Bible Lesson Turns Into Action
On Wednesday nights in Oklahoma, 11-year-old Haley and her 15-year-old sister, Erica, get together to study the Bible with their youth leader, Win. As part of their Bible class, the sisters learned that many kids around the world struggle to get clean water for drinking, bathing, cooking and washing clothes. Win taught them that kids in Kenya have to walk long distances to get water, which must be boiled to kill germs. Haley and Erica realized that a filter that purifies water would make those children’s lives much easier.
“When we did our Compassion study,” Haley says, “we learned that whenever the people from Compassion give the people these water filters, they also give them the Gospel message.”
It’s important to Haley and Erica to know that kids around the world learn about Jesus.
Erica says that giving children water filters saves them physically but also offers a chance “to save them eternally.”
The girls worked with Win to come up with a plan to raise as much money as possible.
The sisters’ goal was to raise $237, enough for three water filters. And their organized plan paid off. They ended up raising $1,600 — so much that Compassion can give clean water for life to 21 families!
"It felt like we had made a big impact, and it felt satisfying."
— Haley
Make fliers.
Haley likes to design, so she made paper fliers saying why she and Erica were raising money for water filters. Her tip for fliers: “Put your most important facts out where people can see them most.”
Create a video.
Erica made a video called “Give Love. Give Water!” Their Bible study leader posted it online to share, and she made a Compassion fundraiser page at ActForCompassion.com/give-love-give-water.
Set up a booth in a busy place.
The girls asked the manager at a health food store if they could set up a table outside. Then they talked about water troubles around the world and collected donations from people who walked by.
Tell everyone you know.
The sisters asked family, friends and church members to donate $1 for every faucet they had in or outside their homes.