Responses July 28-31

1) Live my lief (as written)
2) Stay sober one day at a time
       Response: you can do it if I can <3
3) Go to South Africa with my family
4) Trust
5) Forgive and heal
6) Ride in a hot air balloon
7) Forgive and heal
8) Be friends
       Added by someone else: "Again"
9) Love like God
10) Get married
11) Be a good father
12) End racism/biogtry
13) Go to Greece
14) Surrender
15) Sink Monsanto
16) Create a lasting piece of art
17) Have 3 pet dogs at one time
18) I want to visit Haifa
19) Hold grand babies
20) Give peace a chance
21) No GMO's
22) Sing to Jesus
23) Fall in love and stay in love
24) Be happy
25) Have my family together
26) Wear a kilt
27) Go back to Rwanda
28) Go back to England
29) Discover more amazing places with my girls
30) Happy Bday Laura
31) Pet a lion
32) Meet Osama Bin Laden
33) See a share your ground law
34) Complete our family and grow joyfully old together in Christ
35) I have to be happy
36) Meet my grandkids
37) Be a mom

Responses July 25-27

1) See world Peace
2) Meet Tony Hawk
3) Be a pro baseball player
4) Quit my Job
5) Go to a Justin Timberlake concert
6) Save somebody's life
7) Be a makeup artist
8) Go to Italy
9) Diabetes
10) to Tahiti
11) my grand kids
12)  a bike in Paris with my Frenchie in the basket
13) Have my family together
14) a navy seal
15) invited to my cheap friends for a hot dog
16) Fart in the Amazon river
17) Be a mom
18) Go back to England
19) Fit in with people
20) Write a great song
21) Play an instrument
22) Seethe world
23) Marry my partner
24) Travel abroad
25) Be remembered for an amazing song
26) Praise the Lord
27) Snowboard the world
28) Change the world
29) Help lots of people
30) Swim with dolphins
31) Go to giraffe manor

Responses after the Hunter Hayes and Steely Dan concerts (July 23-24)

One of the reasons the Kettering Before I Die wall is receiving such a great community response is the placement of the wall. The wall is located right next to Lincoln Park and the Fraze Pavilion. The last two days, the musical stylings of Hunter Hayes and Steely Dan have enjoyed a sold out crowd. With so many people passing the wall to and from the show as well as other people enjoying Lincoln Park it makes for a wall full of responses. 

1) Get my girls back

2) Beat every Zelda game

3) Be a mom

4) To see my son succeed in life

5) Run/bike across America

6) Lead others to Christ!

7) Save somebody's life

8) Fall in love

9) Go 2 Italy

10) Marry the man of my dreams

11) See Hunter Hayes

12) Love and be loved

13) Find Jesus

14) Inspire someone

15) Kiss an Austrailian

16) Austin Helton

17) Meet the Pope

18) Be a grandma!

19) Have a body like Beyonce...and become a ninja

20) Have a strong, fit body - like God intended

21) Keep my best friend for eternity

22) Be happy

23) Understand

24)  Milk a bow

25) Marry Bow Wow

26) Go to Hawaii

27) Moo at a cow

28) Swim with dolphins

29) Lead over 75 people to Christ like Paul

30) Experience a miracle

31) Find a mate

32) Kiss Hunter Hayes

33) Witness a miracle
34) Matter
35) Meet Tom Cruise
36) Run a 1/2 marathon
37) Marry my best friend
38) Marry Mara Shaneyfelt 
39) Write a book
40) See both my boys turn 40
41) Find true love
42) Summer road trip with my best friends
43) Deliver the goods
44) Marry Patrick Winans
45) Wrestle a bear
46) Change the world
47) Travel out of the USA
48) Stay in love!
49) Find lasting friends
50) Visit everywhere!
51) Marry me (response to "Find a mate")

What's Next? Storyline

Want to go beyond writing your hopes, dreams, and ambitions on a wall? 

Want to live a life with purpose and direction?

 Living an intentional life with purpose and direction isn't something you naturally do. That part takes practice, commitment, and discipline. 

