serenity self defense

On July 16th I wrote a blog about a Primetime Special that I watched that had impacted my life so very much. The special was about a girl named Melanie whose life was taken by a random act of violence. That night, God did something incredible to my heart. I ended the blog with this:

God is doing amazing things in my heart and is stirring up an idea so big, so wonderful that I could burst. I can’t do anything to bring Melanie, Anne, or Eve back, but maybe I can help prevent this from happening to someone else. The Lord is moving in me with this idea and I am as excited as ever to tackle it head on. Last Sunday Pastor Fred told us that “God plants a dream in our heart with a thought in our head” and boy was he ever right. 

Well, the idea that was so wonderfully big that made me almost burst turned into an organization called Serenity Self Defense. "Serenity Self Defense is a newly formed organization that exists to educate women of all ages on the importance of knowing how to defend themselves. Serenity will offer self defense classes, training sessions on being street smart, as well as information about how to use different weapons. Professionals in the appropriate areas will also be recruited to speak at our training sessions. Additionally, we will raise funds for the Melanie Goodwin Scholarship Fund." These words were taken from the website that I created. 
~>  www.SerenitySelfDefense.com 

So many wonderful things have happened since this idea was planted into my heart. For starters, I have spoken with Melanie's mother, Mrs. Peggy, and have her full support. She has been so encouraging and kind and I just can't say enough great things about this strong woman. In addition to having Mrs. Peggy's support, a company called PepperEyes.com has also pledged to donate a portion of all proceeds to Serenity until December 18th! This is all such a blessing! It is my hope that Serenity will be able to use the donated money to gain our non-profit status, but most importantly we want to donate the majority of this donation to Melanie's Scholarship Foundation. If you guys could, please forward PepperEyes.com to all of your friends, family, classmates, etc. The more items that they sell, the more proceeds will be donated. 

I truly hope that this organization will continue to become a reality instead of just a dream. Please pray that God's hand would be upon this project and for his favor in getting the ball rolling. Also, if anyone is interested in getting involved with Serenity please let me know. 

***Serenity's blog is http://serenityselfdefense.blogspot.com/. Please add to your blog list! Thanks so much y'all!***