On September 22nd, I will be turning twenty years old. I am asking you, instead of giving me a birthday gift, to donate $20 or some other amount to the organization Charity: Water. This organization is helping to provide clean water to those who lack access to a safe water source. Tragically, nearly 1 billion people fall into that category.

I was in Poland with my grandfather this summer, visiting the places of his childhood that were wiped out in the Holocaust. As he recounted the horrors that he was subjected to, he implored to his grandchildren: "Whenever you see injustice in the world, you must take action and cry out; you must help not only Jews but non-Jews as well, everywhere, at all times."

This charity drive is one small step to fulfill my grandfather's wish. As you may know, I hope to spend my career helping the world's most vulnerable populations, and I dream of a society that will choose to spend its money not materialistically or selfishly but rather towards poverty relief and charity. Please help me realize these goals and prove that they are not mere naivete. This charity is incredibly important to me, and I hope to one day raise the $5,000 needed to build a well. I ask you to do all you can to help me achieve and surpass these goals. If you can donate more than $20, please do; and if you cannot (for all of you in school or the army) please spread the word to your parents, family, and friends. I started this project out with a goal of raising $400; since then we have more than doubled that! Let's keep surpassing our goals. Thank you so much for helping me be a part of this incredible endeavor.