In 2021, our team supported a charity: water project. 100% of the funds given will go to the project we funded, which is a well with a hand pump in Zimbabwe that will provide clean water to a community of about 150 people. Water projects are permanently marked with a plaque recognizing the group that funded it.

In 2022, we want to involve our community – clients, family, friends - in helping fund another project that will bring clean water to 200 people or more. Through charity: water, we have started a community campaign that makes it very easy for anyone to give. Here’s our goal: fully funding a clean water project costs $10,000. We want you, our community, to raise that amount to fully fund a water project.

And if we hit that goal? Colorado West Investments will match that amount with another $10,000. Through this group effort, we could provide clean water to more than 400 people who don't currently have access to this precious resource.

100% of the money will be used to build clean water projects, and when they’re complete, charity: water will send us photos and GPS coordinates so we can see the exact community we helped.

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Striving to build wealth is at the center of the work that we do. But beneath the surface, our hope for our clients (and for ourselves) is that as we help build wealth, we can also be helping move beyond wealth. Purpose. Experience. Relationship. What lies beyond wealth is different for everyone. One priority for us is Generosity. For those of you who have gotten to know us, hopefully one thing you’ve come to understand is that we try to be consistently generous. In 2022, we want to push that boundary further.

It’s important to us that any new charitable endeavor not affect the engagement we have with the local communities we live and work in. In 2021, we supported 45 different non-profits and charities, 40 of which are local to Colorado’s Western Slope. We say this not to pat our own back, but to be clear that charitable giving in our backyard is a core value of ours, and that’s not changing.

But the reality is that limiting our giving to the Western Slope is exclusive. More specifically, it leaves out two groups that are very important to us. First, it excludes clients who don’t live in Western Colorado. We want all our clients to be able to participate in the joy of our giving (after all, we couldn’t do it without you!), not just those clients who live in the same place as us. And it also excludes the global community. The needs faced by those in the third world are often overwhelming. An astounding number of people live without access to reliable meals, secure shelter or clean water.

So, here’s our message to you. If you're charitably inclined and have the means we want you to give. We want you to support whatever you’re passionate about. Give locally and give internationally. If you are looking for a new charity to support, tools like Charity Navigator rate charities for accountability and transparency.

We have given to national and international groups like St. Jude’s, Young Life and Doctors Without Borders, and we’ll support those outstanding organizations again in the future. But this year we are excited to support charity: water.

In the coming weeks, we’ll be sending out a series of emails. We’ll send status updates about the community campaign plus some creative ways to be savvy about giving, regardless of where you give. We hope you'll join us on this journey towards generosity!