I love that commercial where this teenage girl sits in front of a computer and looks at her mother and says, “I’m blogging.” The mother looks back at her daughter and says, “Well, I’m talking.”

That is kinda how I feel. I’m a talker, not a blogger. But, with the social media craze and the lightning speed of technology to get information to the masses, I am now beginning a blog to “talk” about something important to me,… my son, Holt Rowland.

For those of you wondering what “The Holt Rowland Foundation” is all about,  I am writing this blog to let you know the story about how it really got started and give you some insight into what God is doing through it.

Most people probably think that this foundation was started by our family. I would like to say that it was our idea but that would not be true. Over the almost two years since the accident, our family has just been trying to adjust to life without Holt. He was loved so much by his parents, brother, grandparents, aunts, uncles,  and cousins; therefore, dealing with life without him has been a huge task. That task, at times, seems insurmountable. The energy it takes to overcome grief and loss can be overwhelming. It can consume your mind and thoughts. That is why it is such a blessing when God brings other people into your life and gives them good ideas and then He prompts them to act. Enter Dr. Stanley Jones, Holt’s pediatrician.

Holt was not a kid at the doctor all the time, but he did have a lot of allergies. Allergy kids tend to visit the doctor a little more than normal, so Holt and Dr. Jones became pretty good friends over the years. (On a side note, Dr. Jones is close to all of his patients because he remembers pretty much everything about them and their siblings!) God gave Stanley Jones the idea to begin this foundation in Holt’s honor and memory. Stanley, who is not just our pediatrician but now our family friend, mentioned the idea to my sister and brother-in-law. After prayer and discussion about it, we decided that this foundation would be a wonderful way to continue the good work that God started in Holt’s life even before he was born. From there we selected a board of directors made up of people who knew Holt and loved him: family, friends, and a special teacher. Now, almost a year later, The Holt Rowland Foundation is a reality. As our first official act, we had the honor of presenting  scholarships to two seniors from the graduating class of 2012: Will White and Tim Huff. We now have this cool website with a high tech way of letting the world know what we are all about. My sweet sister has even become a website wizard! Thank you, Sandi, I love you.

Presently, we are in the process of organizing our first annual golf tournament as a fundraiser. It will be October 6 at Okefenokee Golf Club. Many people and businesses have already agreed to be hole sponsors, and we are very thankful. How humbled we are to have people join with us to make this foundation a success. What kind of things will we do in the future? I’m not yet sure, but I do know that God will send the right person along, with the right idea, at the right time, and it will be better than I could ever imagine on my own. This foundation is living proof.