I have a friend named Natallie and she loves hooping. Since meeting her I’ve realized that hoopers are everywhere. I read about her initiatives and asked her to write up something to share here. So here it is. get inspired and DO STUFF!

Hey Miles!
Ok, so heres a little more on my little dream turned reality/huge blessing

I think its pretty obvious, I have a little hula hooping obsession, lol. Well, Im not alone, there’s actually thousands of us all around the world. We have what we call our ‘hooping community”. We even have a holiday, World Hoop Day. WHD is about sharing our joy with the world. Spreading love & “whirled” peace through the hoop and (at some point I read) providing hoops & a childlike joy to underprivileged children that have had to grow up way before their time.
A couple of years ago, I met a woman named Nicky online that had been volunteering as a translator at Nthebe, a farmschool in South Africa. After learning about the schools conditions I felt compelled to do something, anything & after trying to get others on board it just almost seemed like an impossible task…For 5 years now Nicky has been throwing a Christmas party for these kids. She collects used toys, treats & donations of any kind to make it the best possible Christmas she can for these kids, on her own time! Little did I know, this year WHD (11-11-11) would be the perfect opportunity to be part of something so beautiful . As my individual little WHD project, I decided to raise money through hoop jams & hoop sales to supply an entire school in South Africa w hoops! Well, WHD kinda ran right into their annual Christmas party! …Ok, so it didnt, Im just a lagger and by the time I got the funds there it was just in time to prepare for the party days later (Dec1st) lol…We came up with a plan, I would raise the funds for supplies, she’d gather a team of lovely souls to make the hoops & they would be distributed at the Christmas party! Well, It worked out perfectly & even better than I could have ever imagined! In my opinion, it was the perfect mixture of holidays. Maybe Im a little emotional, but these kids have written me letters, as my friends. Through videos & photos Ive become so inspired to do more for them! To know their situations & their eagerness to learn & not do my best to help make their quality of life better or more enjoyable would be a shame…Ive always known with all my heart that Africa would play a role in my life. Little did I know, it would be 150 smiling faces inside hoops! Had I been there, I would have dropped to my knees. These photos were only bright pictures in my mind only months ago. A little dream that seemed quite difficult at one time. Now I know how EASY it was & cant wait to see where this path takes me…From Casper WY USA, to South Africa, I am blessed beyond measure…Here are the links to a couple of the abums & my thank you video. Miles, I had told you how I wanted to rebuild their school, well the electric company there is building them one soon! Now I think its time to focus on other things to encourage self sufficiency. Green tunnels (weather allows growth all year!), technology, running water, SCHOLARSHIPS to further education…Im so excited…and tremendously blessed. Thank you for wanting to share my story, I was so excited but have always been so concerned about sounding boastful. I know where my reward is, honestly I feel a little selfish in how good it makes me feel to do the things I involve myself with. But I also would love nothing more than for others to find what it is that makes them truly happy. I believe its sharing with others however it may be. Its in our nature to be compassionate, I dont gotta tell you that. I just think that if people would do what they can, wherever they are, with whatever they have, the world would be a better place in ways we cant even imagine. In all reality, Im soo broke, lol but I love & I hoop, Its what I can do & each month I have a cause that I choose to support with that. I think Ive finally found my focus & that makes me so proud …Thanks Miles, be blessed

Natallie