Clean Water

Celebrating Well #8, Launching Round #9!

October 30, 2023 Alison Clean Water, Kids No comments

Round #8 is officially DONE! We are so proud of all of the kids who pitched in to sell elephants and spread the word about Set Free so that another well could be drilled in India. This well provided clean water to 6,500 people in Southern India, thanks to 50 kids here in America that decided they wanted to make it happen!

To date, Crowdsourcing Kids have provided clean water to 28,017 people since we launched five years ago. Ready to do it again!? We’re launching Round #9 on Wednesday, November 1st. Here’s what this round will look like:

Each kit will include 9 small elephant ornaments, and 1 large elephant ornament handmade by young ladies rescued from slavery in India.
Crowdsourcing Kids will sell the 9 elephants for $12 each, and the large elephant for $17, generating $125 for Set Free.
When 50 kids each do that, we’ll have enough money to drill our 9th well in India! We’ll be able to give the gift of clean water to a village that has waited a long time for this simple resource.

Ready to get involved and be a world changer!? We’d love for you to get join!

You Did It! Our 7th Well Report!

February 7, 2022 Alison Clean Water, Kids No comments

A 7th kid-powered well is now giving clean water and hope to an entire village in India thanks to Crowdsourcing Kids! Back in August on World Elephant Day we launched Round #7 of Crowdsourcing Kids. Dozens of kids, along with Greenville Community Church, sold 500 handmade elephants to fund our 7th well drilling project in India.

Kids CAN Change the World

We are happy to share that because of the combined efforts of kids like Maizey (13), Laila (11), Hannah (15), Elliott (5), Hudson (8), Willow (3), Nash (5), Haven (7), Abel (5) and so many others we were able to make this happen:

Life Before the Well

The villagers living here are low caste. That means they are treated very poorly, and often valued as worth less than animals. Because of that, there have been no efforts to improve their water supply. They were forced to rely on a hand-dug well. But when that water source dried up, they were traveling to an open well outside the village that contained very dirty water.

Third Time’s a Charm

Thanks to Crowdsourcing Kids and our ministry partner Set Free, we were able to send a drilling crew to this village for a life-changing mission. Finding fresh, clean water didn’t come easily, however. It took the drilling crew three attempts before hitting fresh water. But they did not give up! And the village’s 9,562 people are so glad they didn’t! Because now they have a clean water source.

Children Reunited With Families

Not only did this Crowdsourcing Kids well provide clean water for nearly 10,000 people, it also offered an opportunity to restore families and share the love of Christ. Through the drilling of the well, the Set Free partner pastor heard of children that were taken into slavery from the village. The pastor helped free 36 children from slavery and reunite them with their families in this village.

Let’s recap that and let it sink in…

Kids in America sold 500 handmade elephants, raising $6,250.
That money funded drilling a well that gave 9,562 people clean water.
Through the well-drilling, a visiting pastor helped free 36 children from slavery and reunite them with their families.
Thousands of villagers have heard the Gospel and many are part of a weekly Bible study.

WOW! By now we all know kids can change the world! Get your child involved with our next round of Crowdsourcing Kids! We’ll be launching Round #8 soon so stay tuned!

Well #6: Giving Clean Water to Thousands of People

February 23, 2021 Alison Clean Water No comments

Well kids, you’ve done it again! You’ve worked hard, sold elephants, and raised money for Set Free so that we could drill our sixth well. This time your dedication paid off in a big way. We were able to bring clean water to 3,985 people! This round was different than any we have done before because all of these elephants were ornaments!

Claire from Set Free shared the details about the new well drilled in the village of Ramalayam Street, Ramuda, India:

Before the drilling of this deep well, the remote village of Ramalayam Street, Ramudaremote relied on wells that were hand-dug decades back. Their water tables had depleted and they had run dry. Until you helped drill this new deep well, the villagers were responsible for collecting water in nearby villages for their families. Because of this, many children were not attending school because the task of collecting water often fell on them.

Just like here, this village has dealt with the coronavirus pandemic. Immune systems were weakened for so long by dirty water that many in the village were having a hard time fighting the virus. With this gift of clean water, health conditions have drastically improved! The villages are so thankful for this gift.

Well #5 Report: Clean Water for 3,980 People!

October 15, 2020 Alison Clean Water No comments

Because 50 kids in America decided to pitch in during a global pandemic and each sell 12 handmade elephants, 3,980 people in the village of Naidu Palem have clean water! Isn’t that amazing?? This is our 5th Crowdsourcing Kids well drilled in India.

Life Before the New Well

Previously, the village of Naidu Palem relied on four hand-dug wells that have dried up. When these wells ran dry, the women and children began collecting water from a river far outside the village. Because of the financial strain brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, both parents needed to work to help support their families. Due to their lack of easily accessible water, many of the wives couldn’t support their families because their time was used to collect this dirty water.

Why This Village?

Our partners in India assessed the village’s needs, and our pastor partner arranged for the drilling of this deep well to begin as soon as possible. Once the drilling of this well was completed in August thanks to the money raised by the Crowdsourcing Kids boxes sold, men and women rejoiced because they had more time to work to support their families!

