(Before you read any further, please know this: I have an agenda and I'm going to ask you for money. You may stop reading now if that sort of thing isn't your bag.)
First, watch this:
The story of charity: water - The 2009 September Campaign Trailer from charity: water on Vimeo.
I realize there a countless charities in the world that need time, money and help to succeed in all of their respective and extremely worthy goals. I fully and completely understand this.
But as I watched this video last week for the first time, I was struck by two things: first, the power of a single person with an amazing idea and two, most obviously, the things that I take for granted every day when I go to make a pot of my beloved half-decaf, half-caf coffee: clean water.
And I was extremely moved.
People with ideas like this inspire me. People with ideas like this make me want to do whatever little bit I can do to help them succeed with those ideas. People who think beyond what they might initially deem possible are heroes, plain and simple.
Because I was so inspired I immediately went and signed up to run a clean water fund-raising campaign. Why? Because I have you and I have this blog and I am insanely lucky to have a platform to talk about anything. Period.
And I got to thinking of it like this: what if 1,000 of my readers, rather than giving up what they might get for their birthdays, took just 5 dollars that they might spend on products for a few scrapbook pages and gave it to charity: water? That comes out to $5,000. And $5,000 will fund one fresh water, life-giving well for a community in a developing nation, enhancing both the quality and safety of the lives of those who live there.
Five bucks. 100 percent going to the goal of clean and safe drinking water. 100 percent tax deductible.
My challenge to you? Give up what you might spend on a few layouts and raise a glass to clean water.
You can donate via my campaign page which is here. And, you can learn more about how the funds provide a range of water solutions in developing countries here.
What do I get out of this? The same thing you get. I feel good and I feel like a global citizen.
I also get to feel like every now and then I can use my blog for something a little more than simply vacation stories and rants about my chubby mid-section. And I get to thank all of you for reading as well as getting involved.
Learn more about charity: water here.
I have 86 days left in this campaign.
I love the idea that scrapbookers, and then some, can provide a clean glass of water a half a world away.
One in six people don't have access to clean water. I feel very blessed and fortunate to live in a country where this isn't a part of my daily existence. How about you?
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As an added incentive, at the end of this campaign, I'm going to draw a winner from the names of those who've contributed, and give away a totally awesome box of scrapbook goodies to someone.
Just because.
Thanks everyone. And thanks for reading.
I'll keep you posted on the progress.