As part of the Before I Die wall, we are encouraging people to take a look at Donald Miller's "Storyline". Growing spiritually is an important part of a person's life journey. Learning how you fit into God's story can bring purpose to the story you craft for your own life. "Storyline" is a process that can help you find answers. It can be done individually, in a small group, or as a therapeutic process.

Storyline works to help you:

• Understand where you fit within God's story
• Clarify your amibitions
• Embrace, rather than avoid conflict
• Use climactic scenes to reach your goals
• Filter your decision through a life theme
• Inspire others by living a great story

For more information about Storyline visit the Storyline blog/website.

Responses July 21-23

1. Lead family members to God
2. Whale and bald eagle watching
3. Live in New Mexico
4. Be a spiritual director
5. Do a show!
6. Travel the world
7. Have a 50th wedding anniversay
8. Live to be 100 years old
9. Grow more in love with EKS
10. Go to China
11. Try out for drum major
12. Swim with sharks
13. Go back to Hawaii
14. Kiss a dolphin 
15. Catch a snapping turtle like turtle man
16. Leave a positive legacy
17. See a shark
18. Go to Texas
19. Travel to Southern Europe
20. Show my children a peaceful world
21. Happy, independent children
22. Travel through all Spanish speaking countries
23. Become Tina Fey
24. Become Tina Fey's BFF
25. See a Bengal's Superbowl win
26. Go to Spain
27. See gay marriage legalized
28. See my grandchildren
29. Break a record in pole vaulting
30. Catch a muskie
31. Back flip on my bike
32. Learn to play guitar
33. Own my own bakery
34. Take a cooking class in Italy
35. Learn to cook
36. Bike Maine to Washington
37. Ride the Tour Du France
38. Be successful!
39. Run a marathon
40. Live
41. Travel da world
42. Marry my soulmate
43. Become a paramedic
44. Fall in love

Artist Statement for the Logo

Meaning of the Logo

Wanting the Before I Die wall in Kettering to be a bit different, we opted not to use the pre-packaged stencils that the original creator of the wall used and now sells. Instead, we decided to use a design created by Adam Cassidy, a member of Christ Church, who recently graduated from Miami University with his degree in Graphic Design. Adam's designs have been used in other Student Ministry projects including a mural, t-shirts, and other logos. He is very talented and currently in sunny Florida working as a graphic design intern for "the Mouse" at Disney World. 

Here is the artist statement for the logo: 

"The 'Before I Die' logo is primarily a typographic mark, using different typefaces to spell out the name of the project inside of a speech bubble. I decided that the speech bubble was an appropriate concept for this logo because sometimes it's not enough to just think about the list of things we want to do before we die. In order to actually complete that list, we have to declare them and say them out loud. We have to share them with other people. It's when we start to share these things with others that they begin to become real. That list of items becomes a promise to ourselves, and we have a better chance of actually doing those things if others are holding us accountable."

Time Lapse Creation of the Wall

Here is a time lapse video of the creation of the wall in just over 4:00 minutes. The video is set to the tune of Barenaked Ladies' "Some Fantastic". Below are the lyrics to the video as well as how the song fits into the “Before I Die” concept.

Before I Die from Christ United Methodist Church on Vimeo.



"Some Fantastic" 
 
One day I will build a fountain
Drink and never grow old
Then I'll market an elixir
that will eliminate the common cold
Find your sickness on my list
Pay up front and make a wish

One day I will work with animals
All the tests I'm gonna do
All my stuff's completely natural
And when we're done we'll boil 'em
down for glue
that we can use to re-adhere
your lips to mine if you were here

There's a lot I will never do
Some fantastic, I know it's true
But none as much as my want to be with you

I can't stand to wait in line long
So I built a new machine
It just measures up the distance
and then eliminates the folks between

One day I'll construct a satellite
and I'll name it after you
'Cause you were the greatest friend of all
except for when you split my lip in two
To see the look upon your face
as I launch you into space

There's a lot I will never do
Some fantastic, I know it's true
But none as much as my want to be with you

Bye-bye self-respect
I haven't had much of it since you left
I missed out on the best of you

