Pancake Palooza!

Last night, over 150 students showed up to Brooks College and enjoyed some pancakes made by the Water Works team. Almost $200 was raised, all of which will go to build wells for communities in Rwanda. A lot of people got to hear about the mission of 10 Days and The Wells Project. Woot! If you picked up one or a few raffle tickets, the winning numbers should be posted on our webpage soon. Thanks to everyone who came! If you couldn't come, check out these pictures.

Batter Blaster! It looks like whipped cream, tastes like pancakes!

Matt, making those pancakes as quickly as possible.

Marissa tells students about TWP and 10 Days.

Lissa and Patrick at one of the few moments they were not making pancakes with Batter Blaster. They had it down to an art.

Kelsey and Marissa at the raffle/information table

In the words of Patrick: "Just in case you couldn't tell, that pancake is indeed in the middle of an acrobatic flip off of the spatula from your's truly."

10 Days Events

10 Days of Water starts October 10, and The Wells Project has been planning the different events throughout the ten days.

Here's a rundown of the schedule:

Friday, October 7 at 8pm

Phil Wickham concert

Common Grounds

                This concert kicks off the 10 Days three days before it actually starts. This means you can come by the ever-so-popular hangout, grab your favorite drink (before you sacrifice it for water and wells for the world), and enjoy the melodies of Phil Wickham while aupporting The Wells Project. Tickets are $15. You can buy them here or from the cashier at Common Grounds.

Monday, October 10 from 9:30-11pm

Pancake Palooza

Brooks College Great Hall

                Come by to enjoy some free pancakes. Yes, free. Of course, since one of our main goals that week is to raise money for a well in Rwanda, we will accept donations and will raffle off gift certificates from Pei Wei, Chick-Fil-A, and other local restaurants among those who donate $5 or more. But come one and all  and enjoy pancakes made by us with batter provided by Batter Blaster, even if all you do is eat and learn a bit more about the purpose of The Wells Project.

Tuesday, October 11 from 4-6p

3 Spoons Profit Share

                If you are like many other Wacoans, you probably were going to 3 Spoons sometime during this week anyway, so why don't you come this day from four to six on this Tuesday? When you purchase your froyo, just mention 10 Days at checkout, and 3 Spoons will donate 25% of the profit made from your purchase to TWP. So while refraining from your favorite drinks, treat yourself to a healthy cup of yummy yogurt and in turn, help treat someone in Rwanda to a fresh glass of clean water.

Monday, October 17 at 7:30p

Documentary & Dessert

Kayser Auditorium in Hankamer School of Business

                 58: The Film is a documentary highlighting ways God is using His church to end extreme poverty in the world. The film, named after Isaiah 58, invites you about these issues and what we can do to better the lives of people around the world. After the showing, co-hosted by TWP and Baylor's International Justice Mission, there will be a time of discussion led by a representative from Living Water, followed by dessert.

So join us for this evening of inspiration, empowerment, and fellowship.

Tuesday, October 18 - all-day

Walk for Water

Fountain Mall
          This is a chance for you to engage in an act of solidarity with those who have to walk for water. In places without a local clean water supply, women and children walk miles to the nearest source, which is usually contaminated, and must walk back carrying the heavy containers. During this event, you'll pick up a jerrycan full of water and bring it around with you during the day. This is a great way to experience a fraction of what some people around the world do everyday, and when people ask you why are carrying this thing around, you can promote the cause of the 10 Days and The Wells Project.

             

Wednesday, October 19 from 9-10p

Worship & Justice Night featuring O, Loveland

SUB Den

               To wrap up the 10 Days, TWP is hosting a night of worship led by O, Loveland. (I saw them at After Dark; they were wonderful.) Come join us to pray for the thirsty and that our Lord's justice will reign in this world.

Look for upcoming posters and more information around campus. Hope to see you at these events!

Sincerely and with peace,

TWP's Water Works

A Late Night & a New Year

Hello! Well, it's the beginning of 2011-2012 school year, and The Wells Project at Baylor has begun another year of raising awareness among college students about the world's water crisis.

Wells Project is an organization active on at least a dozen college campuses around the U.S. All the money it raises goes to Living Water International, a non-profit organization that builds water wells across four continents (North and South America, Africa and Asia).

Our first event of the year was Late Night at the "SLC" (actually the Bobo Spiritual Life Center). TWP ("The Wells Project") members got the chance to talk to a lot of interested (and some merely passing) students about our organization and its mission. 157 students asked for more information about joining TWP and/or participating in 10 Days! Woot!

Kelsey, Matt, Dustin, Lissa and Emily enjoyed the dirt water at Late Night at the Bobo.

