OUR 3rd TABLE SPONSOR OF 2026 IS THE MOST JOYFUL GIRL IN THE WORLD - KATIE CLEARY!!!

  
It's with deep gratitude that we thank the most joyful girl in the world - Katie Cleary - for being our third Table Sponsor of 2026!! Katie started going on GTD adventures with her youth group when she was in middle school, and hasn't stopped going every year since. She now teaches high school students and coaches the swim team in Lakeland, Florida. Katie and her mom Katherine are two of the greatest volunteers our ministry has ever had (and that's saying a lot because we have been blessed with so many amazing volunteers). Katie and her mom volunteer every summer to help us supply God-awesome adventures to our participants. They are fan favorites... everyone loves Katherine & Katie!! Katie is one of the most adventurous people I know whether it's swinging from thousand foot cliffs in Utah to hiking the Camino de Santiago trail in Portugal this young lady lives an abundant life in Christ with a constant joy that effortlessly oozes out of her. We are so blessed to have her on our team, and have her generous support. Katie actually started donating to GTD when she was a teenager... that says everything about her generous spirit. She donates her time, talent, & treasure to Jesus by serving GTD and helping make our programs possible. Thank you so much Katie for all you do to bless this ministry and the people we serve!! We are a better ministry because of you & your mom!

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To learn more about & support Going The Distance Adventure Ministry (GTD) and/or become a Banquet Sponsor as well as follow our faith journey of raising $130,000 click on the links below:

Fundraising Tracker

Annual Banquet Details & RSVP

 

 

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ASKING FOR VOLUNTEERS NEXT SATURDAY FOR 2 HOURS AT "THE PROJECTS" (GTD's Headquarters... AKA: my house)

   
I want to thank, honor, & glorify God that my drive, motivation, strong mindedness, & determination have 80% returned. God has been healing that which broke inside of me after the loss of our awesome parents combined with 5+ years of hard Caregiving & way overextending myself. I'm not 100%, but I'm not negative 20% like I was 1 year ago ready to quit everything and planning my Prodigal Son path. God saved my soul when I was 8 years old, and He rescued my wayward heart & mind a year ago and started me on a path from Survival to Revival. He can transform our waywardness into our good as he excavates our pride and increases our humility which is the conduit by which His Spirit works. What the enemy intended for harm, God makes it backfire into our good & God's glory. All that to say, "I'm back baby!!", and we are picking back up on all "The Projects" here at GTD Central Command (aka: my house). It has taken me 7 years to get a few months of work done. It was so discouraging, overwhelming, & paralyzing to be surrounded by so many projects that needed immediate attention, but have no energy or time or pathway to do anything but grow deeper and deeper into depression. As awful as it was I'm so glad I now know how debilitating deep depression is, and now I'm better equipped to empathize, understand, and pray for my fellow soldiers in the battlefield of life. Anyways, every month we are going to have a 2 hour Work Day at "The Projects" and keep making progress on the GTD Headquarters. The Trail Life kids showed us last month that a handful of people can make a big impact in only 2 hours!! We have lots of construction projects (drywall, insulation, flooring, lighting, painting, moving cabinets, etc, etc, etc), and I could use plenty of help. That's probably been my biggest hindrance in 30 years of ministry... I didn't ask for help most of the time. My Mom and I had this terrible mindset that we feel like we are inconveniencing people if we ask for help. I have found that is the wrong perspective. Many people are actually honored to be asked to help, and I've often robbed people of the opportunity to help in life changing Christ-centered ministry that enriches our lives as we serve and care for our participants. So now, at age 55, I'm learning to be a good asker. It feels very awkward when you inherently believe you are interrupting & disrupting people's lives. But I'm learning that's only true when you ask someone like me who is already over committed to too many things. But for many people they want to help be part of something bigger than themselves. So I'm learning to ask. And in doing so I punch the devil in the throat because he knows this unleashes the Body of Christ to do good works that God has already prepared in advance for us to do. If you would like to help us do some work at "The Projects" we would love your help! You can sign up on our sign-up link below. Thank you in advance, and glory to God in the highest!!

Upcoming Work Days at GTD's "The Projects"
August 22 (9am-11am)
September 26 (9am-11am)
October 17 (9am-11am)

Work Day sign-up link for next Saturday (Aug 22)

 

 

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OUR 2nd TABLE SPONSOR OF 2026 IS "HAPPY GOAT ADVENTURES - STACY ALAN"!!!

