David and Courtney's story

My name is David Clevenger and Jake has inspired me to grow out my beard for the Blanchards. I am the proud daddy of two little girls and want to do my part to help another couple grow their family.  My wife & I knew we wanted children. We weren't sure it was part of God's plan for us though. We thought we were doing everything right. We had been married six years, established our careers & bought our first home. When we decided to start trying, we thought we'd be expecting within a few months. But months became years. Years of tears, hopelessness & doubt that we would never hold our own child. My wife went through several different rounds of fertility treatment. I finally told her to stop and we accepted that we may not be able to conceive a child. Three months later, we learned we had a baby on the way! Grace was born in August 2004 & she truly is my amazing Grace. Four years later, Grace became a big sister to Austyn. God has blessed us abundantly. Being a daddy is the best thing on Earth, no matter how you become one. I know those of you reading this have gone through or know someone who has gone through the same struggles as the Blanchards. I ask you to please open your hearts & wallets to help this family receive the same blessings as we have received.

SnowBeard

88 Days

SnowBeard! It is the best thing to have while riding a snowmobile.  It carries water and ice for when you are thirsty.  It comes off in 88 days.  

88 days til Shaveoliday!

88 days until this Beard is removed for the Blanchards.

Lets help them add one to their family by donating.

90 DAYS

90 Days left to donate!  The beard wants to go to a new family.

David Clevenger

David has volunteered his beard. His beard of the highest quality, red!

SHOCKED

Finley was a little suprised that I would shave my beard!

She just loves it so much!

The Origin

I am going to start with the origin of my beard.  For several years, my wife and I were trying to have a baby.   We had experienced several heartbreaks along the way.  I could see the love and want for a child my wife was carrying, along with sadness in her heart.  In December 2011 while traveling in Japan, I met a man from Norway named Tor. He told me, “In my country if you are a father, you have a beard.”  I decided to give it a go and let mine grow.  In May 2011, I found out my wife was pregnant!  Then, in February 2012,  we had a beautiful, healthy baby girl, and I had a glorious red beard.

I now see the same love, want, and sadness in some dear friends of mine.  I want to give The Blanchards the same love in their lives that I have every day!  I can attest to the love they have by the way they care for each other and my own daughter.  Should something ever happen to my wife and me, I feel Our Girl would be abundantly loved in their safekeeping. The Blanchards have decided to adopt!  However, the process of adoption is lengthy and expensive.  While I cannot speed up time, I feel that we can relieve the financial burden. 

I have decided to publicly shave my beloved beard in an effort to raise funds for our friends.   I invite you to share in this process in several ways: 1) I ask you to give generously. We all have children in our lives, whether they are born to us or you have chosen to take them in-- and you can’t put a price tag on that love—so give what you can!   2) Join in the “Shavings for Savings” effort by choosing a hairy spot in need of a good shave, gather sponsors willing to watch you grow it out and razor it smooth.  All money raised goes towards lowering adoption costs.  Grow a beard, razor an eyebrow, shave a pit, cut a leg, shear a head…the possibilities are limitless.  I will shave my beard on the first day of spring, March 20, 2013 in Edmond, Oklahoma.  This is the time when flowers bloom and new life abounds…

A PayPal account has been set up in The Blanchards’ name and 100% of the proceeds will be applied to offset the cost of their adoption.  If, by a miracle , we raise more than needed the remainder will go to the Touch a Life Foundation to help end child trafficking. 

If you would like to help out by actively participating in “Shavings for Savings” please contact me:

beardfortheblanchards@gmail.com