eContent

Birke Bashin For China's Kids!

It's 90 degrees outside today ... and humid. While it may seem hard to think about Winter during this kind of weather, earlier this week I signed up for three long distance cross-country races. The longest is the American Birkebeiner at 52 kilometers or 32 miles. Although I was not planning upon doing another round of ski races this Winter, the devastation wrought by the Sichuan Earthquake in China has changed everything. Once again, under the auspices of the China Tomorrow Education Foundation (CTEF) I intend to help rebuild schools in Sichuan. You can help me via your tax deductible donation. eMail a pledge to richardhoeg@gmail.com . Thank you.

CTEF asked me to create a copy of my keynote talk delivered at this year's annual dinner earlier this year in Seattle. Thus ... via YouTube (click to watch in high quality) ... the journey continues:

• Birke Bashin for China's Kids - YouTube Link
  ... View all my CTEF volunteer posts

Or if you prefer, watch a short video of my wife Molly taken while she was dancing with the children from one CTEF funded school which we visited last Fall.

• Molly Dances at LingYun School - YouTube Link
  ... More YouTube CTEF Links

(click on either image to view full sized)

 

Four High Schools Seniors ... Robots ... Leaving Microsoft

On the surface these three topics might seem unrelated, but they are! This evening I will take out to dinner four young men who just graduated high school. These guys are the core members of my S.N.I.P Lego robotics team. After having coached S.N.I.P. for six years ... since their elementary school days, I wondered how I could recognize these boys, and the fact thay they were moving on in the world ... to various engineering schools around the USA. Each young man has already shown me that they are socially conscious, but I wanted to encourage them to continue following this path.

Eureka! A quick visit to Amazon yielded four copies of Leaving Microsoft to Change the World. Ever since last year when my own effort started to build schools in the mountains of southern China, I've been inspired by John Wood. He was Microsoft's second highest ranking executive in China, and he gave everything up to build schools in rural Nepal.

Last night I contacted John Wood via email, and asked him if he might send me a dedication I might put in each book.  Here are John's direct words ... they're good:

"To whom much is given, much is expected. The true test of your education will be in bringing that same opportunity to others, throughout your lifetime. Good luck, and make the world proud!"

Feel free to chime in with your own advice via the comments section for Caleb, Erik, Matt and Tim. In closing, here are two podcast interviews with John Wood, author of Leaving Microsoft to Change the World.

PBS Podcast Interview with John Wood (his organization)

National Geographic Podcast Interview with John Wood

Sichuan, China Earthquake Relief: Rebuilding Schools - Helping Children

As many of you know, I have am involved with building schools in rural China. Last month, I was even a keynote speaker at the China Tomorrow Education Foundation (CTEF) annual benefit dinner. If you've seen news reports on the devastation in the Sichuan region ... including collapsed schools, you will understand that the need for help is huge.  Thankfully, as far as we know, none of our schools collapsed. My foundation (registered 501c charity in the USA) is trying to help out.  Here is a quote from our president's message:

"CTEF has been helping school children and renovating school buildings in rural China since 2001. Even before the earthquake, CTEF had been working with enthusiastic local volunteers on school renovation projects in Sichuan's Beichuan and Yilong counties. We are committed to using 100% of the Earthquake Relief Fund to rebuild schools and communities and help school children who have suffered from this tragedy. "

Learn more, and consider donating. My plans include a trip to China later this Fall. I will report back on our efforts via this blog.

You may also wish to visit National Public Radio's Chengdu Diary. NPR actually has a team of reporters in Chengdu. They were preparing for a special week of China coverage that had been planned for next week.

 

A Keynote Speech to Deliver

I'm off to Seattle early tomorrow for the annual China Tomorrow Education Foundation annual benefit dinner. I will be one of their keynote speakers. I owe a dept of gratitude and thanks to my buddy, Dj, who has taught me the meaning of dedication and compassion. While I help the children from afar except for an occasional trip to southern China, Dj left a high paying job with Microsoft to help educate the children.

If you have a few extra dollars, help me rebuild the LingYun dorm.  Send a pledge via email to Rich Hoeg, at rhoeg@comcast.net. Thank you!

• Loppets and Legos for LingYun (4 minute video)
• Loppet for LingYun ... A Frigid Success (we're off to a good start!)
• Both multimedia modules may take a moment to load ...

Loppets for LingYun - A Frigid Success!

Today I turn over blog posting chores to my wife, Molly. As a fellow skier and fund-raiser, she will give you a Loppets for LingYun update ... Rich
--------------------------------------------------------------------

Protection from the Weather!

Waiting for the Mora Vasaloppet to start, with the temperature at -13 F and “dangerous winds” producing a windchill of -40 F we wondered about the wisdom of skiing 35 kilometers under these conditions!  But the trick was in being prepared for the weather, wearing the right combination of layers, and covering every inch of exposed skin.  We were fortunate to have the knowledge and the means to outfit ourselves properly.  The result – successful completion of the race, staying warm through out the event, and suffering no lasting ill-effects, such as the frostbite suffered by other skiers.

Our real motivation, however, was thinking about the children in the dorm in LingYun.  Braving a few hours of adverse weather seemed small in comparison to the cold weather they face all winter long in an inadequate dorm building.  It brought to home the need for them to have their own protection from the weather on a daily basis.  With improved housing, the young students will be better prepared to benefit from their education as well.

