The Riley Project

We did it!

2010-01-03T17:19:00.000-08:00

You will not believe what happened on Christmas Day! There was an envelope on the tree for me and I opened it and it said that I had finished raising all of the money for the well! I was so happy because I had written at school that all I wanted to give for Christmas was a well and then my dream came true. I can't believe it! I'm so thankful for everyone who gave money to the well. This is so amazing. My mom said that over 250 people will have clean water now because of everyone who gave to the well.

I will let everyone know when I find out where our well is going to be. I can't wait.

Thank you to Emma (my best friend in Tennessee), the McMahans, the Moores, Eric, the McElveens, Mrs. O'Malley, the Moreaus, the Hayashis, the McMinns, the Coxs, the Lukeis, the Thrashes, the Pahules, Brady, the Bernhardts, the Pomeroys, and the Fujiwaras.

Guess what? This is even more incredible. We did not even use the money we raised eating rice and beans to finish the well. So, I have very exciting news. All of the kids who ate rice and beans are going to start raising money for a new well! We are all going to give the money we saved from eating rice and beans to start off the new well. As soon as we set up the website for the new well, I will tell you about it. I love raising money for wells!

All Done Eating Rice and Beans!

2009-12-24T10:01:00.000-08:00

This is me eating my last night of rice and beans. You won't guess how much money we saved! We saved $220! All of that money will go towards the well. A bunch of my friends ate rice and beans too. I really only liked the rice- beans, not so much. I'm glad that we saved so much money though. It's worth it to eat rice and beans so that other people can have clean water.

Some of my mom and dad's friends came over to play Settlers of Catan. They had to all give money to the well or they couldn't play. They gave $120. I wasn't allowed to play- I'm too little. Boo. I got to say thank you to everybody though.

Merry Christmas to all!

Rice and Beans

2009-11-29T18:01:00.000-08:00

This month I'm going to eat rice and beans with my family every night for dinner. I'm doing it because all of the money that we save on dinner will go to the well. Also because that's what people get every night for dinner because they don't have any other choice. One day I'm going to live wherever my well is built, so I need to get used to rice and beans.

Tonight was my first night of rice and beans. They tasted ok. I think I'm going to get tired of rice and beans though. But I'm going to do it because we are going to save a lot of money for the well.

If you want to learn more about our rice and beans adventure, please go here.

It's Awesome!

2009-11-02T19:14:00.000-08:00

Guess what? We have reached $4,000! Woohoo! Two of my friends really helped me out. My friend Jake took cans and bottles to the recycling center and got $15 for the well. My friend Mrs. Arika told her Bible Study about the well and then brought a bucket and all of the ladies put money in the bucket. They even put their coins in there and then I counted them. They gave $159.97! I am so happy and thankful that my friends helped me. God is answering my prayers.

We are getting closer and closer, but we still need people to donate money to the well. Please think about giving to the well if you haven't yet so that people can get clean water. We can do it!

Watts

2009-10-18T19:11:00.000-07:00

Today I went to a church in Watts and played with preschoolers. They have a children's church where no adults are allowed and then they have another service when they bring an adult. We also had lunch together. It is very different than the church that I go to. I think my favorite part is playing with the preschoolers, but I am having a hard time picking my favorite part because I loved it all. I am so happy that I met some new friends. I definitely want to go back.In this picture I'm playing basketball.

In this picture I'm doing a puzzle with Isaiah and Asia.

This is my friend Alaysia. She is 4 years old and her granny did her hair. I love her hair.

Halfway There Again

2009-10-17T16:37:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it, but we've already raised $1,311 towards the new goal! I'm so glad that people are giving more and more money. You guys are so great! The town that gets the well is going to be so happy.

Thank you to Ms. Gee, Mr. Sanders, Stacy and Bryan, Stacey and Peter, Keely and Brian, and my parents!

I am doing a service project tomorrow and I will write about it.

We did it!

2009-10-11T19:26:00.000-07:00

Guess what? I have reached my gooooooaaaaaaaalllllllll! Thank you so, so much! We now have $2,716 raised for the well (plus another $500 that doesn't count towards my goal). I feel so happy. And guess what we did to celebrate- we went to Yogurtland. When I got to my goal I started screaming and ran around the room.

Thank you Tori, Mrs. Clayton, Lauren, Molly, Brendan and Kate, Sarah, and the Cazale family.

Here's my well drawing all filled up:
I want to keep raising money for the well. So, I'm going to start my well drawing all over and see if we can reach $2,500 again. Guess what? We already have $716! I'm so excited.

New Goal

2009-09-30T21:35:00.000-07:00

This is Sarah again. Riley is VERY close to meeting her goal of raising $2500 for a well. We are beyond excited and amazed. I honestly cannot believe that we started The Riley Project almost 3 months ago and we are already here. It feels like we just started. Riley is still so excited about raising money. All of this has got us thinking...

