Small Things Change the World!

I saw good news last night on TV. That was such a rarity I thought it needed to be blogged!! But before there is good news, there must be the bad.

• More than 5,000 children are dying every day as a result of water-borne disease.
• Millions of Africans lack access to clean water.
• The lack of clean, accessible drinking water is the second largest worldwide killer of children under five.

Our neighbors across the world are suffering. I heard someone recently ask “Why should we worry about people across the world when America has so many needs of its own?” I have two answers for that. One…because we CAN. God’s blessed us and we should give it away. Two… I had to answer the question with a question, “So exactly what are you doing to help with domestic needs?” No response, not surprising.

Okay, where is the good news in that? So glad you asked! Americans have exactly what it takes to bring clean water to our global neighbors…CASH and CREDIT. This week area businesses are helping us to Engage in this Reality. In simplistic, yet creative way you can help be the difference between life and death for children just by going out to eat. This week restaurants are asking patrons to pay $1 per glass of water as a donation to The Tap Project, an effort by UNICEF to bring clean drinking water to children in countries where a cup of safe water is often a luxury. How awesome is that!?! Even if you prefer tea or soda, which is usually $2 in restaurants, splurge a little (you are American, we are good at that) and buy yourself a nice cold, clean glass of water. A small action can go a long way. In this project, $1 provides one child with safe drinking water for 40 days!!

Bottled water in America is now a $4 billion a year business. And most of us are blessed to have clean tap water everyday. It is easy to take that for granted. We give thanks before we eat, but what about before we drink our single most bountiful resource.

So the next time you take a drink of water, thank God for it and pray for those without it. You can make a difference. Below are the restaurants in our area that are participating (I hope there will be many more next year!) and websites that give you more information on this issue.

Be aware and make a ripple!!
Christy

Greenville restaurants participating in the Tap Project (Sunday, March 16 – Saturday, March 22):
- Blue Fire Grill - The Blue Ridge Brewing Co. - Brown Street Club - Devereaux's
- Flat Rock Grille - High Cotton/Maverick Bar & Grill - The Lazy Goat - Midtown Deli
- Overlook Grill - Restaurant O - Rick Erwin's West End - Snapshot Café
- Soby On The Side - Soby's

http://www.tapproject.org/

http://www.bloodwatermission.com/ (if you don’t make it to a participating restaurant this week, you can make a $1 donation here anytime)