Speaking of 10 Days... it is coming up! It will start October 10 and end ten days later (hence "10 Days") on October 19. (Note: Yes, 19-10=9, but count the days on your fingers starting with "10" and I bet "19" will land on your tenth finger. Sorry if you feel patronized, but I had to do this myself.) For these 10 Days, participating students will drink only water and donate the money saved to the Wells Project. 
Think about it:

One tall white mocha frap from the new (and exciting) Starbucks in Moody = $3.95

One Dr Pepper from a vending machine = $1.25

One Route 44 cherry limeade from Sonic (at a frustrating 4:01pm) = $2.48

One 254 from Common Grounds = $3.63

One slender can of stay-awake poison (some people call them energy drinks) = $2.00

Total = $13.31

In one day, it would not be unusual for an average college student like you or me to buy these things. Multiple the total of these drinks by ten, and you get $133.10. If fifty of these hypothetical students decided to drink only free water, they would together save more than $6655. 

And with that, they could save much more than money (and calories). If most of it was donated to Living Water through TWP, the money would be around enough to build a well and save a whole community from the dangers of unclean water. By choosing water, they could save lives. Water can be just as tasty as good ol' DP when you know with each sip you are bettering the world.

If you'd like, watch this video about 10 Days. (Try to spot one of Baylor's own in it.)

The Wells Project will launch 10 Days with a Phil Wickham concert at Common Grounds on October 7, the Friday before 10 Days actually begins. Come hear more about the project and other 10 Days events. (And come hear Phil sing. My favorite song is his "True Love." Find it on Grooveshark. It's lovely.) Other events include a Pancake Palooza and a documentary screening.

Pancakes. Yum.

More information to come about 10 Days events and a TWP interest meeting planned for the upcoming weeks. If you are dying for more info NOW, check out our Facebook page.

Thanks for reading! Wish you a blessed week and peace for the inevitable first round of tests.

Sincerely,

The Wells Project Water Works

The Wells Project in The Lariat

The Wells Project was recently featured on the front page of The Lariat! Read the full article here: http://bit.ly/dEHnVW

IJM's Tunnel Of Oppression

Recently, The Wells Project was invited to participate in IJM's Tunnel of Oppression. The Baylor Chapter of International Justice Mission is a passionate group of students working to bring justice to the world in a number of ways. On March 22, they hosted a campus-wide event that displayed a number of oppressions that people all over the world face, including human trafficking, religious persecution, unfair labor practices, and lack of access to clean water.



We were honored to be able to share the story of the thirsty with the 275 students that walked through the interactive display we designed specifically for this event.


Students were encouraged to pick up a jerry can as they walked into the room. The cans were filled up all the way, so they weighed about 40 pounds each. 40 pounds of water is a LOT once you pick up one of these guys.

Millions of women and children all over the world carry these jerry cans several miles daily to retrieve water for their families and communities.

Students were then introduced to Charlotte, a happy, healthy eight-year-old living in Central Africa who has been drinking clean water with her bear, Poppy, for more than a year.

But there was a time when Charlotte didn't have access to clean water. Students were encouraged to reflect on the current water crisis, and the fact that a billion people around the world don't have access to safe, clean water.

 "Unsafe water is at the heart of a daily crisis faced by a billion of the world's most vulnerable people. It causes 80% of diseases and kills almost 5,000 children a day. Kids like Charlotte are especially vulnerable, as their bodies aren't strong enough to fight illnesses."

We wanted to give students a way to tangibly respond to the water crisis, so we asked each participant to write a response to the water crisis- emotions, reactions, actions they planned to take. It was unbelievably powerful to read hundreds of notes from our peers at Baylor- so many students wrote that they never knew the water crisis existed. Even more wrote out prayers and cried out to God to bring His love and compassion on those without access to clean water.

For more information on how to impact the water crisis or how to get plugged in with The Wells Project at Baylor, send an email to wellsprojectbaylor@gmail.com or go to www.facebook.com/wellsprojectbaylor.

Photos courtesy of Cortney Shedd and Stevie Britch

Charter Ceremony!

Although we were chartered in September, we were officially recognized tonight as an official organization by Baylor University Student Activities. 

Here are some pictures from the ceremony- as you can tell, we were very excited to receive our charter!

Dustin and Paul with Matt Burchett, Director for Student Activities

10 Days Starts TODAY!

TWP featured in the Lariat

We had a chance recently to sit down with TJ Jones, a reporter with The Lariat, and explain the 10 Days Campaign, The Wells Project, and how we plan on impacting the water crisis. Read the full article online here: http://bit.ly/9CDUw7.

TWP at Living Water International's 20 Year Gala

Living Water International is celebrating 20 years of clean water this year, and The Wells Projects at Baylor and A&M got to be a part of the celebration by telling LWI donors and partners all about what's happening on our campuses!

TWP @ Late Night at the SLC