'You guys make the best hat ... In the World!'

"The best hat ... In the World." Well, OK, then!

Sometimes we just have to share the nice stuff that people say. And Real Deal Brazil fan Nathan Cantu of Lynchburg, Va., who sent us an email with that very same declaration of our awesomeness in the subject line, also included this:

"I love my RDB Hat! After my first summer working at a camp in Texas, I knew I needed a decent hat, but can't rock the classic Texas Stetson. A friend recommended the RDB hat, and after I realized it was "The Zombieland Hat" I knew I needed one of my own. It's stayed with me through the whole summer, and kept me cool in the sun, and dry in the rain! I love it! I attached a picture (above) of four of us at camp all geared up to go to battle with the camp property. During yardwork on a 100+ degree day, this hat was a God send! ...

Thanks again for making a great hat!"

The Real Deal Brazil. Not that we're braggin' or nothin' ...

Real Deal Brazil hats go places, and do great things!

Serving meals to the homeless at a regional dump in rural Zacapa, Guatemala.

A lot of phenomenal folks are out there doing their Real Deal best to make the world a better place, with our hat proudly tagging along for the ride. And that fact just makes us grin, knowing we’re aiding in a tiny bit of the good, even if only by association.

That said, meet Real Deal Brazil hat owner and middle-school teacher Greg Crow of Charlottesville, Va.

Back in January, Greg took a trip to Zacapa, Guatemala, with 22 fellow parishioners from his church, The Point Church of Charlottesville. With help from Virginia faith-based humanitarian agency World Help (http://worldhelp.net), Greg’s group adopted a village, population 700, in this mostly rural area at the southeastern end of the country.

His group plans to help the village for the next few years with everything from clean water to food, education and more.

“We will assist them with their physical needs,” Greg wrote us, in sending the pictures you see here, “as well as minister to their spiritual needs.

Feeding a child at a Zacapa orphanage.

“I have traveled all over our planet doing similar work,” Greg added, “and have never seen poor and starving children like this. We ended up feeding children at (a) regional dump, because of the overwhelming need there. We couldn't just drive by (after seeing them there), and leave them with nothing.

“In fact, it was such an overwhelming trip that my wife and I are leading a (church) team back there in August.”

Want to learn more about Greg and his church’s efforts in Zacapa? They have a Facebook page; search Village Project Guatemala.

Sifting riverbed rocks and sand to make concrete for a Zacapa home-building project.