Author Archive for Gwen Graybill

Drink Tea and Plant a Tree

Several years back I learned of Tree Cup Tea.  Prof. Sweet mentioned Tree Cup Tea in class a few weeks ago.  https://treecuptea.com/  This is a tea that I could get excited about with my great appreciate for trees😊  What was specifically entrepreneurial for this company was that you just didn’t purchase tea, but when you bought one bottle of tea, a tree was planted in a reforestation effort in Haiti!  I also remember that there was a maple tree seed attached to the top of each bottle, so you could also plant a tree for yourself.

I know that being out in nature can bring us such encouragement and in the country of Haiti, the land was deforested and there are so few trees.  It would be very sad for me to live in a place like that, that has been stripped of God’s creation.  The roots of trees also help control erosion, their leaves can help amend the soil and they also take in carbon dioxide and produce oxygen!  So, in purchasing a bottle of tea, you supported this wonderful reforestation effort.

The bottles themselves are pretty awesome.  As you can see, I actually saved some and we would reuse them when we travel.  I liked that each flavor had a different logo color.  I appreciated the information above that talks about planting trees in Haiti and also below is the bottom of the bottle… the company logo!  Now that is very unusual and is a neat extra detail that was added to make these bottles stand out from the competition.

I have never been someone to purchase beverages.  It seems really expensive to spend several dollars on a bottle of tea or a cup of coffee when I can make something similar for a fraction of the cost.  BUT…. I was really exited to purchase Tree Cup Tea and even bought a case of it once to share.

And did I mention (I did not!) that this tea tasted great too!

In Pursuit of the MVP – The Tim Tebow Foundation

If you thought MVP meant Most Valuable Player, you would be wrong.  When Tim Tebow uses MVP, he means Most Vulnerable Person.

Years ago I was able to hear Pam Tebow speaking at a fall fundraiser for AbbaCare Crisis Pregnancy Center in Winchester, Virginia.  This connection has prompted me enjoy a glimpse or two of what her son Tim Tebow is up to.  Pam was encouraged to abort him, and told her story at that fall fundraiser.  Knowing that Tim’s life was disposable, and seeing how he has such a heart for the Lord is inspirational!

During his college years, he played football and won the Heisman trophy as an undergrad.  Tim’s life has been full of changes and pivoting.  He had planned to play NFL football for years but God had other plans for his life.  After playing in the NFL for several years, he played professional baseball for a time, and was a college football analyst with ESPN.  He was well known for his Christian faith and his willingness to be unashamed to be a witness for it both on and off the field.

Please read Tim’s story ! Tim’s love for the Lord drives him.  He has been through a lot after college in terms of a hopeful career in football that never transpired as he thought it would.  (A Romans 8:28 example to be sure.) However, Tim not getting discouraged or down caused more good to so many. He took the focus away from his own disappointments in life and focused on others, the MVP’s, with an entrepreneurial idea!

He began an organization called the Tim Tebow Foundation in 2010.  His founding of the Tim Tebow Foundation has giving hope to so many people.  The TTF’s mission is:

“Our Mission is to bring Faith, Hope and Love to those needing a brighter day in their darkest hour of need.”

The TTF accomplishes this in many ways.  They have worked in over 86 countries.  They are involved in caring for orphans, saving children from trafficking and also helping children with disabilities.  One wonderful event is called Night to Shine. This entrepreneurial event is hosted by volunteer churches.  “Night to Shine” is for people over the age of 14 who have disabilities.  From the website “Night to Shine is an unforgettable celebration event, centered on God’s love, honoring and valuing people with special needs.”

When we go through rough times in life, so often we tend to feel sorry for ourselves and can easily give in to despair.  Tim Tebow is a good example for everyone, in that when things didn’t work out like he dreamed they would, he took the focus off of himself and served others!

Romania Reborn – A Family is Possible

Under communism, the country of Romania, and in particular the Gypsy people group, severely suffered.  Children of certain groups in the country suffered more than others, causing them to be abandoned and also neglected.

God was at work when Jayme Metzgar’s mission trip brought her to Romania and also to the apartment of Corina Caba.  At that time Corina, right our of college, was caring for seven abandoned babies and working toward placing them in adoptive families.  After Jayme returned home, Romania Reborn was founded with the goal of supporting the work of Corina both financially and in prayer.  I should add here that I recall that Jayme was right out of high school when she went to Romania and her life intersected with Corina’s. (So we see Jayme, right out of high school and Corina right out of college.)