Some day I will find the secret
to your social chemistry
Then I'll print it on a t-shirt
and it'll make you want to be with me
If I wear it past your work
you'll see other guys are jerks
Much like pheromones for flies
you will not avoid my eyes

There's a lot I will never do
Some fantastic, I know it's true
But none as much as my want to be with you

Bye-bye self-respect
I haven't had much of it since you left
I missed out on the best of you

[Repeat]

How the song correlates with the "Before I Die" concept

This song describes someone who has lots of ambition and desires to accomplish great things in life. This person also knows that there are a lot of things that he won't do (even "some fantastic" things) . However, this person also sees the value of being in relationship. The relationship he is talking about is no more (perhaps by death or because the relationship has simply ended) leaving the person reflecting on how that person impacted him. Sometimes we get too lost in dreaming about all the fantastic or fanciful things we might want to do that we forget to focus on the things and people right in front of us.The Before I Die project wants to help people realize what really matters in life, this Barenaked Ladies song can act to help in that reflection. 

It's Raining, It's Pouring

While the weather didn't call for rain until today, it unexpectedly began to pour down on Friday afternoon. This is what the wall looked like after the rain. You can see traces of people's responses but it's now a clean slate with yesterday and today's rain. 

Be sure to check out the wall and share your dreams and ambitions. Help spread the word about the project! Word of mouth is the best form of getting the word out about anything. You can invite friends to visit and/or take a picture and post it on your favorite social media site and use #bidkett to see what others are saying. 

The Wall: Bringing People Together

Not only has the Kettering/Dayton community responded to the wall (there were over 100 responses in less than 100 hours), they are responding to each other.

As you can see in the photo above, one person put "Marry Emma Watson" the first day the wall was up. The next day, someone also shared their love for another Harry Potter actor by sharing their dream of one day marrying Daniel Radcliffe.

The below section of the photo has two people who dream of going on a mission trip to Africa. It's hard to see, but in the arrow connecting the two panels it says "Let's go together!"

Where is the wall?

The wall is located at Christ United Methodist Church in Kettering, Ohio (3440 Shroyer Rd). It is located on the back of the church property, between the picnic shelter and the driveway along Lincoln Park. 

If you have ever been in the Fraze for a concert/event or strolled along Lincoln Park, you can't miss the church               (and now the wall)! 

Still not sure where it is? Click here to get directions!

Responses from July 15-18 (in pictures)

First Wall Panel

Second Wall Panel

Third Wall Panel

Fourth Wall Panel

Fifth Wall Panel

Sixth Wall Panel

Responses after 12 hours (in pictures)

Full view of the wall after 12 hours

First Wall Panel

Second Wall Panel

Third Wall Panel

  

Fourth Wall Panel

Fifth Wall Panel

Sixth Wall Panel

Responses from July 14-17

The wall continues to grow with responses! Some of the responses bring laughter to the reader while other responses causes one to pause and reflect on their own life. Here are the latest responses:

1. Attend 3 grandchildren's graduations

2. Life right and moral

3. Marry Daniel Radcliffe (found just above an earlier response of "Marry Emma Watson")

4. Go skydiving 

5. Write a book

6. See a diversified Congress

7. Live!

8. Go to Morocco and Senegal!

9. Find a family soon

10. Milk a cow

11. Own a famous cupcakery

12. Live in New Zealand w/ Claire Rebihard

13. To see my daughter become a mother

14. Zumba

15. Be able to retire and have fun

16. Change someone's life

17. Make your proud of me

18. Be on the Amazing Race with Brittany Mae Mefford

19. Become fluent in Spanish and French

20. Achieve serenity

21. Have a fun family vacation

22. See all 50 states

23. Live big!

24. Celebrate 50 years of marriage

25. Learn to surf

26. Ride an elephant

27. Reach the top line (found at the bottom of the wall)

28. Mission on every continent

29. Learn to yodel

30. Meet Lil Bub

31. Rock great grand kids

33. Throw out a first pitch at a baseball game

34. Meet my grandchildren

35. See my grand kids grow up

36. Visit New Zealand

37. Visit all 7 continents with Brittany Mefford!