August 2007 Archives

There's a popular theory stating that each person in the world is separated from everyone else by six or fewer connections. With the Internet, that gap seems to be closing as ordinary people gain worldwide notoriety through their Web pages and blogs, sometimes even striking up global friendships.

Hanes, actor Kevin Bacon (someone who many of us have spent hours connecting to a variety of performers in six degrees or less) and Network for Good have teamed up to take advantage of our increased global connectivity to benefit a number of nonprofit organizations, including the African Well Fund.

Via the Six Degrees initiative, organizations are collecting donations in a friendly competition that runs through September 16th. The six organizations with the most unique donations will get matching grants of up to $10,000 from Hanes. All of the donations are being collected through Network for Good. There is a $10 minimum for donations to be counted in the contest but donations of any size are welcomed.

AWF Board Member Diane Yoder created a badge for the organization that tells about its mission, has a link to AWF's Network for Good donation page, and provides up-to-the-minute donation numbers and amounts.

AWF is currently in the Six Degrees top 10 but needs continued support from all the Web stars out there to maintain its standing and win one of the matching grants. E-mail the link to AWF's badge (http://www.networkforgood.org/pca/Badge.aspx?badgeId=106100) to any of your family and friends who support the group's mission of providing clean water to needy African communities, post it on your Web journals, or insert it into the signatures on your e-mails or forum profiles.

Supporters can also post the AWF badge on their MySpace pages and Web site's, using the codes and links available in the badge's "Share" tab.

For Facebook members, special badge posting instructions are available from Six Degrees.

If you have any other ideas for how AWF can spread the word about the Six Degrees fundraiser, please e-mail info@africanwellfund.org.

Thank you to everyone who takes the time to make a donation to AWF during this drive. Even if we don't win one of the grants, the money collected will make a huge difference in many lives.

By Devlin Smith

Earlier this year, Pittsburgh punk band Anti-Flag decided to donate a portion of the presale ticket sales for its War Sucks! Let's Party! concert tour to the African Well Fund. The band also accepted donations at its shows, put the AWF logo on the official tour poster and invited AWF volunteers to table a few shows. The band also signed items that will be included in our Got Water? online auction this fall.

Thanks to the band's efforts and fan generosity, $2,000 was raised. That money will be used for AWF's new partnership with Invisible Children to build wells at schools in Northern Uganda.

Anti-Flag bassist Chris #2 took the time to answer a few questions about the group's involvement with AWF.

Why did Anti-Flag feel the African Well Fund was an ideal match for the band and its fans?

Our community is always looking for tangible victories. Just browsing the African Well Fund Web site it's so easy to see how many times your organization has had huge impacts on this world. We are truly honored to work with you.

What kind of response were you getting from fans to this partnership?

Many of them were well familiar with the AWF; for others it was an education process. The constant was that everyone loves the work you're doing and loves the organization.

How did you feel when you found out how much money was raised?

So grateful to know that our community was able to raise enough to actually build a well. It's amazing to have impact all the way around the globe.

What kind of reaction have you gotten from fans to that amount?

Everyone was extremely excited, everyone coming out to the shows loved the fact that they were having an impact on other people's lives. It made the events far more fulfilling.

Why is it important for your band to be involved in social and political causes?

It's important to be involved in the things that you are passionate about. The four of us care about the people of this world. We are lucky enough to have the people that listen to our music share in our vision to work to better this world.

Do you think you'd like to work with AWF again in the future?

It would be great to work together again. This is just the beginning of our relationship. There's much more to come.

Anything else you'd like to add about Anti-Flag's partnership with AWF?

This has been a truly rewarding partnership. We look forward to all that is on the horizon. Thank you all so much.

Members of the band Anti-Flag (back middle) pose with AWF volunteers at one of the band's shows in Los Angeles.