry through the generosity of so many people. We are blessed during a challenging season for so many.  I also give thanks in advance for how this years event will unfold with a virtual banquet. I don’t know how it will all work out, but I trust that HE does and for that we have much to celebrate!  

Currently we have a $4,000 donor match challenge!  If you’d like to help double this  donation, we invite you to give by clicking here:

 

HULK SIZED CHALLENGE ISSUED!! ...$4000 MATCHING DONATION CHALLENGE!!!

 

One of our INCREDIBLE top supporters has offered up a $4000 Donor Match Challenge for fellow GTD supporters!!! This is HULK sized news! That means that this AMAZING anonymous family will match dollar-for-dollar every one-time donation made to GTD for our end-of-the-year fundraiser up to $4000!!! This is a great way to have your donation doubled! For example, if you donate $100 then they will match it with $100 so that GTD receives a total of $200! $1 becomes $2! $10 becomes $20! $500 becomes $1000! All the way up to $4000 cumulatively!!!! That $4000 will become $8000!!! That's HUGE for us!!!! 
 
This wonderful family continuously floors us and blows us away!! Their support & love touches our hearts and goes on to touch many people's lives thru GTD's programs. We can't begin to thank them enough for their magnificent love, encouragement, and support!! We know who you are and we praise God for you and your partnership in this ministry!!!! We are so blessed to have your family on Team GTD!!
 
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It's fundraising season for GTD as we strive to raise 100k by the end of January 2021 (which is also the beginning of our 25th year of ministry!!!)
 
We would love to have your partnership in this ministry! Your donation is an investment into GTD and the many youths, young adults, and people of all ages that we serve =)
 
Here's how you can support GTD: 
 
***********************************
Click on any of these links to support GTD and help launch us into our 25th year of ministry!
 
* Sponsor a VIRTUAL TABLE for this year's Virtual Banquet
 

* Make a one-time donation
 

* Become a monthly partner
 

(You can track our daily fundraising progress on this link)
***********************************
 
From the bottom of our hearts - THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!
 
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Going The Distance Adventure Ministry
God-awesome adventures since 1996!
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GTD TO RECEIVE A 40' STORAGE CONTAINER!!

 

We want to thank our longtime supporters David & Sherri Wilder for their generous donation of a 40 ft storage container to GTD!! This container has a lot of history with GTD. For over 15 years the Wilder's have allowed GTD to use this container at their place of business to store our gear & equipment. We've spent many hours working in "The Green Monster" (that's what I named it when we first started using it) organizing & storing our items. It has saved us thousands of dollars in rental fees from private mini storage. It has been a great asset to GTD! And now we are going to own it thanks to the Wilder's continued support of this ministry =) . I've always wanted to transform a storage container into a tiny home or a GTD office or a home gym or a cool looking storage unit. There are so many possibilities of what this can become!! One of the visions for GTD is to purchase inexpensive land for camps at strategic places throughout the US and build a tiny home on it for the Camp Director. Lord willing, this amazing gift will give us the opportunity to learn the in's and out's of building a tiny home / office for GTD's future camps. David & Sherri, THANK YOU SO MUCH for this wonderful gift to GTD aaaaaand for your years & years of loving support!! This is a great investment into the next 25 years of GTD!!

  

This container is valued at around $2500 and saves GTD about $1800 per year in rental fees. 

  

This is just another "outside the box" way to support non-profit organizations... actually I guess this is technically an "inside the box" way ;) 

 

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PS: This Saturday & Sunday (Nov 14th & 15th) I could use some help cleaning out The Green Monster. Let me know in the comments below (or private message me) if you want to help =)

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We Give Praise!!!

For their faithfulness.

For their love.

For their prayers. 

For their generosity. 

For their kindness.

For their continued support. 

For their blessings. 

For their care. 

For their commitment.

For their friendship. 

For their partnership. 

For their sacrifice. 

And for SO MUCH MORE...

WE GIVE PRAISE!!!

Thank you to all of GTD’s Ministry Partners and 

all they do to support the work of the ministry. 

WE LOVE YOU DEARLY.

YAKETY YAK DON'T TALK BACK! ...GTD TO RECEIVE 2 HAND MADE KAYAKS!!

 

Look at these 2 kayaks... they are fully functional works of art =). A gentleman in Bowie, Maryland found our ministry online and wants to donate these beautiful kayaks that he and his late wife built. We touched & honored to receive them and use them on future adventures. 
 
In honor of the builders / donors, we are going to name the kayaks after he & his wife.
 
There are so many ways to help out non-profit organizations. This is a wonderful blessing and addition to GTD!
 
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It's fundraising season for GTD as we strive to raise 100k by the end of January 2021 (which is also the beginning of our 25th year of ministry!!!)

 
We would love to have your partnership in this ministry! Your donation is an investment into GTD and the many youths, young adults, and people of all ages that we serve =)

 
Here's how you can support GTD: 

 
***********************************

 
Click on any of these links to support GTD and help launch us into our 25th year of ministry!

 
* Sponsor a VIRTUAL TABLE for this year's Virtual Banquet: https://gtdbullhorn.blogspot.com/p/annual-banquet.html

 
* Make a one-time donation: https://gtdbullhorn.blogspot.com/p/payments-donations.html

 
* Become a monthly partner: https://gtdbullhorn.blogspot.com/p/monthly-partners.html

 
(You can track our daily fundraising progress on this link: https://gtdbullhorn.blogspot.com/p/fundraising-tracking.html)

 
***********************************

 
From the bottom of our hearts - THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!

 
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Going The Distance Adventure Ministry
God-awesome adventures since 1996!
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CHANGE OF PLANS... ANNUAL IN-PERSON BANQUET WILL BECOME... A VIRTUAL BANQUET THIS YEAR!

