As we slowly twisted our way through the forests of Oregon we came across a girl on the side of the road working her tail off spinning, twirling, tossing, and whirling a sign that read CAR WASH in big bold letters.
In Raymond, WA, we fueled up the car at the Chevron station. Nate went in to pick up some of his own fuel in the energy drink cooler and met a man named Ky. Quiet at first, Ky opened up immediately after Nate asked him how he was doing.
Fittingly, the server’s name was Nate. Even more fitting was that he had red hair. The day we left Minnesota, a certain red-headed server in Hawley, MN (also Nate Haugen’s neighbor), gave us $50 to give to a red-headed server.
Today we met a man from New Mexico named Andy while at a beach in Seaside, OR. We were just walking back to the car from the beach when we noticed a man sitting in the back of a mini-van with the side door slid open. He wore a U.S. Marines hat as he looked quietly toward the ocean.
In the market area, we met a man named Mr. Unity. He was 75 years old from Vietnam and performed magic tricks in the street to raise money for his hometown in Vietnam -- magic with a message.
At a rest stop somewhere in Washington we met two young folks selling baked goods to raise money for a mission trip to Yakima, WA, this summer. High schoolers work with kids while they work toward personal and spiritual growth. They shared their story. We shared your support.
There we met a hardworking young gal who helped us in the map department while she answered phones, helped customers, and maintained her positive attitude all the while. She was swamped with work but that never interrupted her personable and approachable manner.
As instructed by some locals, we had breakfast at Pinky's Cafe in Livingston and decided this would be a great opportunity to buy breakfast for everyone in the cafe! We made a deal with everyone that we would cover breakfast if they took a picture with us and to no surprise they all accepted.
The place was beautiful with a perfect taproom atmosphere. Before long a couple of women approached us with the opportunity of a lifetime. We could buy tickets to a split-the-pot that supported Montana Conservation Voters, an organization that supports the preservation of Montana’s clean air and water, open spaces, wildlife, and public health.
Our only hesitation was hung up on the fact that we wouldn’t be able to see or capture her reaction. We realized immediately that wasn’t entirely what this project is about. Sure, sharing that moment with someone would be thrilling for us, but receiving that envelope would be just as thrilling to her without us delivering it personally.