Four years and growing! Today we honor Eryn’s father, Mac Rawley, the inspiration for Mac Mission Incorporated, the official name of our Macpack charitable organization. We also remember Ryan Reddick, dear friend, housemate, and the organizing dynamo behind Macpack. Even though these two men never met, they shared the same sense of respect and understanding of homelessness, and the importance of community service.
Eryn and I watched over the years as Mac seemed to be drawn to any homeless person he saw, taking the time to talk with them, listen to their story, and even invite them into our home, on camping/fishing trips, and to share a meal. His fascination was born from both a philanthropic nature, and the very visceral knowledge that “there, but for the grace of God, go I.”
These ideals carried over to Eryn in her adult life, and she began putting together backpacks with comfort/survival items on her own as one of her many personal community service activities. Soon after Mac died, she decided to formalize their shared philosophy by establishing a not-for-profit organization in his name.
Enter Ryan Reddick! Ryan had committed himself to community service early in life, and possessed the organizing experience and technical expertise to bring Eryn’s project to a much wider population. Ryan credited his mother for his interest in service, and had a deep understanding of Eryn’s motives and connection through her father. Ryan served as the first VP/Treasurer for Macpack, and generously spread the word to his family, friends, and associates. Macpack is greatly indebted to Ryan’s loving contribution.
While we continue to mourn both Mac and Ryan, we are pleased that Macpack continues to grow and help support the homeless in Austin. We are especially grateful for the continued support of our family, friends, and other Macpack supporters and donors, and look forward to expanding our work in educating people about the causes of homelessness, working with other service organizations, and continuing to produce and distribute Macpacks.
Come be a part of Macpack!
Details on the upcoming Macpack Tag Sale coming soon!
Visit our GoFundMe page!
Watch for exciting announcements very soon!
