The Eagle has indeed landed! We have arrived in St. Petersburg, Russia. We are staying at a hostel. The experience, though a bit rough, is making me feel like a kid again. Bunk beds and communal living… perfect for the whole Russian experience. The kids are loving it. The people here were very guarded when we first checked in but now the staff and boarders are like a second family. Have met so many cool people… Photographers, artists, travelers, some young girls in their 20’s who came from Belzarus to St. Petersburg to see Jared Leto’s band, “60 Seconds to Mars” and an array of other interesting characters. Another cool thing… it’s White Nights in St. Petersburg… so it gets dark about 1 am and gets light around 4 am. Very cool!
But the dream come true is our work here. We are thrilled to be working at Transit, a remarkable organization. It is an orphanage that takes in homeless kids who have run away to the big city, and helps to place them in homes. As you can probably imagine, it took about ten minutes for the kids and I to fall in love with each and everyone of them. Daniel, my big pal, came up to me immediately and grabbed my hand (and my heart) and hasn’t let go. He and his twin, Igor, are two amazing 7 year olds. The thought of heading to our next city and saying good bye to these guys is excruciating.
Each child has a story and has been through so much, but the beauty is that they all have incredible spirits and have so much fun at Transit. We have been doing gymnastics, playing ping pong, watching videos, playing games. On Monday, I’m going to teach an acting class with the kids, doing improv and theater games. I think they are excited about it.
The staff has been wonderful. These kids at Transit are so lucky to have these genuinely kind people in their lives, who are truly concerned for them and treat them with love and respect. All of you out there, hug a kid today, and give them some love and encouragement. And let them know that they are valuable and important. I’m giving the hugs out here in St. Pete…
And again, to all of you who have supported our project, my gratitude is immeasurable. More to follow…
Finally… The amazing dream realized! The boys and I are off and running. We left Charlotte, NC, this morning with perhaps a few too many bags. We have arrived in New York City, safe and sound and will spend the weekend here. Very exciting. We are staying with my dear friend, Bob Kanter, an Emmy Award winning documentary film producer. This evening we had a slice of authentic NY pizza and I have promised the boys a visit to the Natural History Museum tomorrow. We are going to see if we can volunteer at a shelter down the street from us on Saturday. Sunday we are headed to Berlin and then St. Petersburg, Russia. It’s truly happening and we are on our way! To all of you who have supported this project, my sons and I are beyond grateful. Your hard work and encouragement has made this “once in a lifetime” journey possible. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart! More to report shortly… after I get some sleep… Packing up your entire life, making arrangement to leave a place for a year, and then flying with two kids can take it out of ya! Night.
A week away! It’s truly amazing to me that in 7 days, the boys and I will be heading out on the adventure of a lifetime, jumping into the void of the great unknown. It’s unsettling at best, but the possibilities of discovery are endless. I know that my sons and I will come back different people… that much is a given. Here’s a little inside information: I have been really emotional and crying alot, not just because I’m a tad scared and sad to leave my life and people I love behind, but because I feel like something remarkable, extraordinary, and profound is about to take place and at times my feelings are overwhelming.
We fly out of JFK and have a layover in Berlin, where Jackson will celebrate his 14th birthday. He wants to go to the Berlin Wall, or at least check out what is still left of The Wall. He’s going to do a video blog on the subject, which I think will be really cool.
Then we are off to St. Petersburg, Russia for our first volunteer job. We will be working with “Transit”. It’s an organization that helps homeless teens transition from being on the street to being placed in foster care. We are really looking forward to helping there.
We are so grateful to all the people who have made this journey possible. I want to thank a few by name: Robert Shapiro, Ed Smith, Bo Henderson, Ed Springs, Liz Branca, Lisa MacLeish, LuAnne Bernier, Scott Pacitti, Kristina Haddad, Esther Benjamin, Rachel Woodhouse, Valerie Bobo, Sue Sanford, Jennifer Taylor, Michael Lightweaver, Peter Cipkowski, Bert Woodard, Jay Everette, Scott Galiher, Les Satinover, Lindsey Moser, Linda Britt, Patti Price and to every single actor at The Actor’s Lab – Charlotte, who has encouraged me every week to plow through it. I love you all.
Okay, Jack and Buck, time to start packing… Let’s begin The Lewis and Lewis and Lewis Expedition!
We’ll keep you all posted.
You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one…. jd
It has been a tough couple of weeks. The boys and I moved from our three-bedroom house in Plaza Midwood to a one-room efficiency apartment with no air conditioning. That in itself was quite an adjustment. We wanted to get everything in storage and get used to living in small quarters… But then all hell broke loose.
My aunt and uncle who raised me my entire life both passed away 2 weeks apart. And in between that, I was diagnosed with a carcinoma on my lip and had to have two surgeries. …one to remove a lymph node in my neck (which came back negative, thank God) and another to cut out the cancer on my lip. The good news… all is well and it’s all taken care of even though currently I look like Angelina Jolie. It has felt like a spiritual battle… as if the dark forces were trying to get in the way of us going out and making a difference in the world.
Isn’t it interesting how things end up working out? I had mentioned to my sister six months ago how I was concerned about leaving my elderly aunt and uncle behind while we did this trip. Now they have both passed on. It’s like they moved on to pave the way for what we are about to do. Though the loss is great, I feel that it’s part of a master plan. And as far as the lip… The doctor said that I was incredibly lucky to have caught it before I left for a year abroad. Truly, I am the luckiest man alive.
Enough squawking. Back to preparing for the great journey!
So now we are slowly getting back on track. We have a little more than 3 weeks left until we ship out. It has crept up on us quickly. We are getting used to living in small quarters, though I do have to admit, it’s a bit cramped and hot. By the way, the neighbors at our new place have been incredibly kind and baked us cookies and have been so welcoming.
Our visas are almost all in order, we have most of our immunizations done and we are preparing for the home stretch. If you have ever taken a trip, you know that it seems like you are never going to get everything done before you leave. Well, it REALLY feels that way to me. Leaving for a year, there is so much to get in order.
But I have made the To-Do list and I have been checking things off each day…. And come July 1st, we will be on our merry way.
We are still raising funds and will continue to do so as the trip progresses. If our mission resonates with you, please donate here on the website. Until the next blog… Coming soon. jd
We will be posting a video blog this week as well.
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Each child has a story and has been through so much, but the beauty is that they all have incredible spirits and have so much fun at Transit. We have been doing gymnastics, playing ping pong, watching videos, playing games. On Monday, I’m going to teach an acting class with the kids, doing improv and theater games. I think they are excited about it.
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