As most of you probably know, it actually costs $5000 to build a well. Blake and I said that we would donate $2500 if Riley raised $2500. We did this because we wanted to make Riley's goal attainable. Now I feel like we limited her and God. We underestimated people's generosity. In fact, I know of several people who still want to give to the well. I feel like there are probably several more people out there who are feeling the tug to give to the well. I don't want to keep people from giving.

Now, I know that this could look like Blake and I are trying to get out of giving our portion. I can say with a genuine heart that Blake and I would love to give $2500 to the well. We will always give money to help fund access to clean water until EVERYONE on the planet has clean water. Allowing Riley to continue raising money and continue doing service projects isn't about us. It's about not stopping something that seems to need to keep going. I'm honestly disappointed in myself for underestimating Riley and all of our friends.

So here is our new plan. We will absolutely celebrate when Riley meets her goal of raising $2500. We are so proud of her. Riley is the one who actually told us that she wanted to continue raising money for wells even after she met her goal. We are going to have Riley continue to do service projects and allow people to give if they want to. We also have a family who gave $500 to help with the $2500 that Blake and I were giving to the well. Therefore, we are close to $3000 already raised for the well. It would be amazing if we could reach $5000 through Riley's efforts.

Blake and I are going to donate $300 today to start the new goal. We may end up giving the $2000 needed to complete the well, but I strongly feel like there are people out there who still want to give. I would love for Riley to be able to say that she raised all of the money for the well through the openhandedness of her friends and not because her parents stepped in and completed it for her.

Thank you so much to everyone who has already given to the well. Hopefully, Riley will be able to post soon about reaching $2500!

The Riley Raindrop

2009-09-29T13:47:00.000-07:00

Great news! Blessed Nest is extending their offer until the end of the year! See below for details...

Hi Friends! This is Sarah. I just wanted to share with everyone an awesome fundraiser that my friend, Donna, is doing for The Riley Project. Donna and Heather's company, Blessed Nest, offers eco-friendly nursing pillows. (I have one and absolutely love it!) For the month of August, they are offering the Riley Raindrop- an organic take-a-long pillow for $39 and $30 of that will go to The Riley Project! How sweet is that? So, if you want an amazing pillow AND want to give to the well, it's a win-win situation.

Click here to order a Riley Raindrop!

Thank you so much Donna and Heather!

My Birthday Party

2009-09-25T16:33:00.000-07:00

For my birthday party I was Wonder Woman.

My friends Madeline, Sarah, Alexa, and Lauren came over. We decorated cupcakes and got really messy, messy, messy. We all dressed up as super heroes.We had to save Tyler (my little sister) from the Bad Boys.
My friends gave money to the well for my birthday. Kimi and Jason, Nana and Grandpa, my cousin Beth, Gigi and Pamp, and Aunt Julie also gave money to the well for my birthday. I raised $255 for my birthday! Thank you to everyone! I loved my birthday!

Progress Update

2009-09-17T19:15:00.000-07:00

So far we have raised $1886! It's amazing that a bunch of people have helped me and we're almost there. Thank you to Daniel, Lindsay, Campbell, and Graham. They didn't eat out for a month and gave that money to the well. That's really cool, huh? Thank you to Mr. Share, Ms. Burick, Scottie and Bob, Mr. Philip, the Lackeys, the Purifoys, the O'Neills, and Jennifer. Jennifer went to the fair and won for the best jelly and gave the money to the well. She sold notebooks to her students for the well too.

I'm feeling super duper, duper, duper, duper, duper happy, but we still have some money to raise. I think that we can raise all of the money soon though and then we will have a well and lots of people will have clean water!

Lake Hills Church Rocks!

2009-09-09T12:36:00.000-07:00

At the church we went to this summer they decided to raise money for the well. In August, I told all of the kids about my well project. Then the kids gave money to the well. One of my friends, Tara, went around her neighborhood and asked for donations. Other friends got donations to come and pick green beans with me. On Sunday, I went to big church and talked to the adults. The church raised $445! That's a lot of money. Thank you to everyone and especially to Ms. Debbie for all of her hard work.

Second Harvest Food Bank

2009-08-31T22:12:00.000-07:00

On Friday, I went and picked green beans for Second Harvest Food Bank. They use the food to feed the hungry. I learned that it is very hard work to farm because it is very hot and there are prickers on the plants that hurt.

There was a group of people that came with me from my church. They helped pick the beans and some of them also raised money for the well. Thank you to everyone who helped!

Born in September

2009-08-29T12:22:00.000-07:00

Please watch this video...

Guess what? My birthday is in September! For my birthday this year, I'm going to give up my presents. I'm going to ask my friends to give money to my well instead of bringing presents to my birthday party. The way that I'm feeling is that I really, really want presents, but now I've seen that people don't even have clean water. They may not even know when their birthday is and they don't get presents.