Since its inception, Romania Reborn has remained solidly focused on the children of Romania.  They are able to find safe homes for abandoned and neglected children and assist families in adopting these children as their own.  Romania Reborn also has foster families who are willing to care for children for the long term who are unable to be adopted due to legal and cultural issues.   Romanian law dictates that only Romanian citizens can adopt Romanian children, which is why children can only be adopted by Romanian families.

Romania Reborn has several ways we can help.  Donors can join the Family Support Team, where their donations go directly toward adoption expenses, such as court costs, home studies, etc until a child is placed in the home of their new family.  Also, donors can become a Foster Sponsor, which enables children who are prevented from being adopted, to be cared for by a loving foster family.

From Romania Reborn’s website, “Our goal in ministry is not only to save children from abandonment, but also to share the beauty and power of the Gospel at every opportunity.”

I learned of Romania Reborn years ago, directly through Jayme as we attended the same church in West Virginia.  Her passion for the work there is evident every time I hear her speak.  Jayme and Corina were so very young when Romania Reborn began, which is a great testament that the Lord will give young people whatever tools they need when they set out to accomplish His work!

 

 

Get Healthy! – Don’t settle for less

I have been following Dr. Josh Axe for years.  He is a doctor of chiropractic, but is also a certified doctor of natural medicine and a clinical nutritionist. He is passionate about helping people get healthy through what they eat and by changing their lifestyle.  His website is draxe.com

Dr. Axe is very innovative as he did not just settle with being a chiropractor, but rolled that into a whole body package. He also does not settle for the status quo, but is willing to teach people how to take some control of their health.  I really like that he talks about things like fermented foods, how to use essential oils and herbs.  These things were once long-forgotten remedies, but today they being re-introduced and I am really excited about that!  He has also written quite a few books the latest being Ancient Remedies . His website is full of great information and it is very easy to research something like “salt” or “lavender”, where you will find a wealth of information and even recipes.  The website also includes lots of helpful information about fitness with often helpful exercises for particular problems.

He and his wife, Dr. Chelsea Axe co-founded an interval training program called BurstFIT.  She is also a chiropractor.

As I am researching, I have discovered that he also founded The Health Institute which is partly an education resource for those interested in Health Coaching.

Dr. Axe teamed up with Jordan Rubin to create the Ancient Nutrition brand of supplements. Dr. Axe has also worked with numerous athletes even worked with athletes from the United States at the 2012 Olympic games.  I did not quite realize the extent to Dr. Axe’s entrepreneurial endeavors until I started researching for this post!  I really like that Dr. Axe does not just focus on one aspect of health, but sees how so many things are interconnected, just like his business!

Drink Coffee–Save Lives!

I don’t know that we need any extra motivation to drink coffee, but yet, knowing that your coffee purchase WILL make a difference by supporting Crisis Pregnancy Centers (CPC’s) might encourage you to purchase coffee from www.sevenweekscoffee.com .

Seven Weeks Coffee was founded by Anton Krecic when he was in his early 20’s.  The interesting thing is that he first moved to DC to get involved in politics, but once he started down that route, he realized that he was called to put people before profits and began Seven Weeks Coffee – and he does this is several ways.  I thought this was an interesting discovery, as Prof. Sweet often refers to the iteration process.  Anton’s calling turned out not to be politics, but at this point in his life, selling coffee.  A great example of Proverbs 16:9. (How it began.)

Redemptive entrepreneurship is something I always enjoy learning more about.  Anton found a way to use our culture’s love of coffee to make a big impact.

Over 50% of their profits go directly to CPC’s.  I also really appreciate how they are not just selling any kind of coffee, but that their coffee is farmed using organic practices, mold free AND they have relationships with growers and purchase coffee beans directly from these farmers.  On their website they claim that they pay the farmers 300% more than necessary for fair trade coffee!!  So, not only are they helping moms in crisis pregnancy situations and their precious babies, but they are also enabling farmers to realize fair profits for their labor. 

I spent years volunteering at a Crisis Pregnancy Center and so that experience really helped me be exited about this company and about how innovative they are in sharing their coffee profits. I think it would a lot of fun, and motivating, to be able to raise so much money (over $500,000 ) for CPC’s.  Most of us can’t write a check out for that amount, but quite a few of us might be able to raise that kind of money with an innovative idea like Seven Weeks Coffee.

Finally, did you know that at SEVEN WEEKS a baby’s heart begins beating in the womb?  That is where the name Seven Weeks Coffee comes from:-)