Featured Ministry: Ordinary Hero
If you have ever thought that you could not make a a difference...that somehow you were not good enough...or rich enough...or smart enough...or one person can't impact the world...you were wrong. Anyone and everyone can be an Ordinary Hero to at least one person...if only will allow God to show you how and use you for His purpose.
CCI is proud to feature Ordinary Hero as the featured ministry at this time. CCI began working with Kelly Putty, OH's founder, in 2008 when she traveled with CCI's director, Sue Hedberg, to Ethiopia. Since then, many, many, many lives have been changed through OH's advocacy for orphans, their committment to photolisting and featuring the most vulnerable and needy, and through helping adoptive families raise funds to afford adoption. The world is a much better place with Ordinary Hero in it!
While OH impacts many more lives than CCI is involved in, CCI children and families have benefited from the compassion and love of Ordinary Hero. Some of CCI's families who have been impacted include:
Eric and Jennifer: The Sands family knew that they would someday adopt, but also knew the timing was not quite right...yet. However, when Kelly Putty spoke at a women's retreat, Jennifer began to feel that the time had come...well, you can read the rest of the story in Jennifer's own words here: http://sandsadoptionblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/being-like-minded.html
Debbie: It is because of OH waiting list that we are adopting again. We came back from Ethiopia with a burden on our hearts to adopt an older child. I started looking at their waiting list and there she was staring back at me with a simple note saying please contact Sue Hedberg for more info. We prayed - contacted Sue - prayed some more and now we are paper chasing for a sweet 12 yr old girl. All of this started with Ordianary Hero's waiting list.
Rue: It was because of Kelly Putty's involvement with Sue at CCI that I chose CCI as our adoption family. I had researched a year and waited for Gods timing and then I called Kelly who I had only met through a mutual friend and she highly recommended CCI and went on about Sue's heart for the kids. I had just asked the Lord to just make it clear which agency had a real heart for true needy kids. We have been blessed by this journey with CCI and the families in it.
We will be forever grateful to Kelly Putty for helping us make our dream come true, helping us raise money for our adoption through their amazing Ordinary Hero fundraising affiliate program!
(More testimonials coming!)
One family gave this testimony:
We are blessed to live in the same city as Kelly Putty who started Ordinary Hero (and actually until recently we lived in the same neighborhood and had no idea until God brought her to our house one night). God most definitely used her to speak to us about adoption and hearing her testimony directly impacted our decision to adopt. We have a small church community group that meets at our house once a month and occasionally, in addition to our bible studies, we will also participate in a community outreach project and share the gospel with others by doing so. In November, 2010 a friend of ours (who incidentally is now also adopting a little girl from ET) invited Kelly Putty to come and speak at our community group meeting about how we could help with a stocking stuffing event at a nearby church. This local church in conjunction with OH was going to provide over 700 Christmas stockings for the local Nashville Rescue Mission and Salvation army. I made Christmas goodies and prepared myself to hear about how I could buy some cute little toys and coloring books and help stuff stockings for these needy families. Boy, did God have more in store for me to hear that night. Kelly
came and briefly spoke of the stockings but spent the majority of the time speaking about how OH advocates for orphans. She shared with us her personal testimony and her own adoption story that led her to her son Nathan. By the end of the meeting, everyone in the group was in tears. I knew adoption was important. I even knew it was something we were commanded by God to be involved in as His word mentions frequently. But, I always thought that it meant someone else should adopt and I should help support them by taking them a meal or buying something at their fundraiser. Afterall, I already have four bio children and my husband had surgery to insure that we had no more children. Why in the world would God call ME to adopt? I was moved by her words but unbeknownst to me, God spoke to my husband first.
The day after the meeting, my husband Chris called me in tears and said "I've been watching these OH videos all day at work - I'm getting nothing done here. I think God wants us to adopt. We have resources and an extra guest bedroom. If you don't want to do anything, do NOT watch the videos. Because once you know, you can't pretend you don't anymore." That night after the kids went to bed, we talked about it for hours and I told him pretty frankly that I thought he was crazy. He told me to pray about it and sleep on it and we'd talk in the morning. The next day the alarm went off at 6am. He rolled over opened his eyes and said "Well you slept on it. What do you think? I know God wouldn't call me to this and not call you too." The thing is, I didn't sleep at all. God wouldn't let me. I thought all night about Kelly and how I was just like she'd once been, the happy suburban wife with beautiful bio kids and living the American dream. And I was reminded that the American dream is NOT what God asks of us.
I turned back to Chris and said, "Yesterday I thought you were crazy. And today I think maybe I'm crazy too." We sent off for our CCI application packet and contacted a homestudy agency later on that same day. I am now the proud momma of not one, but two beautiful ET beauties and I couldn't be happier. Don't get me wrong, it's tough sometimes. As an only child myself, I never imagined I'd one day be momma to six but God is good and of all the places I could be, smack dab in the middle of HIS will, is indeed where I want to rest. God is good and we are very thankful He has given Kelly this beautiful platform to share God's love and God's children with others.
Blessings,
Valerie
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