Hey this is Steve (guest blogger!), and first I want to say THANK YOU!!! To everyone who has donated to any of our fundraising efforts. I think I can speak for Amanda when I say we are blown away by how friends new and old, coworkers, and a few strangers have been supporting and blessing us as we begin the fundraising process. We still have a big hill to climb but in just a few short weeks we have almost hit 10% of our goal, still a long way to go but we are well on our way.

If you don’t know me that well, know I typically like to do things on my own and am not one to ask for a lot of help. Over the years I have just gotten used to doing things on my own. However, this project is changing my outlook and breaking down some of the pride I took in doing things on my own. God works in ways you never expect.

I am realizing that people want to help especially if it is for a good cause. As soon as we announced what we were doing my messages started blowing up with people offering ideas, saying that they had stuff for the yard sale.  From that one post, we have 2 trailers full of stuff to sell on Facebook Marketplace and at our yard sale on Feb 17^th – and more still to pick up. One of Amanda’s friends from college reconnected with us, turns out they bought a farm and were getting ready for a hog to go to butcher this spring.  They felt led to use that to help us and set up a raffle for ½ of the pork – like a $800 value. I was able to reach out to a friend who has a large shop that is letting us store the yard sale items there, saving us storage fees. Another friend donated his commission from one of the estate plans that he sells (let me know if you need something like that and I will get you connected).  We are doing a silent auction in conjunction with a benefit dinner. We already have a photography session donated and this cool art piece Amanda’s dad has offered to auction. We are just two weeks into this adventure and feel so loved and have been confirmed yet again that this is what we have been called to do.

If you would like to help, here are some easy ways.

1. Simply pray for the birth mom and child. There is a good chance we will be matched with a child and birth mom who could be facing a challenging situation. Pray for safety and protection for them and that God would give the birth mom a sense of peace and comfort about the situation.

• Share our social media posts. We are both on social media @allloveyduffy and @stevenduffyazre on Instagram – as well as Facebook.

• We are still taking donations for the yard sale. If you need something picked up just call or text Steve @480-363-0979 or DM on social @stevenduffyazre

But we also might need to borrow tables for the sale and advertising to get buyers! Share the word with folks looking for a deal!

• If you have a business or service and would build out a gift basket or contribute to one for the silent auction that would be amazing.

• Buy a ticket for the Pork Raffle and like flipflopfarmsaz on Facebook and Instagram