I'm turning 25 this year and in the spirit of turning a quarter of a century old and using 25 years worth of resources on this Earth I am asking for donations instead of gifts.

My birthday falls on World Water Day and therefore I want to celebrate and raise funds for Charity: Water. Charity: Water is a non-profit organization bringing clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations. There are currently 663 million people on the planet who don’t have clean water. That's nearly 1 in 10 worldwide. Clean water is something I take for granted everyday and I hope to make this fundamental human right accessible to every person on this Earth.

I will be running the Tobacco Road Half Marathon three days before my birthday and hope to raise $1000 dollars for Charity: Water by the time the starting gun goes off! In addition, all the proceeds from registration fees and sponsorship for this race go to the following charities: Hope for the Warriors, American Red Cross, Triangle Rails to Trails Conservancy, and JDRF which supports type 1 diabetes research.

Any donation you could spare would be greatly appreciated (they are also tax deductible!) Thank you so much for helping me to celebrate my 25th birthday by doing some good in the world!