Thank you to students and teachers at

 East Cooper Montessori Charter School!

These inventive Heroes of Compassion in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina manifested their love in February by wearing love, peace and heart graphics on Valentine's day and donating $2 per person for the people of the Azawak.   To make this creative fundraiser meaningful for the students,  the teachers used our curriculum materials to incorporate a lesson about Amman Imman's work to bring water to the Azawak in time for the Valentine's Day fundraiser.  

We recently received their check for $265 raised on "Giving Graphics Day" as part of the Wells of Love initiative!

Recently I had the unique pleasure of being informed by a mom about her son's generous contribution to the children of the Azawak. Gavi, 13 years old, had been learning about the Azawak region at his school, Oak Meadow Montessori School in Littleton, Massachusetts. Throughout this past school year, students at Oak Meadow have held various fundraisers to raise money for Amman Imman's projects.

For his bar mitzvah, Gavi planned to donate a portion of the gift money he received to a cause he supported.  Aware of his keen interest in technology, his parents naturally suggested that Gavi contribute to an organization that supplies computers to children.  

But Gavi, having gained a deeper understanding through his participation in Wells of Love at school, made another decision.  He said to his parents, "Mom, I think people having clean water is more important than kids having computers."  Gavi donated $400 to Amman Imman: Water is Life.

When I hear about young people like Gavi, who make a conscious choice to use their own resources to make a difference in the lives of people who have very little resources, I am deeply moved. I remember the reason why I am doing this work in the first place:  to bring water and hope to people most in need, and to be connected to people like Gavi.  

Gavi, Thank you for your caring and generosity.  

I am honored to know you!

The funds raised this spring will go towards livelihood projects around the site of our boreholes in the Azawak to help local families support their borehole infrastructure. Our goal is to establish an Oasis of Life at the site of each borehole, where the local people can engage in economic, educational and agricultural activities to help their community develop and thrive, now that they have water.


Make your contribution at www.ammanimman.org/donate.

Students show their baked goods.

Thank you dedicated Heroes of Compassion at Montessori of Maryknoll in Glen Ellyn, Illinois! Each year these students come together to learn about Africa and raise funds to help Amman Imman bring water to the Azawak.  They've held an annual fundraiser since 2007.  We received this card, photo and message from school director, Pat Bates:

Montessori of Maryknoll held their annual bake and plant sale to benefit the Amman Imman project (which means "Water is Life") in the Azawak of Niger, Africa. The Enrichment class is studying Africa as part of their around-the-world cultural studies.  These local students learned that Montessori school all over the country are participating annually in this cause to help African children.  Many African children travel many miles each day in search of water, which when found is not even clean.  The Montessori of Maryknoll students baked, planted, and sold their goods in support of this "children helping children" service project.  The $272 raised this year, when combined  with the contributions from other participating Montessori schools, will help pay for the equipment to dig deep wells.  These wells will provide clean water to thousands of people and animals in the Azawak region.

 - Pat Bates, Director, Montessori of Maryknoll

Since 2007, Montessori classes at Minnieland Academy in Virginia have been educating their young students about global issues by supporting Amman Imman's mission to bring water to the people of the Azawak. This year,  several classrooms sponsored fundraising activities ranging from consignment and bake sales to art auctions and walks for water.  They raised over $2,000.

The integrative curriculum approach at Minnieland called upon the students to take action as they learned about water scarcity and its affect on the indigenous cultures of West Africa. Using Wells of Love curriculum materials, the teachers introduced the plight of the people of the Azawak during their geography study of Africa.  Science investigations included the building of small water wells and the effect on plants growing under drought conditions.  To help these young stewards understand the challenges the children of the Azawak face on a daily basis, the Minnieland children engaged in activities carrying buckets filled with water for a certain distance.  

District Director and Montessori trainer Lori Marano told me that the study of water against the backdrop of the real-life challenges faced by the Azawak children has been a fascinating journey for both the students and the teachers.  She invited me to speak at their Montessori teacher training session to share more about  Amman Imman's Wells of Love program.  "I've never seen teachers and directors as passionate about a program as this one", Lori told me.

 Lori envisions the Wells of Love program expanding next year at Minnieland as the teachers discover new and productive ways to engage their students and raise money for Amman Imman's projects in the Azawak. 

Minnieland consignment clothing sale benefits Amman Imman

How heavy is water?
What if I had to walk 35 miles to carry it home?

Students discover that water is essential for life.