A class assignment to change a small part of the world led Abbey Mattson to become involved with The Water Project, a non-profit organization with a mission to bring healthy water sources to people in lesser developed countries.
“There are a billion people in the world who don’t have clean drinking water,” Mattson said. “I wanted to help change that in my own small way.”
Her goal is to raise enough money to help build a well to bring clean water to those who need it most.
Mattson first came up with the idea after her speech teacher gave each student $20 and challenged them to change a small part of the world. Some students thought of local projects, but Mattson wanted to do something more.
“I’m pretty ambitious,” she said. “I wanted to find an organization that worked overseas to fix something that would help people who couldn’t fix it themselves.”
Mattson became involved with The Water Project and set up a fundraising website. The first donation was her $20, and the number has grown from there.
So far, Mattson has collected about $200 toward a goal of $3,500 by her deadline of Dec.31. The funds will then be sent to wherever they are needed most.
“At this point, that will probably be Kenya,” she said.
Recent projects by the organization have also been in African countries such as the Sudan, Uganda and Rwanda.
As a fundraiser, Mattson is challenging her fellow students. The Water Challenge asks participants to drink only tap water for two weeks. Any money that would have been spent on other beverages like soda, coffee, juice, bottled water and energy drinks is then set aside. At the end of the two weeks, the savings are donated to Mattson’s cause, with all of the proceeds going directly to build a well and bring clean water to a community in need.
Mattson has brought some of her fellow students and friends into the project, including Alfred Gardner, who had a very personal reason for becoming involved.
“After she brought the project to me, it made me think of my two cousins,” he said.
When they were children, Gardner had cousins who lived in Ghana. They kept in touch through letters until they contracted malaria and died. For Gardner, contributing both money and time was an opportunity to spare other families the pain he felt in losing members of his family.
“It’s a way for me to give something back to Africa,” he said. “I didn’t want anybody else to feel that feeling.”
Involvement with The Water Project, and organizations like it, is an opportunity for students to make an impact on a world in need. According to the World Health Organization, 115 people die every hour from diseases related to poor hygiene, poor sanitation and contaminated water. Worldwide, one in five of children who die before age five die of water-related diseases.
“We all have so many things” Mattson said. “This is a way to think about people who don’t.”
Alfred Gardner agreed.
“It’s a way of being grateful, a way to give back what I’ve received,” he said.
Any who are interested in contributing should visit Mattson’s fundraising website, www.thewaterproject.org/community/profile/abbey-mattson. Questions can be directed to Mattson by e-mail at amattso1@emich.edu.
