Hola from Houston, TX and June 2016 Charity Reveal!

Run Stats:
Day: 183
Miles Completed: 664.5
Miles to San Diego: 1435.5
Avg Miles/Day: 3.6
Marathons Completed: 25.4
Current Running Streak: 5 days
Longest Running Streak: 8 days
Shoes: Skora Fit/Tempo
Playlist Favs: The Eagles, Genesis
Guest Runners: None

Bible Verse of the Day: "God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another." 1 Peter 4:10 (NLT, 2nd Edition)

Run Reflections: Well, another month has gone by and I'm another 100 miles farther down the road. I'm currently on the west side of Houston, TX continuing west on I-10. It's currently partly cloudy and 88 degrees in Houston with a projected high of 95 degrees. The forecast has 95+ temps in this area of TX all week :-( This has been an interesting running month with some highs and lows. I recently started tracking running streaks - or how many days I am able to run in a row - and had an 8 day streak and a current streak of 5 days this month. I also had two periods where I did not run for 4-5 days straight. The streak thing is interesting because it has brought some diversity into the mix in terms of distance and tempo. I was pleased to be able to complete some longer runs in these hotter conditions (and needed them to get to the 100 mile mark this month). Overall, its been a great 6 months of running on this journey so far.

Houston: Houston is the most populous city in Texas and the fourth-most populous city in the United States. It was founded in 1836 near the banks of Buffalo Bayou and incorporated as a city on June 5, 1837. The city is named after former General Sam Houston, who was president of the Republic of Texas back in the day. Houston's economy has a broad industrial base in energy, manufacturing, aeronautics and transportation. It is also leading in health care sections and building oilfield equipment; only New Your City is home to more Fortune 500 headquarters within its city limits. I've included a picture of the skyline. With a city as big as Houston, there is no end to what you could talk about so I looked up a couple of "top ten" websites and thought I'd share a few facts:

• Forbes magazine named Houston America's coolest city beating out D.C., Los Angles and Dallas
• Houston is so large, it can contain New York, Boston and San Francisco at the same time.
• Texas has many strange laws. Houston strange law is one cannot sell Limburger cheese on Sundays and beer may not be purchased after midnight on a Sunday, but it may be purchased on Monday.
• Houston was the largest provider of shelter following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, welcoming more than 150,000 New Orleans residents.
• The worlds first domed stadium was the Astrodome. "The eight wonder of the world" was built in 1965.
• "Houston" was the first word said on the moon.
• Houstonians dine out more than residents of any other city in America - 4.2 times per week.
• Houston has a theater district second only to New York City in seats.
• Houston is home to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, the largest rodeo in the world.
• Houston has the most affordable housing of the 10 most populated metropolitan areas in the U.S. and ranks first among U.S. cities where paychecks stretch the furthest.
• The Greater Houston area has 14 major institutions of higher learning. Houston's Rice University is the birthplace of nanotechnology.

Houston also has a large and diverse road and trail running community. Info on upcoming road races and running/training groups can be found through the Houston Area Road Runners Association (HARRA) at https://harra.org. Some of their upcoming races include:

• 7/02 - Independence 5K/10K & Children's Patriotic Mile
• 7/04 - Baytown Bud Heat Wave 5 Mile Run
• 7/30 - Glowing the Distance to Prevent Child Abuse 5K
• 8/06 - Night Moves Night Trail Run - Marathon, Half Marathon, 10K & 5K
• 8/13 - Galveston Sand Crab Nighttime Beach Run - 10K, 5K 1 Mile

It's interesting to see how many night runs they have planned. I guess this makes sense given the weather. I think the nighttime beach and glow stick runs sound cool. Makes me want to combine the two sometime this coming month - anyone want to join me?

Tim Tebow Foundation: This months charity is the Tim Tebow Foundation and I'm happy to be able to donate $101 dollars to them this month. This equates to $1.00 for each mile run in June 2016 as well as an additional $1.00 that I found on the road during a run this week. Here's some information from the foundation website - https://www.timtebowfoundation.org - on how he is using his public platform to help and serve others.

The mission of the foundation is: "To bring Faith, Hope and Love to those needing a brighter day in their darkest hour of need. The Foundation utilizes the public platform that God has blessed Tim Tebow with to inspire and make a difference in peoples lives throughout the world." Some of the ways they do this is through the following:

• W15H - The W15H program is an outreach initiative to fulfill the dreams of children with life-threatening illnesses whose wish is to meet Tim Tebow.
• Orphan Care - The orphan care program serves hundreds of children who have been left homeless or abandoned. The program began in the Philippines and has been expanded to three other countries. Grants from the foundation program cover food, shelter, clothing, medical care, education expenses and sharing the Gospel.
• Timmy's Playroom - Timmy's playrooms are being built in children's hospitals around the world, there are currently eight up and running. Decorated in a football theme, these rooms provide an atmosphere that allows the children to take their minds off their medical treatment and just be kids again.
• The Tebow Cure Hospital - In partnership with CURE International, the hospital is a state-of-the-art facility which specializes in orthopedic surgeries. It provides physical and spiritual healing to deserving children of the Philippines who could not otherwise afford care.
• Night to Shine - Night to shine is an unforgettable prom night experience, centered on God's love, for people with special needs ages 14 and older On one night, (next one is) February 10, 2017, churches from around the world will host Night to Shine for thousands of honored guests.
  

There is a lot more information at the website with further details on these programs, other programs and ways where interested folks can support or contribute. I hope you'll take a minute to check it out and see if there is a program or even that resonates with you.

OK, there was a lot of info here and thanks to any who made it this far. I hope you all have a great 4th of July weekend and have a chance for some down time as well as a chance to reflect on how blessed we are to live in the U.S.A. In addition, I also hope you'll reflect some on the service example of the Tim Tebow Foundation and relate it back to today's Bible verse that identifies how we have each been given spiritual gifts that we are to use to serve others. What more could we be doing to leverage these gifts to help meet the needs of our communities?

God Bless,

Pat