"If I Could Cha-a-ange The World"

It's the Christmas Season. Be charitable!
Have you heard of the book, Leaving Microsoft to Change the World by John Wood?
Basically, this big wig from Microsoft went to Nepal and decided to take a bunch of books with him for the people there. The people were ecstatic, as many of them had never seen a book before in their lives. He was so moved by the experience that he left Microsoft and started a non-profit organization called Room to Read that raises funds to build schools and libraries.

AMAZING.

Two of the girls I work with at church have also decided to do something AMAZING! They started raising funds this summer and are getting CLOSE to their goal! I am so proud of them for all the hard work they have done, and want to help them in any way I can. Here is a copy of the email they sent to everyone they know:

Seriously. Read it. I am aware that half the crap on my blog could really go without being read by anyone, but these girls are on FIRE and what they are doing is actually worth the 1.5 minutes of life that you would ordinarily spend reading about poop, vomit or the daily mix of love and embarrassment that is my blog.

Hello,

This is Jamie and Heidi (for those of you who don't know us, we are 16 and 13 years old) and we need your help! We have a simple but very exciting idea that will change the world. We have recently learned about an amazing non-profit organization called Room to Read that helps build schools and libraries in Nepal, Cambodia, India, Laos, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, South Africa, and the newest country, Zambia. The organization benefits children that have not had the privileged lives that we have, with books readily available to us. Can you imagine growing up without story books, or never learning to read? Our goal is to raise $4,000, which will fund a school library for these children. "The concept of a school library is virtually non-existent in many of the communities throughout the developing world" (Room to Read webpage).

John Wood, the founder of Room to Read, uses a system called the "Challenge Grant" Model. This requires the community to provide about half of the resources for their new school or library. Usually, this takes the form of supplies and manual labor, because they cannot afford to give money. This system has worked extrordinarily well. The communities take ownership and pride in their schools, and therefore, maintain them well. These children are so excited to learn, they just need the opportunity.

We will be making peace bracelets and selling them for $5 each to raise most of the money. We would really appreciate your support, and we will be accepting donations that will go directly to this library. We'll appreciate anything from $1, to $100, to $1,000, because every dollar will count. If you are in the one to ten dollar range, please still send it because many hands make light work! Please help us make a literal difference in the world. With your help, we know we can build this library and hundreds of children will have the joy of books for the first time in their lives.

WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP?!?!

• make a donation yourself
  
• sell bracelets in your community (contact us for more information)
• have a fundraiser of your own and donate the proceeds to the library (car washes, bake sales, etc.)

If you would like to learn more visit http://www.roomtoread.org/
We recommend you watch the video at:
http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/rough/2007/06/nepal_a_girls_l.html

And if you really want to catch fire on this idea the way we have, read John Wood's book, Leaving Microsoft to Change the World.

Thanks for your love and support!

As we raise funds here, we will be forwarding the money directly to Room to Read, where 90 cents of every dollar go directly to benefit the kids. Please make checks payable to ROOM TO READ and send funds to:
P.O. Box 5933
Bella Vista, AR 72714

We are going to do this!!!

Heidi and Jamie

Ok, it's me again...
I talked to Heidi this week, and they are over halfway there!!! I am so proud of them and as much as I want this project to be a success, I also love that they are giving the gift of literacy. Can you imagine how different your life would be if you couldn't read??? We are so lucky to live in a country where literacy not considered to be just a privilege for the elite. Most of you will not be interested in the cutesy bracelets they are making, but consider sending even $1 in the mail to support this cause. I KNOW a lot of people read this blog, and if Jamie and Heidi only have less than $2000 left to raise, to fund a school with a library, well I think we can help them get a little closer. Check out the Room to Read site, to see that it's legit, watch the video if you want, then get your checkbook, an envelope, a stamp and donate! The address info is listed above in Jamie and Heidi's letter.

It's a dollar.
For charity.
For literacy.
Send $5 if you can, and forgo the Taco Bell run this week.
Burritos for world literacy. It's a worthy sacrifice.