  
Thank you so much to Stacy Alan of Happy Goat Adventures for being our second Table Sponsor of 2026!! Right after we opened up the banquet "pen" Happy Goat Adventures "herd" about the opportunity to sponsor a table and they "bucked" their way over to our website to pluck down some "doe" to quickly supported our ministry!! All "kidding" aside, Stacy has not only been one of our greatest volunteers & staff of all time he is also the G.O.A.T. of making puns!! I guess you could say he is a very "punny" guy lol! Two of the most frequent & common questions we get from our participants are, "Is Stacy going on this trip?!?!" and "Is he bringing a goat???". Stacy has added so much to our ministry for nearly 20 years, and he is a fan favorite!! Everybody loves Stacy, and he pours his time, talent, & treasure into making GTD a God-awesome ministry. In addition to volunteering for our ministry and being a full time General Contractor Stacy also founded and operates Happy Goat Adventures based out of central Florida. If you are looking for one of the most unique adventures that includes goats then you have to sign up for one of their events!! We highly recommend doing a Happy Goat Adventure event! Check out their website and social media links below!

"Happy Goat Adventures specializes in unique Adventures and events around central Florida like Paddle Board Tours, Goat Yoga, Movie Nights, Birthday Parties, and Theraputic Animal Sessions. You'll have a fun experience with us and our YouTube famous goats."

Happy Goat Adventures
website
youtube
facebook page
instagram

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To learn more about & support Going The Distance Adventure Ministry (GTD) and/or become a Banquet Sponsor as well as follow our faith journey of raising $130,000 click on the links below:

Fundraising Tracker

Annual Banquet Details & RSVP

 

 

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OUR FIRST TABLE SPONSOR OF 2026 IS "THE COASTAL AGENT - BRITTANY NORMAN"!!!

  
Our profound thanks to Brittany Norman, The Coastal Agent for being our first Table Sponsor of 2026!! As soon as we opened up the sponsorship link 2 weeks ago she immediately supported our ministry!! Brittany & her husband Sam along with their 3 daughters recently attended our Family Adventure Trip with Calvary Church of Clearwater, and it was so fun & encouraging to watch them adventure together as a fun-loving, Jesus-loving, all-weather family. One of my favorite moments from that trip was looking up in the middle of a torrential downpour and seeing their whole family playing Frisbee in the heavy rain 🌧. That one moment sums up this family - unconquerable bright attitudes! Brittany slid over Turtleback Falls with us as a college student, and now she returned to slide over it again with her whole family! We are so blessed to have the Norman's support, and we encourage everyone to check out her website, Instagram, & Facebook Page!!!

"A Pinellas County native, Brittany brings an insider’s perspective and local market knowledge that only a lifelong resident can provide. With over a decade of experience in real estate investing, home improvement and digital marketing, she is dedicated to delivering honest, personalized support every step of the way, whether you’re a first time homebuyer or seasoned home seller."

Brittany Norman, The Coastal Agent
Local Pinellas Realtor
727-688-0241
www.TheCoastalAgentFL.com
Facebook.com/coastalagentfl
Instagram.com/thecoastalagent

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To learn more about & support Going The Distance Adventure Ministry (GTD) and/or become a Banquet Sponsor as well as follow our faith journey of raising $130,000 click on the links below:

Fundraising Tracker

Annual Banquet Details & RSVP

 

 

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GTD'S PUBLIC COSTA RICA MISSION TRIP IS COMING BACK JUNE 12-19, 2027!!!

  

IT'S BAAAAAAACK!! We are going back to Costa Rica for our annual "open to the public" Mission Trip!! We used to do this trip every year pre-Covid & pre-Caregiving, and now we are in healthy spot to return! Our official trip dates are June 12-19, 2027 (8 days: Saturday thru Saturday). Cost is $1300 per person plus airfare. The first 12 people to register and pay by Sept 30, 2026 gets an early-bird discount of $100 off your trip plus $100 "GTD Dollars" to go towards any future GTD event. Early bird registrations help us lock in rates, dates, & everything great =). Our mission will include construction projects, service projects, children's outreach, community outreaches, and at least two authentic Costa Rican adventures as well as a cultural tour 🇨🇷 . You won't believe what God will do in you & through you on a mission trip, and our experience in this area of Costa Rica has been life changing for many people who go. Website & registration links are under construction with the goal of having it active by the end of August. Pura Vida!!!

 

 

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1 MONTH TILL GO VERTICAL (SEPT 5-9)!! ...JOIN GTD OVER LABOR DAY HOLIDAY FOR THIS EPIC ADVENTURE!

  
Looking for one last God-awesome adventure to close out the 2026 summer?!?! Look no further! Join GTD over the Labor Day holiday for an exciting adventure of rock climbing & rappelling in the mountains of northeastern Georgia. This is our last big adventure priced at our 30th anniversary price of only $30!! You can't stay home for less money than that!!

