Locust Grove Students Help Bring Water To Haiti

By Jeffrey Smith, The News On 6

LOCUST GROVE, OK -- Some local kids are making a big difference in Haiti. A group of students - all under the age of 6 - has raised thousands of dollars for the devastated country.

They're donating all of that money to an Oklahoma charity The News On 6 has been following since the quake.

Since late January, Locust Grove's youngest students have been doing something special.

"We're helping kids in Haiti,"  several students said.

After learning about an Oklahoma charity that's making a difference, these kids decided to make a difference of their own, one penny at a time.

They collected $1,637.44.

The charity's called Water is Life. They distribute special straws that make contaminated water safe to drink.

"They don't have lots of water to drink, and it's really dirty," said first grader Olivia Buck.

Just one of water filtration straw can make a lot water safe to drink, every day - six bottles of clean water, every day, for a year.

"These straws could be the key between life and death," said Brice Collier with Water is Life.

After Locust Grove teachers donated money of their own, the total donation of $2,000 is enough to order 200 straws.

"It's the key to our world, isn't it? For them to have a heart like that," Collier said.

Mandy Leach's kindergarten class raised $430 bucks in spare change. Some of her kids donated their ice cream money.

"These kids brought in one Ziploc bag at a time, and just to know that you made that big of a difference, it's just amazing," said kindergarten teacher Mandy Leach.

Water Is Life has already delivered 3,500 straws to Haiti, and thanks to Locust Grove students, hundreds more will soon be on their way.

Since the Haiti Earthquake, Oklahoma's Water Is Life charity has raised $80,000. A lot of that's from school fundraiser's just like the one in Locust Grove.

Each filtration straw costs $10.