Do the Right Thing...

Wow! 

I am not even sure where to begin. 

Last week William answered the phone and it was a Charlotte Mecklenburg police officer. 

Luckily he answered with good manners and passed the phone along to me. 

The sergeant proceeded to tell me about a neat program I had never heard of called

Do the Right Thing.

Here's a bit about this wonderful organization...

We are a non-profit corporation dedicated to recognizing and honoring young people in our community who make the right choices and "Do The Right Thing". Three times a year, children from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg area are nominated by teachers, firefighters, police officers and the public. They are nominated  for a self-sacrificing extra-ordinary act, outstanding charitable assistance they have extended, or their exemplary attitude and behavior.

He proceeded to share the news that someone from William's school had nominated him to be selected for Do the Right Thing because of his Lemonade & Cookie Stand for the Harvest Center. 

Out of 325-400 applications each quarter (he said they read them all) 

they had selected William as one of 12 to be recognized. 

wow! tears of joy, wow!

They are sending our family, William's grandparents, 2 friends who helped him with the lemonade stand, and his precious 2nd grade teacher who we found out was the one who nominated him....all of us to the Bank of America Stadium next week for dinner, reward ceremony, tour of the stadium, visits with Sir Purr, Top Cats, etc.  We are shocked and excited about this opportunity. 

William is beside himself and thrilled! 

more from their website...

From the hundreds of nominations received, twelve children are chosen to receive the Do The Right Thing awards. All nominees receive a Certificate of Recognition, a Do The Right Thing T-shirt, and a bumper sticker. The twelve winners also receive an engraved plaque, an incentive prize package, and an invitation to a special ceremony. In addition, the twelve winners are recognized on our website, on the CMS Cable Channel #3, the Charlotte Observer and all area media outlets.

*read about these cute kids who did the right thing!

This was also a great opportunity to talk about how when we bless others with our good deeds, 

they often multiply back to us ten fold. I had just studied this in Bible Study the day of the phone call...we are called to do good deeds to glorify God, not to benefit ourselves. However, in serving the Lord and doing good deeds, we are often blessed more than those we aim to bless. 

Not sure if you knew about the program but with all of the scary news and often negative media, it is so refreshing to hear of a program focusing on rewarding the positive and service. 

My prayer is that this will be a special moment for William that his idea three years ago to have a lemonade stand for the poor for his birthday will continue on and will bless others for years to come. And that being rewarded for his actions will make him and the rest of our family eager to serve more, not for the recognition but for God's glory.

And a footnote...love how God works! 

Our guest speaker this Sunday in adult Sunday school 

was the Chief of Police for Charlotte Mecklenburg, Rodney Monroe and his wife. 

Lovely people... and a man who feels completely called by God to be in this line of work 

and a man who relies on his faith to serve and protect our city. 

Very comforting. 

I did introduce myself and he'll be at the special ceremony 

where I'll be thrilled to introduce him to William. 

xoxo,

happy, grateful mama

PS: You know I'll have my camera...will post photos after the event!