In January, 2010 co-owner of TitleTown Publishing, Christine Ertl, will be traveling to Kampala, Uganda with a group 12 St. Thomas students and staff from St. Paul, MN to create positive change, spread joy and build hope. She will be working alongside and directly with members of the Kampala community to build a chicken coop for the local orphanage, serve in schools and clinics. Check out her new website, Sole to Soul.

Christine says:

The bottom surface of my running shoes say a lot about me. The wear and tear along the pads and heels show the miles I have tread and the time I have committed. The discolored and dirty surface displays the seasonal weather conditions I’ve endured. While this seemingly ordinary physical description could be compared with many running advocates, it’s what’s written directly on the soles of my shoes that tells the real story. It is a healing journey that brought me through the roughest terrain and now I want to bring those same soles to Uganda – with your help.

Before each run, no matter how long or short, I gather up my running gear and a pen. Anything that stands out from my day, touches my heart or is on my mind goes from inside me to the bottom sole of my shoe. It is where in one or two words, a symbol or a mark I am able to physically express what is going on inside. By expressing my soul on the sole of my shoe, I find inspiration to keep going when I feel I cannot go farther. It is a physical way for me to run on, for and because of all that inspires, frightens and ultimately, all that makes me who I am today.

I am not a natural runner by God given talent. I do not stand out as particularly fast or swift. But what can be seen is that I keep going when my asthma makes gasping for air difficult. Running for me is not always enjoyable. It is not easy. It is a challenge to continue when your body says give up.  I find inspiration while running by embracing all that knocks me down and all that builds me up. My running shoes are my journal.

By allowing myself to visibly write in word or symbol what I am feeling and then channel those emotions physically, it has been a blessing in my life and for those around me. I am healing step by step, no matter the pace at which I walk or run. To have time set aside to rejuvenate myself mentally, physically and spiritually has helped break down the walls I have built up because of abuse.

In May of 2007, I, along with my mom, a fellow crime survivor, ran a half marathon on the Great Wall of China to bring awareness for sexual abuse. We wanted to once and for all conquer the walls in our lives by taking on the biggest wall we could find. In doing so, we spoke out to our local community about our journey from abuse victims to survivors.

I will add Uganda to that constantly evolving journal but I will need some help to get there. We are volunteers and we pay for our own airline tickets, lodging, meals and immunization shots to be able to go. My goal is to empower others to find the sole to their soul; to reach and to believe.

As a survivor of sexual abuse, writing on my soles has become a positive outlet in my journey to becoming a survivor. Through the experience of training for and participating in an international race (our first race), I have grown as a person in small steps and giant leaps. It has shaped my identity as a leader because I know you can do the impossible if you have a goal, a good support system and a strong passion. By identifying in my life what inspires and frightens me, I know where I need to continue to grow. By channeling all of those thoughts while walking or running, I am closer to being more of who God calls me to be with each step I take (literally).

Please walk with or run with me as we take on Uganda together! We need to work as a team but we also have to believe in our own ability to self-sustain. You’ve all probably heard of the “Dirty Dozen” --- I am part of the “Hopeful Dozen”, taking on Uganda in a sole to soul battle. We will stay at a convent and with families to save money, but more importantly to immerse ourselves in the culture so that we can be of help. One of the duties I will have is to help build a chicken coup. A Ugandan orphanage is one of the areas where I will be working and the leaders are working to establish an on-site bakery. The coup will help them provide the eggs they need to be self-sustaining. Small steps. Just like when I write on my soles and run through and on what challenges to hold me back.

As many of you know, human-trafficking is a significant issue in Uganda and the trading of abductees into the sex trade very real. Given my background, this is another issue of importance to me. My university has a strong Ugandan population and some of those classmates will serve as guides when we go in January. This is not a vacation or tourist excursion. Their job is to guide us through the region and work to keep us safe as we work to make a difference and learn.

I’m taking my soles and my soul into a region where human-trafficking is an issue and it is my hope to make a difference over time by combining the influence of TitleTown Publishing with my passion to help. You cannot write about or publish an impactful book about an issue if you stay on the rim of the center.

This is my beginning to bring all of us closer to that center. I am just one 20-year-old combining forces with another 11 people to try to make a difference. My mom, the founder of TitleTown Publishing, has mentored me to believe that I can make a difference regardless of my age or experience and not to wait until I am 40 to reach. I am a young business woman as co-publisher of TitleTown Publishing but it is my hope to not only learn and help within the region but empower these new bakery entrepreneurs to be successful and provide for the orphanage.

No donation is too small. No strike at the center of challenges is too small. Let’s go at it together, sole to soul. What will you write on your sole today?

Authors Mike Dauplaise and Lynda Drews at their release party