Can you imagine being thirsty and not having water to drink?
Or maybe, if you could get water, you would have to walk 2 miles for it, carry
it in a bucket on your head and even then, it wouldn't be clean water. What if
your only source of drinking water was a disease-filled river where animals and
people use the bathroom?

I can't imagine what that kind of life would be like. I am blessed to have the
privilege of going to the refrigerator, the faucet, or a water fountain anytime
I want to get a clean, cold, tasty beverage and I never have to worry that it
will be contaminated with bacteria that will likely kill me. For those who know
me, I am never without a Vitamin Water Zero (or two). :)

Not long ago, I saw a TV show about a country in Africa whose population is
nearly 50% orphaned children under the age of 15. Many of them were orphaned
because their parents (and often their siblings also) died from a water-borne
illness. My heart was broken by the thought of these children going without
clean water and being forced to drink the same diseased water that had taken
the lives of their loved ones. I also learned that most of these children never
get to go to school because they spend the majority of their day in transit to
get water just to stay alive.

I knew I needed to do something to help. I think sometimes we all feel we would
like to help but it seems like such an overwhelming project for one person to
do. That's when the idea came to me that it doesn't have to be a one-person
project. It can be something that involves all of my chorus students, all of
the other students at Conner Middle School, and even the people in our
communities in the Northern Kentucky Area! Mrs. Pennington and our CMS student council are also getting involved. If we all work together, we can
build a well in an African community that will give life to all who drink from
it for years to come. What a long reaching impact that will have!

Beyond anything I can teach my students about singing, I want them to know the
greatest thing they can do with their lives is to help other people. 
Often, the world we live in makes us think one of the main objectives of life
should be trying to get as much as we can for ourselves. I submit that one of
the main objectives of life is to spend ourselves on behalf of others. That's a
true investment and not only will it change and save the lives of others, it
will change our lives in a positive way too. Nothing feels as good as helping
someone in need.

If you're a parent of one of our students, you will be pleased to know that CMS
students have responded in a beautiful way to the idea of sacrificing a little
for the sake of others. I'm so proud of their great attitudes and their desire
to share what they have.

I encourage you to please consider giving generously to this project and help
Conner Middle School build a clean water well in Africa. There are many ways to
give. We will be accepting donations at our African/Water themed spring concert
on April 28, 2014 at Conner Middle School. In March, we will be participating
in a two-week Water Challenge. This involves students committing to drink only
water for two weeks and then contributing to the water project the money they would have spent on
other beverages. Another way to give is through our
on-line fundraising page here at thewaterproject.org. Any amount you can
give will go a long way toward saving lives. We appreciate your help!

Becky Bertelsen