panicREV Race Night Review

Looking back, I can’t believe I haven’t published a blog in about five months. When I started this blog I was thinking it would be updated bi-monthly, so for my tardiness I apologize. With that said, it has been a long and rough five months. Hmmm, where, oh where to start …

On April 28^th 2007, we held our panicREV Race Night at Starwest Mx Park. Truly the night was a blessing. My friend Toby may have said it best, “After a long drive home, putting the kids down, and unloading the truck I sat on my drive way and thanked God [for such a great night/race]! What a blessing it is to be able to gather to do something we love in the name of whom we trust ... ah, the essence of being ‘United!’” In all honesty there was something glorious about the night. It was powerful to see everyone come together united and giving glory to the Lord. In the end, we had over 250 race entries and about 19 motos—it was a great turn out.

With that said, the major purpose of panicREV putting on this event was for it to serve as a fundraiser and that is where the event fell a little short. Unfortunately there was a miscommunication between us and the track—it wasn’t anyone’s fault just a misunderstanding. Without going into details we were simple unable to the funds we had hoped for (we had hoped to raise approximately $4,000). Thankfully we were able to raise enough money to cover the money we had invested in advertising for the event and break even.

What about the raffle and 50/50? I will personally chalk that one up to a “live and learn” experience. In total we sold $900.00 in tickets; however, I personally made the mistake of investing too much money in raffle prizes. When all was said and done, we ended up raising under $200 on ticket sales.

So in the end where did that leave us? If I am honest, at the time, this experience hurt me personally. It was something the whole panicREV team poured a lot of time and energy into, yet we fell well short of our projections and goals.

So was it worth it? Looking back, I have to say it was worth it without a doubt. Where the event as a fund raiser belly flopped, it was a total blessing and success in all other avenues.

Where does that leave us? Honestly, I am not sure. We hoped that this fundraiser would not only sustain us throughout the year, but also launch towards reaching the vision the Lord has given us for the future. Maybe this was the Lord asking us to slow down; maybe it was a bump in the road, testing our commitment and resilience—the reason the funds were not raised is still playing out. However, there is no doubt that in God’s perfect plan there is purpose!

So what is next? We really need people to step up to the plate in support of this ministry. Moreover, I personally feel there is someone out there that God has been molding—molding into the man or woman He has called to serve this ministry in the area of fundraising and finance. If the Lord has been speaking to you about serving with panicREV and you are gifted in the area of fundraising and/or finance, we would love to hear from you—we would love to hear from you and your service is no doubt needed.

There is a lot more to update everyone on: from John Martens coming out from Kansas as the panicREV Intern, to RELEVANT (our weekly Bible Study in Corona), to the panicREV Summer Retreat September 1^st and 2^nd; however, I will leave all that for next time. I will trying my best to write a blog at least bi-monthly like originally intended as well.

Until then, keep your eyes and hearts focused on the Lord!
Scott Parkinson