Our Loppets for LingYun were extremely successful!  We owe a big thank you to all our donors, who brought our fundraising total up to $3,602 with this effort, toward our goal of $7,500 to build the new dorm. Please consider a pledge towards finishing the dorm. Send your pledge via email to Rich at rhoeg@comcast.net

I've added a few photos from Sunday, along with a slideshow ...

• Mora Vasaloppet Slideshow 
  (may take a moment to load)

   

Ugh = -2F (or -17C)

The weather forecast is heading south for Sunday's Loppet. -2F is now the expected high for the day. If Saturday's weather sticks around for Sunday ... bad news. However, in the theory that misery loves company, my wife and son have decided to join in my Loppets for LingYun quest. They will both ski the 35 kilometer free style event, while I do the 42 kilometer classic. Molly shares with me the the role of Midwestern Regional Representative for the China Tomorrow Education Foundation. Consider warming us up with an emailed pledge (rhoeg@comcast.net). Your donation is tax deductible in the USA. Expand any of the images with a click!
.
    

Like Son ... Like Father?!

The BIG Loppet for LingYun is this Sunday ... the Mora Vasaloppet. I'll race / ski through 42 kilometers of Minnesota country-side. Some of my inspiration for this race will come from my son, Erik. Yesterday, in his last high school cross-country ski race, he had his best performance ever ... finishing for the very first time as his team's top skier! Hopefully I can measure up for the kids in LingYun! (short video).

Oh yes ... the expected high temperature on Sunday ... 4 degrees Fahrenheit (-14 Celsius). Here are photos of my son (yesterday's ski meet), me (last Sunday's loppet), and the weather forecast. Click to expand any image ... the forecast is not pretty!
.

Loppet Number 1!

This morning, for the first time in 30 years, I competed in a cross-country ski race (City of the Lakes Loppet). My choice for races was the 25 kilometer classic race (traditional style). After all, what would you expect from a man who is just shy of 52 years old! The other marathon ski race was the skating style. More importantly, almost $3,000 has been raised for the kids of LingYun and their new dorm. However, I need more money to finish the project. Thus, next Sunday I'll increase the distance to 42 kilometers for the Mora Vasaloppet. Your tax deductible donation to this project would be greatly appreciated. Send your pledge via email to Rich Hoeg, at rhoeg@comcast.net. Learn more by watching this short video:

• Loppets for LingYun (4 minutes long)

Finally, here are three photos from this morning's race. The first two pictures are in the finishing chute, just before I crossed the finish line.  The final photo is "relief!" Click upon any thumbnail image to view at full size.
.

Legos (and Loppets) for LingYun

Last Fall when I visited the LingYun region of southern China, near the border with Vietnam, I was amazed to meet little children who hike for hours on mountains paths to reach rural schools. These same children then live in dorms ... not getting home for weeks at a time. The living conditions for these children was saddening.

It was hard to imagine 10 to 12 year old children living away from home at such a young age. Thus, I'm expanding my dorm project to include Legos! These "dorm children" have nothing except what a small backpack holds. Wouldn't it be neat if in addition to rebuilding their dorm, we gave the kids some basic Legos to play with? ... nothing fancy ... just basic building kits. I've found Legos to be almost indestructible, and for children the fun of building is universal. When school and homework are completed for the day, these children could play with Legos! Last year I brought books to the school I rebuilt.  This year ... Legos and Loppets!

If you have used Legos, please send them to me. I will take them to the children of LingYun. I have two requirements:

• Legos should be in good condition
• Legos should be basic construction pieces

You may either contact me by email for more instructions, or just send (or drop off) your Legos to:

• Rich Hoeg (the Northstar Nerd!)
• 3924 Wisconsin Avenue North
• New Hope, Minnesota  55427

In addition, please consider a financial donation to help cover the cost of rebuilding the dorm. In the U.S.A., your donation is tax deductible via the China Tomorrow Education Foundation (CTEF). Here is background concerning the dorm rebuilding project:

• Full LingYun Dorm Project Report / Updates
• Send your pledge via email to Rich Hoeg, at richardhoeg@gmail.com. 
  • Loppets and Legos for LingYun (4 minute video)
  • Loppet for LingYun ... A Frigid Success (we're off to a good start!)

Finally, I've attached two photos and a map from my recent trip to JiaYou. One photo shows me with the JiaYou kids; the second photo are some LingYun children who need your help.
.
   

Loppets for LingYun

• Question: What happens when you take a 51 year old man who has not entered a Nordic ski race for 30 years, and combine that fact with a desire to rebuild a dorm in southern China?
  .
• Answer: You have Loppets for LingYun's Kids.  (What's a Loppet? Watch the video and learn!

Please watch this short video (4 minutes in duration) and learn about the Northstar Nerd (i.e. me!) and my quest to help the kids of LingYun. The answer really involves Southern China, Wikipedia, technical conferences, Grandma's Marathon, and now loppets!

If your family budget allows, send your pledge via email to Rich Hoeg, at rhoeg@comcast.net. Thank you! Donations are tax deductible in the U.S.A.

Learn more about my entire effort with the China Tomorrow Education Foundation via this link. (also read about my Legos for LingYun effort)
.