For 38 years, the Northwest Girlchoir (http://www.northwestgirlchoir.org/) has championed extraordinary music education and performance opportunities for girls and young women. This month, in honor of World Water Day 2011, the choral organization championed something else … clean water. From concerts performed in two locations in the Seattle, Washington area, the choir’s Artistic Director, Sara Boos, decided that the groups would put their artistic talents to work to fund clean water projects, one internationally (in Africa), and one locally (toward Puget Sound’s clean-up).
Join These Folks and Start Your Own Fundraiser
Models 4 Water began while brainstorming over a kitchen table about how to help the people of Burkina Faso, Georgie’s homeland.Through our...
Total Raised: $30825.00
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Total Raised: $25651.80
The people of Grace Capital Church have been giving to clean water projects since 2007 when their youth gave to a water project after hearing of th...
Total Raised: $23000.00
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Join the folks below and get your class or a group together to raise money for our next project. Learn how easy it is to give up something simple, so you can give the gift of clean water.
Each of the teams below chose to get involved, to tell people about the need of clean water, and then raise money to build a water project. We want your story too! Send us comments, pictures and video from your Water Challenge or other fundraiser and we'll post it here.
Northwest Girlchoir Sings for Water with Beautiful Results
Tuesday, April 5th, 2011Just because I’m 8 years old doesn’t mean I can’t do this
Tuesday, March 22nd, 2011
Winn Murray is an 8 year old boy in Macon, Georgia who is changing lives … not only in Africa where his fund raising efforts will bring clean water, but right in his home town. In fact, Winn’s simple but bold act of caring has inspired 7 more schools in Macon to get involved. In fact to date, we’ve sent out over 1,000 wristbands that proclaim “I’m Giving Water!” to these schools … wrist bands just like Winn and his classmates wore in early March when they carried water for a day to raise awareness and support for clean water.
You can support Winn’s Fundraiser here »
Michelle Gowan, Winn’s REACH teacher, shared with us, “This year, our curriculum focus has been infusing technology into our discussions of scarcity of food, energy and water around the world. When we studied the inequitable distribution of resources around the world, my class decided to purchase a goat to send to an African family. They collected about $130 by doing extra chores and we donated the goat through World Vision. When I began my lessons on water, I really had no intention of building a well because it was difficult enough for us to get enough to buy a goat!” But Mrs. Gowan wasn’t counting on Winn! He decided to do something. The issues of unclean water resonated with him, and he started his own hometown revolution. (more…)
Amazing effort. Incredible results. Count us inspired!
Thursday, March 10th, 2011
What do water wells in Sierra Leone, senior projects, spaghetti dinners, an auction, a day spa and an inspirational fundraising effort have in common? Olivia Coury!
Olivia is a senior at Daniel High School and has been working on her Senior Project since early in the fall of 2010. Olivia’s passion for Africa and knowledge of the need for clean, safe water inspired her to fundraise for water projects in communities in Sierra Leone. To date, Olivia has raised nearly $12,000.
In her research to find an organization to work with, Olivia said, “I wanted to hear stories of struggle, hope, and redemption–of real people with thoughts and feelings and ambitions. I guess what I’m saying is that The Water Project showed me, in a tangible way, the people behind the numbers that I wanted to help.” And help she did.
Bryson and Andrew’s Read-a-Thon for Water
Monday, February 7th, 2011
Bryson and Andrew are working to raise money for myWaterProject! The boy’s goal is build two wells for a community.
They are planning to read all that he can in the month of Feb. Together they have set a goal to read 1000 pages. They are looking for people that will sponsor them at a penny a page for this effort.
Here’s what Bryson has to say…
“I don’t want other kids to suffer because I am a child and I get all the water I want… I want every kid to be able to get the water they want too. It makes me feel happy to think I could help other kids be happy and get water to live. I hope all of you will help me in the water project to bring clean water to kids and adults everywhere.”
You can follow their blog at http://brysonandandrew.wordpress.com/
Raking for Water
Monday, January 31st, 2011
Not sure how to raise money to help fund a well? Here’s an idea…
This past fall, Hannah and her friends decided to raise money in their North Carolina neighborhood by doing yard work and donating the profits to The Water Project. Hannah and four of her friends raked and bagged leaves for their neighbors.
With just a few simple tasks, they were able to raise over $1,000 to help fund a well! And so not only did they help their neighbors with their leaves, they are now helping their global neighbors find clean, safe drinking water. Their creativity and hard work will make a real difference in many lives. Soon, a community in Sierra Leone will have a newly repaired well.
