Family First had its annual Challenges and Champions Dinner this past weekend, and it was a great event. It’s always held on a Thursday in November, so I hadn’t been able to attend the last couple of years since I was coaching in Indianapolis. I was amazed to see how it has grown and was also pleased to get to visit with a lot of Family First supporters.
There were several highlights during the evening. Family first honored Sherwood Pictures as its Ambassador of the Year. Sherwood has released several inspiring movies such as Flywheel, Facing the Giants, and Fireproof that have been box office hits, but have also had the larger goal of pointing people to Christ.
My wife Lauren, and my mother-in-law, Doris Harris, were honored with the iMOM Inspiration Award. They shared their stories of raising children, caring for foster children, and adopting infants. Both of their stories were inspiring and people were amazed to learn that my mother-in-law did a lot of her child-rearing after her biological children had left the house – when she was in her 60’s and 70’s.
A gentleman named Matthew Mooney was awarded the All Pro Dad Father of the Year Award that’s named after my dad. Matthew has an incredible story of his son Eliot, who was born with a congenital condition that took his life after only 99 days on earth. However, Eliot is continuing to have a tremendous impact on people because of Matthew’s unique way of sharing his story through a ministry called 99 Balloons.
The evening ended with best-selling author and speaker Max Lucado encouraging everyone to overcome their fears by placing their faith in Jesus Christ. It was a great ending to a wonderful evening. It was nice to be a part of it again