 

With the increase of Coronavirus diagnoses on the rise, the maximum attendance allowed reduced to half capacity, in abundance of caution, and simply doing the wise thing I have decided to switch this year's in-person Annual Banquet to an online Virtual Banquet. 

 

We are looking at the last Sunday night (or possibly the last Monday night) in November as our new date for a Virtual Banquet. It will last about an hour and will piggy-back onto "Giving Tuesday" which will happen a day or two after our Virtual Banquet. GTD's Virtual Banquet will become a great opportunity for a larger size audience to learn more about GTD, hear about our 2021 plans, hear some great testimonials, and watch some highlight videos from 2020... as well as an opportunity to donate to the cause =)

 

Any current Table Sponsors will be given the option of a full refund or to become a Virtual Banquet Sponsor.

 

I believe this is the right thing to do for several reasons:

  (1) Infection numbers are on the rise and we don't want to be a mini "super spreader".

  (2) We have several older Ministry Partners that we want to protect.

  (3) My gut-feeling is that current COVID concerns will dramatically decrease attendance even if we forge ahead with an in-person banquet.

  (4) We already had to limit the number of people who could attend to 115 people and that number may be decreased if infections continue to rise.

  (5) It costs about $5000 to run the banquet and I don't feel like it's a wise financial decision to move forward with the banquet in the current pandemic surge climate.

  (6) Most of the donations we receive from our Annual Banquet fundraiser actually comes from people who typically can't attend the banquet. Many live too far away to attend.

  (7) Most of the funds we raise each year actually are done online through social media.

  (8) A Virtual Banquet is a good option and will allow more people to "attend" than usually make it to our in-person banquet.

  (9) I believe most of our supporters would agree with this decision.

  (10) I like taking healthy risks, but I don't like to gamble. Moving forward with an in-person banquet feels more like a gamble than a healthy risk.

 

Nothing else has changed... We are simply switching from an in-person banquet to an online banquet... We are still raising funds... Our goal continues to be 100k raised by the end of January 2021 to launch GTD into our 25th year of ministry!!

 

Thank you for supporting GTD!! (More info to come!)

 

If you would like to be a part of what God is doing in GTD by investing in this ministry now is a great time to jump in! Make a one-time donation or sign up to be a monthly partner... it all makes a huge difference in this ministry!!!

  

***********************************

  

Click on any of these links to support GTD and help launch us into our 25th year of ministry!

 

* Make a one-time donation

 

* Become a monthly partner

 

(You can track our daily fundraising progress on this link)

 

***********************************

 

From the bottom of our hearts - THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!

 

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Going The Distance Adventure Ministry

God-awesome adventures since 1996!

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MORE BIG NEWS! ...GTD RECEIVES A $6,283.18 CORPORATE MATCH DONATION!! ....PLUS MONTHLY PARTNERS START SIGNING BACK UP!!! .....$23,901.14 RAISED SO FAR!!!!

Wow, where do I start?!

  
Let's start with the Corporate Match Donation that GTD just received. One of our all-time top donors works for a generous company that matches donations to 501(c)(3) non-profits dollar-for-dollar up to a certain amount. In past years they matched donations up to $3,141.59 which was incredible. This year they have doubled that! Aaaaand amazingly our generous donor has already donated over that amount this year which means his company is matching his selfless giving up to $6,283.18!!! Wow, talk about a double blessing! Once again, we are blown away by people's love & support!!! Our deepest heartfelt thanks goes out to our fantastic anonymous donor and the company he works for!! His generosity opened up a God-awesome opportunity for a double blessing. And in a pandemic year like 2020 that's bigger than words can express. Thank you so much & God bless you generous donors!

 
And this leads to a great question... Does Your company match donations to non-profit organizations?

 
All you have to do is ask your Boss or Human Resource Director.

 
If they do and you have already donated to GTD in 2020 then you can get part (or all) of your donation doubled simply by completing your company's application process. This usually only takes a few minutes to complete and that few minutes can become a powerful investment into GTD!

 
Our other BIG NEWS is that we've already started receiving donations from wonderful donors for our end-of-the-year fundraising campaign!! This includes awesome people who sign-up (or sign back up) to be Monthly Donors for 12 months in 2021. This is a great way to make a HUGE IMPACT in this ministry over the course of one year! $10 per month over 12 months is $120... that's a BIG DEAL to any non-profit - especially GTD!

 
OUR CURRENT FUNDS RAISED SO FAR = $23,901.14 !!!!

 
That's nearly 1/4th of our total goal to raise $100,000 ($50,000 in one-time donations & $50,000 in monthly pledges) by the end of January 2021!

 
THANK YOU JESUS!!!

 
If you would like to be a part of what God is doing in GTD by investing in this ministry now is a great time to jump in! Make a one-time donation or sign up to be a monthly partner... it all makes a huge difference in this ministry!!!
 
***********************************
 
Click on any of these links to support GTD and help launch us into our 25th year of ministry!
 
* Make a one-time donation
 
* Become a monthly partner
 
(You can track our daily fundraising progress on this link)
 
***********************************
 
From the bottom of our hearts - THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!
 
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Going The Distance Adventure Ministry
God-awesome adventures since 1996!
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LOOKING FOR AN ONLINE CHURCH DURING THE PANDEMIC?

 
I've been listening to Pastor Dharius Daniels online for the past year and more so during the pandemic. I absolutely love his style of teaching & preaching on top of his love & zeal for Jesus. 
 
There are so many great Biblical teachers & preachers out there (and we've been fortunate to work with several through this ministry). Here's another great one you may want to check out if you're still not able to attend your local church =)

YouTube: https://youtu.be/0maDCYFiXgY
 
(Dharius Daniels is the pastor of Change Church in Ewing, New Jersey)

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