For details about & registration for GO VERTICAL click on this link

Going The Distance Adventure Ministry
God-awesome Adventures Since 1996! CELEBRATING 30 YEARS OF MINISTRY!!

 

 

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4 TABLES SPONSORED IN 4 DAYS!! PTL!!!! ....THANK YOU AWESOME DONORS!!!

 
Wow, what a great start to our Annual Banquet campaign... 4 tables sponsored in 4 days and $2200 already raised👏 👏 👏

THANK! YOU! AWESOME! DONORS!!! Glory to God!!

Table Sponsor recognition forthcoming 😀

Follow our fundraising faith journey & updates on our blogsite!

Fundraising Tracker

Annual Banquet Details & RSVP

Next Available Public Event:
Go Vertical Rock Climbing Trip (Sept 5-9)

Going The Distance Adventure Ministry
God-awesome Adventures Since 1996!
CELEBRATING 30 YEARS OF MINISTRY!!

 

 

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JAG WILL BE ANNOUNCING EACH OF OUR BANQUET SPONSORS THIS YEAR!

  
In honor of our 2 greatest supporters of GTD - my Mom & Dad (Jerry & Ann Garner "JAG") - we will have them announce each Banquet Sponsor (from Heaven lol). This will be our first banquet without both of their physical presence there, but we know they are cheering us on from Heaven. This ministry would not exist without them! Through the years they poured so much love, encouragement, & support into me, GTD, and especially our Annual Banquet. They loved being a part of our most important event of the year, and this is one small way we can honor their role and legacy in GTD. Thank you Mom & Dad for everything you did to make this ministry possible!! We honor you and celebrate your ongoing impact! Let the JAG BANQUET SPONSOR ALERTS begin!!! ❤️ ❤️ ❤️

 

 

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HAPPY MONDAY! ...YOU CAN FOLLOW OUR 2026 FUNDRAISING JOURNEY ON OUR BLOGSITE =)

  
Our new starting date for our annual end-of-the-year fundraising drive officially changed from starting each year on Sept 1st to now starting each year on August 1st so that it no longer conflicts with Thanksgiving & Christmas family time. To accomplish this I made the no-brainer executive decision to permanently move our Annual Banquet from Nov/Dec each year to October each year. We are making all kinds of little & big improvements and adjustments like this as we reflect on our first 30 years of ministry and RELAUNCH GTD into our next 30 years of ministry!! One of our goals is to simply get better and better at what we do. This time frame change will make Thanksgiving & Christmas time more family-focused instead of fundraising-focused. And with that change GTD just got better!! So here's a screenshot of our August 1st FUNDRAISING TRACKER starting point... it has already increased over the weekend PTL!! Use the link below to follow our fundraising faith journey!! Thank you in advance for all your prayer support and encouragement as we strive to seek God first as we raise $130,000+ over the next few months! Thank you to all our AWESOME SUPPORTERS!!!!

FUNDRAISING TRACKER link

 

 

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WHO WANTS TO BE OUR FIRST TABLE SPONSOR OF 2026!!

WHO WANTS TO BE OUR FIRST TABLE SPONSOR OF 2026!!

We have permanently moved our Annual Banquet 1 month earlier to October so it no longer conflicts with Thanksgiving & Christmas family time yayyyyy!! Soooooo that means our annual official fundraising starts 1 month earlier toooooooo (which happens to be today)!!

Our goal is to raise $130,000 in 6 months (Aug 1 - Jan 31) thru our Annual Banquet event!! We are so excited about all that God is doing to RELAUNCH GTD INTO THE NEXT 30 YEARS!! God is up to something very special!

Who wants to get things started by being our FIRST Table Sponsor of 2026 (and take the first step of helping us hit our goal of 25 Table Sponsors)!! All Table Sponsors receive 10 tickets to our Annual Banquet on October 20th which includes dinner for you and your guests catered by Carrabba's! Table Sponsorships start at $250... the higher your sponsorship the more you receive!!

Click on our Annual Banquet website for more details as well as to sponsor a table and RSVP for the event!!

Click here for our Annual Banquet website.

SAVE THE DATE: This year's Annual Banquet is on October 20th (that's a Tuesday night from 6:30p - 9:00p) at the beautiful Pinellas Park Performing Arts Center in Pinellas Park, Florida!

We can't wait to celebrate at this event!!!

Going The Distance Adventure Ministry
God-awesome Adventures Since 1996!
CELEBRATING 30 YEARS OF MINISTRY!!

 

 

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