by Ruthann Cross, Spartan Chick
A little over a year ago my family and I were given a challenge to only drink water for a defined period of time and donate any money that we would normally use on coffees, sodas and sports drinks to digging clean water wells in Haiti. This was easy for us to do for a few different reasons. One, we already drink mostly water as it is. And two, most children in Haiti do not live past the age of five because of contaminated water diseases.
Two of my children at that time were both under the age of 5 so this really tugged on my heart. It was easy for us to give. It didn’t require us to step out of our comfort zones, it didn’t require us to live outside of the ease of our everyday life. Little did I know that less than a year later I would have the honor and privilege to travel to Haiti with Living Water International and be a part of giving hope to a community. (Bonus: I would also have the opportunity to get really, REALLY muddy while I was there. Seriously, what chick would want to pass that up?)
Our travels took us just outside Cap-Haitian. We arrived in a small village full of cement block and thatch walled structures 
with corrugated metal roofs. Many of which did not have four walls or doors! We saw people who appeared hard and calloused and knew they were very familiar with a great deal of death and hunger, but as soon as we smiled and said hello in their language these beautiful people quickly welcomed us with great smiles and warm hearts. They knew why we had come. They knew we were there to offer hope.
This entire week had nothing to do with me, my life, my family whether or not I had the time to fit a workout in or even connect with friends through the internet. It was all about the people of Modje and the little children who followed us around as if we were the Pied Piper. It was about the women of the community who were so proud to show us the few possessions they had. It was about the homeless widow and her six children who asked us to take her youngest with us in hope of a better life. Our task was to come in and drill a clean sustainable well for this community and educate them in proper hygiene so they could hopefully have a better life, but I believe I am the one who received the greater gift. To offer the gift of hope to someone who has none was the greatest blessing of all.
Before and after this week I have had several people express how difficult this must have been to go. Some even indicated they could never do something like this as it would just be too hard. Comments like these made me realize it is not a case of whether or not we can do something but whether or not we have a willing heart and a determination to make a change. We may not all be called to head off to the jungle of some foreign land and experience the same things but each one of us has the ability to take a stand alongside others and lend a hand. It just takes stepping out of our comfort zone and making the offer. We would all probably be surprised who accepts.
Who can you offer that “sparkle” of hope to today?
Tags: Living Water International, spartan chicked, spartan race
SNAP Infusion, one of Spartan Race’s newest partners, are the creators of SUPERCANDY and the official SUPERCANDY of Spartan Race for the 2013 season. They made their debut at the Spartan Race at Citi Field. At 2013 U.S. events, SNAP Infusion will set up aid stations on the course providing SUPERCANDY to athletes to help get them through the race, and compete at their very best.
a 27 year old mother to a very special two year old. Says Scheetz, “She is my everything and recently has literally been my everything.”
SNAP Infusion, one of Spartan Race’s newest partners, are the creators of SUPERCANDY and the official SUPERCANDY of Spartan Race for the 2013 season. They made their debut at the Spartan Race at Citi Field. At 2013 U.S. events, SNAP Infusion will set up aid stations on the course providing SUPERCANDY to athletes to help get them through the race, and compete at their very best.
One spectator contacted me after the race to tell me how moving the finish was for him:
While most people were prepping their livers for St Patrick’s Day or trying to finish a vacation, I took my son, and a few fellow Spartans and Team X-TREME members, to the Walter Reed National Medical Center. Our aim was to help get more of our wounded warriors out of the barracks and seeing what is possible.
wanted to teach my son that we are all equal. That potential resides inside each of us and what we do with that defines us. That we are all presented many obstacles in life and how we overcome them defines us. I wanted my son to know these men, and know them as men and not just as those who lost limbs to support our foundations of acceptance and citizenship. And that the look of the soldier who had my son jump in his lap was as priceless as the laughter he caused.
Where it Began
being above the knee and his left arm below the elbow, he served as a Recon Marine before his injuries. He is carried by the team in a backpack throughout the race. I quickly snapped a picture on my phone and cheered them on as they took off to conquer the course. That was the last time I saw the team that day, I stopped by the Team X-T.R.E.M.E. booth on the way out of the festival grounds and grabbed a t-shirt.
overwhelming. The names of the fallen line the outer edge the memorial appropriately named “Reflecting Absence.” The mood of the team was very somber at the memorial. We focused on how that day had changed our lives and where we might have been had that never happened. Most of the team members have at least one combat deployment in support of the Global War on Terror. To stand at the physical location that started it all was a great opportunity for the team. We look forward to more events in 2013 and supporting our mission to honor, empower, and motivate wounded service members.
As Spartan Race gears up to head back to Times Square on 
On the drive, we passed washed away sidewalks, homes with sand past their doorways, and arrived at beachfront condos that were across the street from what used to be the boardwalk. Now it was just pylons. Our leader, Jeff, informed us that the condos we would be working on had already had their drywall gutted, and that we would be ripping up the floorboards and preparing for future detoxing of the black mold. We donned our gear, and entered the first condo, not knowing what to expect. Jeff gave us a basic demonstration of how to tear apart the floorboards, and we set to work. The first condo was our “learning home”; we learned which tools worked better, which way was easiest to tear up the mold infested floorboards. We trudged through each room, working faster and harder as we went. By the time we reached our second and third condo, we had each found a rhythm, and the work, though physically challenging, became easier with each sledgehammer and chisel slam. The day was as exhausting and challenging as many Spartan Races are, but I was so humbled by the experience and the strength of those whose homes had been destroyed. A couple of the homeowners treated us to pizza, but their gratitude for our being there was more than any ‘thank you’ I could have imagined. At the end of the day, Jeff told us that we worked faster and harder than any team he had ever worked with. Our response… “Of course, We’re SPARTANS!”
When Team X-T.R.E.M.E. stepped out onto the Leesburg field, escorted by a bagpiper, the festival area that is normally buzzing with activity suddenly quieted and turned their attention to the eight figures crossing the lawn. What would follow as the team took to the course, two wounded warrior athletes included in the effort was unlike anything we’ve seen at a Spartan Race. Hands down, this was the most widely read story we published in 2012.
gear, and you’ll be sure to get moving. Once signed up, you and your friends will have a goal and a reason to start taking your health seriously and it works 82% of the time which is an amazing statistic. We call it the Resolution Solution.
How is losing 430 pounds? Spartan Chris Davis did just that and finished the Spartan Beast (and several other Spartan Races) in Vermont after five grueling months in Pittsfield, living, eating, and exercising with our team at HQ. You should see him carry a sandbag now! He sure couldn’t when he arrived. Chris resolved to lose the weight and finish the race and he got it done. It’s amazing that he began his journey at 696 pounds.
