Page 5 - Venture - Program Preview

Children enjoying meals at Cynthia’s Kitchen at their school in Liberia.
The kitchen would be built
at St. Dominic’s Primary School in the village of Bomi, in the west African country
of Liberia. A Mary’s Meals kitchen is run entirely by its community. Teachers, parents, and other volunteers take turns to prepare, cook, and serve the daily meal. Everyone agreed that the kitchen at St. Dominic’s would be named “Cynthia’s Kitchen” after Carlin’s best friend.
Carlin and students at Steubenville Catholic Central High School raised more than $12,000 for the kitchen through talent shows, raffles, and other fundraisers in four years. But Carlin didn’t stop there. During his freshman year in college, Carlin ran the Pittsburgh Half-Marathon to raise money for Cynthia’s Kitchen.
In spring 2020, Carlin planned to double his miles—and
the money he raised. He
was training to run the
Mary’s Meals founder Magnus MacFarlane- Barrow with students.
Pittsburgh Marathon when the Covid-19 pandemic struck. The marathon was canceled. But Carlin did not give up. Instead, he decided to run a marathon in his hometown to raise money for Mary’s Meals. He called the marathon “26.2 in the ’Ville.” It started at his home in Wintersville, Ohio.
Carlin invited people to sponsor each mile in memory of Cynthia and other loved ones who had died. He suggested donations of $21 per mile, which was the cost to feed one child for a year at Cynthia’s Kitchen at that time. Carlin wrote sponsors’ names on his running sleeve, and promised to pray for them as he ran.
On race day, Carlin laced
up his running shoes and
set out to run. Friends and supporters came out to cheer him on. Some even ran a
few miles with him. Even the Steubenville Fire Department got into the fun, flashing their
Cynthia’s Kitchen serves more than 300 meals to students every day.
lights and blowing their sirens as Carlin ran by. He ran all 26.2 miles.
The marathon raised more than $7,000 for Cynthia’s Kitchen. This is enough money to keep it running for a full year. But Carlin insists he didn’t do it alone. “We
all accomplished this as one marathon team together, and we served God by serving others.”
THINK 1 What can eating a small bowl of rice and a bottle of water for lunch teach us?
2 Why did Carlin decide to help with Cynthia’s Kitchen?
3 How is God calling you to help others? How can you get your friends to help you do this work?
4 Why is prayer important when you need to do a big job?
5 Brainstorm ways you can help Mary’s Meals. You will find many ideas on its website: marysmeals.org.
Learn more about Mary’s Meals at marysmealusa.org.
Watch Child 31, the movie about the children helped by Mary’s Meals that inspired Carlin.
Lesson 4 Venture • 3