You can follow the progress of that project here at http://thewaterproject.org/community/projects/sierra-leone/full-wash-for-a-school-in-sierra-leone-567/
Carrying Another’s Burden
Monday, December 6th, 2010
Photo Courtesy: Swikar Patel | The Journal Gazette
How do you teach little children about the water crisis? Our new friends at the Bunche Montessori Early Childhood Center had a fantastic idea… Why not have the children experience what it might be like to gather their own water every day?
So, for the past couple of weeks, that’s exactly what they did. Each morning students had the opportunity to struggle with a gallon of water, hauled in from a tap outside their classroom. It’s a lesson they won’t soon forget.
Children, not much older then themselves, carry out this same chore day after day in countries like Uganda and Sierra Leone. Of course, there is no tap outside their classroom. Instead the trek is often miles, and the water they eventually fetch is rarely clean or safe.
This little guy couldn't quite manage to carry a whole gallon, but he was determined to take part!
The students at Bunche spent a month learning about these truths while they raised funds to help build a water project. Each of them got personally involved and quite literally carried the burdens of another. In doing so they learned just how much their help truly matters.
Now, thanks to these students, life will soon be changing for students just like them at one school in Sierra Leone. The money they have raised will be used to repair a broken down well. Hundreds of students will then have access to clean, safe water right outside their classroom, just like the students at Bunche.
We’re so proud of their hard work! And we can’t wait to show everyone who participated the actual well they helped fund.
You can follow their project at http://thewaterproject.org/community/profile/marilyn-horan
Gaming for Water
Wednesday, December 1st, 2010
Can video games change lives? The twelve teens who took part in a recent “Game-a-thon” to raise money for The Water Project sure think so.
On November 19-20, 2010, the group from the DC area played video games nonstop for 12 hours to raise money for our Wells for India program.
The teens collected donations and “per hour of play” pledges leading up to the event. At the end of the night, they had raised $1700 toward a new water project. Organizer Shannyn (mom of one of the participants) described the night, “We had a leader board on the wall and a fundraiser ‘thermometer’” on the wall tracking the donations. When we hit our ‘goal,’ the kids were shouting and screaming and cheering. It was really awesome.”
Thanks to these teens, a thirsty community will soon be enjoying clean, safe water!
You can see what they accomplished here: http://thewaterproject.org/community/profile/shannyn-snyder
North Way Christian Kidz GIG Raises over $9,000
Thursday, August 12th, 2010
This June, North Way Christian Community, a church in Wexford, Pennsylvania, hosted their annual summer camp, Kidz GIG. The objective of the week-long camp was to teach kids about the importance of service. The result: kids modeling true service to the entire church.
Kidz GIG, accepted an ambitious challenge. Inspired by the Water Project (www.thewaterproject.org), 330 kids and close to 200 leaders, agreed to drink only water for 5 days and collect the savings to build a well in Africa. We set a considerable goal of $6,000, enough to build a complete well, and believed that God was going to accomplish this through the hearts of our children.
Thanks Toronto!
Monday, June 28th, 2010
Toronto 5K Run
We want to send out a HUGE thank you to Catalina Urtoi who organized a 5K Run on May 20th in Toronto, Canada to benefit The Water Project. Together they raised $1,000 to help fund a well.
5k runs are an especially powerful way to show support as so often, moms and children walk upwards of the same distance every day, just to find water in developing communities.
Thanks to the Toronto runners, one community in Africa will no longer have to!
Columbus Signature Academy Funds a Well
Thursday, June 17th, 2010By Karen Quackenbush – 2nd Grade Teacher
Columbus Signature Academy is a new project/technology based school in Columbus, Indiana. Our curriculum is powered by student driven projects and the 21st Century skills of technology. So our students determine what we will be working on, and teachers guide the process.
Our Well Project began when Olivia Linnemann, one of the students in my class, shared about her family’s project to help build a well in Ethiopia. Her family had adopted triplet babies from Ethiopia and decided that they wanted to help those people in Africa who needed clean water. When Olivia shared this with the class during our morning meeting, Molly Dye, one of my other students, raised her hand and asked, “Could we help drill a well? The whole class immediately jumped on board and became excited about helping other students like them far across the globe. The idea that they, as 2nd graders, could help save lives, gave true meaning to project based learning.
