• 
• CLASS
• JOBS
• AUTO
• HOMES

Why something as simple as clean water can be life-changing

Photo

Photo by Terry Mayer

Sheri Nelson of East Troy, founder of WaterDrops of Hope.

A school in Kenya celebrates a new well sponsored by the Water Project. Photo via thewaterproject.org.

EAST TROY -- Sheri Nelson founded WaterDrops of Hope to help people who don't have access to clean drinking water.

Her mission is to bring water, life and hope to some of the nearly one billion people who lack safe water.

Nelson, who grew up in East Troy and is a former Walworth County Fairest of the Fair, launched the project in April.

She partnered with The Water Project, a non-profit organization working to bring safe drinking water to Africa, designed a logo, created a Web site and found a vendor to manufacture the bottles.

Despite the planning, she still had no idea what to expect, so she ordered a test run of 250 bottles, and had them delivered to a workshop for FFA students that she was facilitating in Washington D.C. over the summer.

"I opened them with my students, and they started buying them left and right," Nelson said.

It wasn't long before she had raised nearly $4,000, enough to pay for a well.

She's already gone through more than 300 bottles, which sell for $20. "That's just friends and family and a little word of mouth," she said.

Nelson will graduate from the University of Wisconsin in December with a degree in Life Science Communications.

She hopes to expand her efforts by going into high schools and presenting students with WaterDrops of Hope as a service project.

“I am just a 22-year-old girl in Wisconsin,” Nelson said. “I don’t have the resources or the means to do it alone. That is why WaterDrops of Hope brings people together and allows them to join the mission of providing hope to these individuals.”

"A lot of it stems from my faith and how I wanted to serve others," Nelson said. And this was a project where Nelson could see the results of her efforts.

Nelson is working through The Water Project, Inc., a non-profit organization based in North Carolina, to deliver 100 percent of the proceeds to people in need of clean, safe water. The water bottles can be purchased online for $20 plus $2 shipping and handling at www.waterdropsofhope.com.

The results are life-changing, Nelson said. By purchasing one reusable water bottle featuring the WaterDrops of Hope logo, people can provide clean water to three people for five years.

For more information, visit www.waterdropsofhope.com or email Sheri Nelson at waterdropsofhope@gmail.com.

The Water Project, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based in Charlotte, N.C. It works to provide wells and other clean water systems in developing nations by raising funds and awareness through local efforts like WaterDrops of Hope. Learn more at www.thewaterproject.org.

"People have great hearts and they want to help. It's just finding a way to do it," Neslon said. "They can fell good about helping other people."