The Daily Star
In Cooperstown, a village
on the shore of Otsego
Lake, clean water is a given.
Former Cooperstown
Trustee Grace Kull and
students and staff at Cooperstown
Elementary
School are now working to
make sure others have the
same good fortune.
``When I learned that so
many people in developing
nations don’t have clean
water — something we take
for granted — I decided to
do something about it,’’
Kull said.
Last summer, she did
some research on organizations
that help dig wells in
far-off places and settled on
Charity: Water ``because
100 percent of their donations
go to the project,’’ she
said.
A well costs an average
of $5,000 to drill, she
learned. So she decided to
pay for one, a project that
will sustain hundreds of
people for years.
``I donated my last year’s
salary as a village trustee,
$1,000, to get started,’’ she
said. ``Then I sent e-mails
to everyone whose address
I had, about 100 people,
and it’s taken off from
there. I was thinking that if
200 people gave $20 a piece,
we’d have the $4,000, but
some people have given a
lot more.’’
Since July, Kull has
raised about $3,600 and today,
Cooperstown Elementary
School will contribute
hundreds of dollars toward
the project.
``We’ve been collecting
pennies throughout the
month of October,’’ school
counselor Christine Mc-
Brearty-Hulse said Thursday.
At the start of the month,
students watched a slideshow,
giving them a keener
appreciation of how their
pennies could do some good,
McBrearty-Hulse said.
Students took the project
and pennies have been
rolling in.
``I’d estimate we have
about $500,’’ she Thursday.
But by the time Friday afternoon
rolled around, the
pennies came to a total of
almost $700.
``The kids have accomplished
a great deal,’’ Kull
said when she heard the total.
``It’s amazing to me.’’
Kull said that when the
fund reaches $5,000, the
staff at Charity: Water will
decide where the well will
be drilled.
``I hope it is in Africa, because
I think the students
are aware of how great the
need is there,’’ she said.
A plaque acknowledging
the gift from the Cooperstown
area will be installed
near the well, she said.
Kull said she hopes to
raise the balance of the
money in the coming
weeks.
Those interested in donating
may send a check to
Charity Water, care of
Grace Kull at 19 Church
St., Cooperstown, NY
13326. On the check’s memo
line, they should write
``Grace Kull’s well,’’ she
said.
Donations may also be
made over the Internet directly
to this project
through the website www.charitywater.org/pages/graceswell. To donate on
line, people will need to use
a credit care or PayPal account.
inactive
November 5, 2009
Changing the world, one penny at a time
- inactive
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- Olympic rower launches program A two-time Olympic rower and head coach of Cooperstown Crew will be starting a new indoor rowing program in partnership with the Oneonta Boys and Girls Club.
- Autism walk to be held Saturday at Glimmerglass State Park Cooperstown will be among five sites kicking off Autism Awareness Month this Saturday.
- Shooting leaves residents dismayed Village residents are expressing shock about Friday’s shooting incident and are eager to reach an understanding of why it happened in a small, close-knit community like Cooperstown.
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- Booan takes the helm as new C’town leader Joe Booan was sworn in at noon Monday and later that evening set an aggressive agenda for the village during the board of trustees’ annual reorganizational meeting.
- Shooting leaves residents dismayed: New mayor’s statement After canceling a press conference scheduled for Monday afternoon, new Mayor Joe Booan made the following statement during the village’s reorganizational meeting Monday night concerning Friday’s shooting incident.
- Hage appointed village trustee Mayor Joe Booan appointed Charles Hage to the board of trustees to fill the vacancy created when he was elected mayor.
- CCS makes more cuts to lower tax levy Last-minute changes have been made to the Cooperstown Central School proposed 2010-11 budget.
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