Chi Alpha, a religious organization on campus, is hosting War for Water in the month of November. War for Water is a month-long fundraising initiative, where Chi Alpha raises money to build three wells in the malnourished Sahel Region in Western Africa. The end goal for those wells is $40,000.

Students and staff participate in fundraising by competing against each other in teams of 5-10 people to raise the most money by the end of the month. By 2030, 80% of the starvation of the world will be located in the Sahel if things don’t change. As of Nov. 10^th, 2021, they have raised enough to pay for one well and are working towards paying for the second well.

“To be part of a team is fun since I am with good friends with my trustworthy and reliable leader, Peyton Teders,” FGCU sophomore Sebastian Mercado said. “We all encourage each other, and at the end of it all, whether we win or lose, all that we fundraise is going towards a good cause.”

Students get the chance to participate in competitions such as Bootcamp Battle and Capture the Flag. There are also “War Rooms” where students can get service learning hours by calling friends and relatives to ask for donations for the project.

The money raised is helping people in a region of the world where they don’t have a lot of resources. They get clean drinking water; which helps with hygiene, economy, and education for women. Most women in Africa usually have to walk 3-4 miles daily to retrieve water, so building these wells to easily access water would allow them to have more time to study and educate themselves.

Not only is War for Water helping others, but the participants are having fun. They want to be active with service and helping others in need. Chi Alpha encourages one another and helps those who may not be able to help themselves. They are enjoying the community that they have with each other and are working together for a common goal.

“It is incredible to see our community come together to support the building of these wells to help the people in the Sahel region of Africa,” FGCU junior and team captain Nicole Longman said.

Chi Alpha has done fundraising like War for Water in the past and have been able to raise a lot of money for different organizations. Our campus ministry Chi Alpha is on 300 college campuses and has always partnered with Convoy of Hope, which is the organization responsible for building the wells. Both Chi Alpha and Convoy originated from the same Christian denomination. Convoy is a disaster relief and humanitarian development organization.

“Chi Alpha at FGCU partnered with Convoy of Hope in 2020 to raise about $23,000 for one of their children’s feeding initiatives,” Chi Alpha staff and team captain Jessica Kirkland said. “However, we’ve never raised money for Convoy’s water well building project until now.”

Kirkland is the person overseeing the entire project from the staff perspective here at FGCU. She has expressed that she is thrilled to encourage her team and others to fundraise for such an incredible cause. She also stated that it is not too late to get involved. If you want to participate in War of Water and gain service hours, email [email protected] and take part in helping a good cause.

“I am the one who is overseeing it because I love galvanizing people to take part in a great cause,” Kirkland said. “Seeing people so excited to contribute has brought me such great joy!”