Dear Friends,

Back in January, Phil and I started this 10-month "Give Back Campaign" with the goal to fund a well to provide clean water for an entire village of 250-400 people. This campaign was started in honor of all of my dear friends and family who supported me emotionally, spiritually and financially (over $1,300 in donations for my medical expenses) in my darkest times of sickness and pain.

During my sickness, I came to appreciate the value of water since that was the only thing that could pass through my system safely at the time. The more appreciation that grew for water, the greater my conviction grew for the billions of people without it.

In the middle of my medical battles, I heard a sermon about giving. The pastor found in his research that Americans spend roughly $450 billion on Christmas gifts per year. It takes $10 billion to cure the world's problem of clean water as the lack of it is the source of 14,000 deaths PER DAY and the source of 80% of sicknesses in the world. Now if everyone gave just 2% of what is spent on Christmas gifts, this problem could be solved. Wow.

So, in lieu of birthday gifts this past birthday, Phil and I asked friends to support us in sponsoring a well for a village of 250-400 people in a third world country. It takes $5,000 to build this well and to train villages how to properly maintain it. The well would provide the whole village with 20 years of clean water!

Currently, we are in our last 3 months of this campaign and thus far have gathered $3,000 from personal monthly donations and gifts but still have $2,000 more to go by the end of November, when this campaign ends. We hope you can support us to build a well for those in need of clean water!

Thank you so much!

Julie and Phil

" learn to do right!
Seek justice,
encourage the oppressed.
Defend the cause of the fatherless,
plead the case of the widow."
- Isaiah 1:17