Yesterday I had the opportunity to meet Jen and Jordan from Born Just Right for the first time!
Jen and Me
It was fantastic.
A couple years ago, when I began this journey within the limb-different community, Jen was one of the first people I found. I had gone online to find out what kinds of questions and concerns people had and there were Jen and Jordan, sharing their lives with us all. So, it was more than a pleasure to finally meet them in-person. They are quite the example and inspiration for me.
Jordan and Me
We met at the Chicago Children’s Museum on Navy Pier and had such a great time! I had the pleasure of meeting several other families and had extended conversations with wonderful people like Jeremy and Beth and Tony and Kristen. It was a blast to see my friends the Schneiders there, too! Back in December of 2011 I had the honor of baptizing their son, Grant.
Me with the Schneiders – the kiddos were pooped!
Jeremy, Beth and the fam – such great people!
My favorite part, though, had to be when a young woman came-up to our group with a confused look on her face. She was confused because she just happened to be at the museum with her family that day…and she had a limb-difference! “Are you having some sort of convention or something?” she asked. How funny! I regret that I can’t remember her name, but hopefully she’ll visit the blog and share her thoughts. I was trying to think about how I would have reacted a few years ago if I had walked-in and saw all these kids with limb-differences running around. Just too funny.
All-in-all, the meet-up was a huge success! Jen did an incredible job setting things up (even getting the tickets and lunches for us at no cost!) and I know we all appreciate her efforts. Also, she’s gives amazing hugs. 🙂 It was great to see old friends and meet new ones, too.
What an amazing group of people!
Lastly, in addition to the millions of other things she’s doing in Chicago right now, Jen ran a half marathon today to raise money for Camp No Limits! She’s SUPER close to raising enough to send one camper for FREE! If you haven’t already, please consider giving for Jen’s efforts (click here). Such a great cause.
Ryan, you are too kind. Thanks for being an awesome cheerleader for all that I do. I’ve been so proud to see what a difference you’re making. I can’t wait to see you again next month.