What the Gift of Clean Water Means to Them

Drinking dirty water impacts a person’s health in many ways. One of the issues it creates is damage to the immune system. Because of this, many residents of this village struggled with illness. They had a difficult time fighting COVID-19 and one person there even passed away from the virus. But now that they have access to clean water, residents report feeling healthier overall, and there have been no Coronavirus deaths.

We are excited to announce the launch of round 6 of Crowdsourcing Kids. These 50 boxes of elephants will help fund the drilling of a well in another village in India that desperately needs access to clean water. Will you and your family help?

Teaching Compassion: School Sells Elephants to Fund Well Drilling in India

August 14, 2019 Alison Clean Water, Kids No comments

Sixth grade teachers Jean Crosby and Lynn Connelly at St. Joseph’s Catholic School are always looking for ways to teach students life lessons that extend beyond reading, writing and arithmetic. They want students to learn things like compassion, kindness and the importance of serving others. But, how do you teach kids compassion? With that goal in mind, they invited Set Free’s Executive Director Sarah Kelley to the school to talk about the ministry’s work in India. “Her message was so beautiful,” recalls Lynn. “[Set Free] wants to take care of the whole person, not just the water, but also spread the message of Christ.”

An Eye-Opening Message

Sarah’s stories deeply impacted the students. They learned how children, just like them, don’t have access to clean water, and how others are forced into slavery. The students even practiced carrying jugs of water, just like children in Africa and India must do for their families. Sarah explained how Set Free works to share Christ through the gift of clean water, and cares for hundreds of children pulled from slavery. “I think our little 6th graders found it hard to fathom,” says Jean. “A lot of them did not know there was still child slavery.” Lynn adds, “when they realized there were children in slavery it really touched their hearts. They wanted to do something.”

Can We Sell These?

The teachers knew their students were taking the message to heart because 60 of them sat quietly the entire time, soaking it in. The students heard about how the rescued girls make stuffed elephants as a way to learn a trade so they can gain employment and end a cycle of poverty. “[Our students] were like ‘can we sell these?’ When they heard it was helping others it took on a life of its own,” says Jean.

Young Seamstress Makes Elephant

Elephants Practically Sell Themselves

The students started selling elephants and the goal quickly expanded. The school now hopes to sell enough elephants to fund an entire well drilling project in India. “[The elephants] sell themselves. We just didn’t know it was going to take off,” says Jean. “We had the elephants in our rooms and the kids came flooding in.” The school plans to adopt this project again for the 2019-2020 school year, when the theme will be ‘compassion.’ “I think for the students it’ll be very meaningful that they were able to accomplish this as young as they are,” says Lynn.

Get Your School Involved!

Do you teach, attend, or know of a school that would like to sponsor a well in India or Africa? Selling elephants is a great way to incorporate math and entrepreneurship into lessons. Learning about the country teaches geography and history lessons. We’d love to support you in your goal! Please reach out and let’s change the world!

Crowdsourcing Kids Gives Clean Water to Entire Village

March 10, 2019 Alison Clean Water, Kids No comments

Crowdsourcing Kids launched on World Water Day 2018. In less than a year elephant sales have helped fund four well-drilling projects, bringing clean water to thousands of people! Last fall the children that sold elephants made it possible for Water of Life to drill a well in the village of Gorrepadu. This is a life-changing gift for the 1506 people that call this village home.

Village receives clean water thanks to Crowdsourcing Kids

People in this village in India now have access to clean drinking water thanks to Crowdsourcing Kids. This well was completely funded because 50 kids sold boxes of handmade elephants! This was an answer to prayer for the people here who struggle to secure work because they’re often focused on finding water. This is a life changing gift for them!

Taking a drink of clean water from the new well.

The plaque installed at the base of the new well says “This bore well is dedicated to Jesus Christ.” It also shares a Bible verse, John 4:14, “But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst.”

Plaque hanging at new well

On World Water Day 2019 we will be launching another round of Crowdsourcing Kids. This is a chance for 50 more kids to be part of funding a well-drilling project in India. If you would like to get your child involved, you can purchase a box of elephants on March 22. On World Water Day we will launch the next round of Crowdsourcing Kids. Sign up to be on the waiting list now!

Village residents enjoying new well

They Drilled It! Introducing Our First #CrowdsourcingKids Well in India!

August 23, 2018 Alison Clean Water No comments

Thanks to the combined efforts of 50 kids, the first #CrowdsourcingKids well has been drilled in India, providing fresh drinking water to 414 people in the village of Bangarumetta. According to our partners on the ground, this village used to rely on a tank that collected water from the hills, but for the past several years that water has not even lasted two months out of the year. That means the rest of the time villagers had to go to water sources far away to collect water, a job that often fell on school-aged children.

The Pastor for this village visited every Friday to lead services and share the Gospel. The well arrived, presented as a gift from Jesus, which only serves to strengthen the faith of the people there. Pastor Praveen created this thank you message especially for the children who sold elephants, funding this well-drilling project.

Want to get involved with helping to drill our second well in India? Right now there are boxes of elephants available. It’s a fundraising-kit-in-a-box that includes everything your child needs to raise money for our ministry partner Water of Life. When all the elephants from these 50 boxes are sold, we’ll be able to drill our second #CrowdsourcingKids well!