This year’s September Campaign is focused on Rwanda, where we’re
raising money to give clean water to 26,000 people in Rulindo District.
To overcome the worst of humanity after the 1994 genocide, they
had to reimagine justice and redefine Rwanda’s place in the world.
Meet the survivors, leaders, and workers who are building solutions to
the country’s biggest problems and replacing poverty with prosperity.
We’re turning six. To celebrate, we launched the September Campaign to bring clean water to the people of Rwanda.
From tragedy to triumph, Rwandans have rebuilt their country faster than anyone thought possible. Now, they’re working to give clean water to every single person. You can help.
In one night, EastLake Community Church raised $709,034 for charity: water. At Drinks4Drinks, a benefit concert, Pastor Ryan Meeks jokingly suggested they reversed the first miracle of Jesus by turning wine into water.
The Herding Cats warm up the crowd at Drinks4Drinks.
The EastLake community underwrote the entire event so they could uphold our 100% model and send every penny of the funds raised that night straight to the field. With it, we’ll help our partners, Samaritan’s Purse, teach families in Cambodia to build their own biosand filters (BSFs). We’ll also train communities on health, sanitation, and hygiene and show them how to take care of those filters for years to come.
In 2010, a church we’d never heard of popped up on our radar. They were trying to raise $16,000 to build wells through a campaign called Drinks4Drinks. That year, they went on to raise over $400,000, giving clean water to 12,500 people in Central African Republic. (Check out their water projects.)
In December 2011, EastLake was the biggest sponsor of our annual charity: ball and gave $100,000 to fund our operations. Twenty-eight church members flew to New York to attend the event and rushed the stage during the live auction, promising to match Tyler Perry’s $500,000 pledge to fund water projects in Cambodia.
On August 3, 2012, EastLake hosted their second Drinks4Drinks to raise the $500,000 they pledged in December. Over 2,700 people packed the church hall that had been converted into a concert venue, decorated with LED lights and a four-foot tall disco ball. The parking lot was transformed into a biergarten serving local brews to the jeans and T-shirt-clad crowd, many of whom hadn’t set foot in a church for years.
In between sets by the cover band, The Herding Cats, Pastors Ryan Meeks and Jeremy Johnson hosted a live auction. At the end of the night they had raised enough to provide 54,541 people in Cambodia with access to clean water and exceeded their goal by $209,034!
But this isn’t a one-off event. EastLake has woven charity: water into their ministry and mission. This “church for the rest of us” makes clean water projects a budget line item and gives $5 to charity: water in honor of every first-time visitor. They even have two foosball tables in the children’s ministry area that cost 25 cents per game–all proceeds go to charity: water.
Pastor Ryan, easily moved to tears, urges his church to be “doers of the Word [the Bible] and not hearers only.” EastLake will continue to fundraise as a community though campaigns started on Drinks4Drinks.com through the end of the year.
-Stacie Zellmer, School and Faith Liaison
charity: water
We all watched as the first charity: water rig, Yellow Thunder, and the drilling team from our partners at Relief Society of Tigray (REST), prepared to break ground. We watched because we were waiting for the people of Meago Village to get their first clean water. Located in Northern Ethiopia, most of the people here were used to walking three hours for water.
Because in 2010, Jada and Will gave up their birthdays for charity: water. They inspired thousands of others to raise money over the course of a year and promised to bring the top fundraisers on this trip.
Last Friday, Jada and Will joined Matt Hall and Dr. John Nosti from The Smile Generation and Cameron and Suzanne Moll of Authentic Jobs, in Ethiopia. Longtime charity: water supporters and fundraisers, The Smile Generation and Authentic Jobs together raised more than $95,000 as a part of Jada and Will’s Birthday Contest. 100% of the money they donated helped fund the purchase of two drilling rig fleets for the 2011 September Campaign.
Now, in Meago Village, they got to see exactly where their money went. In less than three minutes, Yellow Thunder hit its target, and a geyser of water burst from the ground.
Soon, more than 400 people here will have access to clean water. No more three-hour walks. No more dirty drinking water. Children can go back to school. Women can start earning income for their families. Water will change everything for this community.
Everyone who gave during the 2011 September Campaign, everyone who fundraised for the Smiths’ Birthday Contest. And of course, extra special gratitude to Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith for their graciousness and generosity, and to the dedication of The Smile Generation and Authentic Jobs. Life here just got a little better because of you.
Now, you can follow the rig’s day-to-day progress and check its location via Twitter.
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