My Vacation

2009-08-26T10:10:00.000-07:00

On my vacation, I raised $443. That means that I have raised $1000! Thank you to the Jones, Boltons, Haynies, Hughes, Allison and Jeff, Nana and Grandpa, Gigi and Pamp, and Aunt Hannah! I cut wood and rolled up coins at Nana and Grandpa's house to earn their money.
My great-great Aunt Cynthia's organ club also gave money to the well. Thank you West-Fair Organ Club!

I am very thankful- thank you, thank you, thank you. You guys are all such a big help and I am almost halfway there- all because of you!

Amani

2009-08-14T13:28:00.000-07:00

As one of my service projects I went to Amani and I made a necklace and some keychains. The beads are made by women that live in Kenya. Amani sells the necklaces and keychains for the women.

This is my Gramma and me with my necklace.

My brother Ford came to help me.

This is my friend Bui. We were having fun.

Soup Kitchen

2009-08-10T14:52:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went to the soup kitchen. I served lunch to poor people who don't have homes.

This was a special job because my mom went there when she was 7 like me! She used to go every month with my Big Dad.

I felt really happy to give the people lunch and really sad that they don't have homes. My favorite parts were carrying the tray and talking to 2 little boys. One was Demetrius and he is 3. The other boy was Solomon and he was about to turn 2.

Progress Update

2009-08-08T13:16:00.001-07:00

While I was in North Carolina my friend Emily gave me $20. Lara and Austin, Gramma and Big Dad, my great-great aunt Cynthia, and Mr. Hackney also gave money to the well. Thank you for all your help. I appreciate it. We have now raised $560. Thank you sooooooooooooooooooooooooo much!

The people are going to be very pleased to have water- thanks to you.

Tomorrow I am going to do my very special service project. I can’t wait to tell you about it!

First Job

2009-07-30T19:34:00.000-07:00

One afternoon [last Saturday] I painted a black fence at a community center. I painted it as one of my service jobs for The Riley Project. I met a new friend named Junior. He lives by the community center. He's going into 2nd grade like me. We painted the fence together and ate pizza together. I got very messy. My mom says to tell you that we forgot to take pictures- sorry.

I am going to North Carolina tomorrow. I am going to do a special service job while I am there. I will write about it after I do it.

My brothers are doing great on earning money. They are making their beds and making sure that they keep their rooms clean. Here is the jar they put their money in:

My mom also says to tell you that charity:water only sends us reports on how much money has been given online every 2 weeks. Hopefully, we will get a report soon and I can update everyone on our progress.

Thank you! You are the best!

Raising Money

2009-07-19T12:41:00.000-07:00

I have raised $250!!! Thank you so much for helping already. Thank you Ryon and Sarah, Jennifer, Nancy, Rachel, and Aunt Bekah and Uncle ClayDawg. That's cool that people I haven't even met gave money. My mom says that she went to high school with some of you and that Jennifer called my daddy 12 because he looks young.

Today I shared my 5,000 lines with my class at church. Next week I am going to share with middle school and high school. I feel very scared to share with older kids.

I lost my 7th tooth yesterday and I am 7 years old! The tooth fairy gave me $1. I am going to give it to the well. My brothers are going to do chores around the house to get money. They are going to give their money to the well.

I drew a picture so that I know how much money I have raised so far. Here it is:
Thank you so much for helping with the well.

Button

2009-07-19T08:55:00.000-07:00

Riley will be updating later today, but I wanted to share her "button" with everyone (it links to Riley's blog). My friend made it for her (thank you Donna!). Feel free to grab it and put it on your blog if you want. To do this, copy and paste the text in the box on the side of your blog!

Dirty Water

2009-07-08T18:11:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone! Welcome to my blog. I am really excited to share about my project. 5,000 kids die a day because they do not have clean water. I drew 5,000 lines so you could understand how many kids die a day. It took me about 4 days to make the lines. It also helped me learn that 5,000 is a lot! I want to build a well so that they can live longer. The children have to walk 3 hours to get dirty water. It makes me super duper sad because a lot of kids my age are dying right now. It isn't fair. I think that God feels very, very sad and He wants people to care for them and love them.

I am going to raise $2,500 for the well. I am going to volunteer for different things to earn the money. I am also going to have a lemonade stand to earn money. Can you try to help me please? It would be a great help if you gave us some money for the well. Thank you very much! I will be updating my blog to talk about the different things I am going to do.

Here's my mom to explain how you can give money:

To donate:

You can write a check and send it to Riley. If you don't know our address just leave a comment and I will get in touch with you. Be sure that all checks are made out to "charity: water."

Another note from Mom: Riley will be volunteering with various organizations in order to "earn" the money that you guys donate to her well. She will write posts about each "job" that she does. She will also give updates on how her fundraising is going.