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Six-year-old raises enough funds to build African well

Tayler Demontigny says when he grows up, he's going to travel the world - either that or become a doctor in Africa. The six-year-old is the mastermind behind the Walk for Water event at Lasalle Secondary School.
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With help from students and staff at Lasalle Secondary School, six-year-old Tayler Demontigny raised $7,000 through the Walk for Water event that Tayler started last year. The Water Project will use the money to construct a new well in an African village. Photo by Heather Green-Oliver.

Tayler Demontigny says when he grows up, he's going to travel the world - either that or become a doctor in Africa.

The six-year-old is the mastermind behind the Walk for Water event at Lasalle Secondary School.

"People don't have clean water in Africa," Tayler said. "So I'm giving them clean water by raising money so they can have it."

The idea came to him over a year ago while eating watermelon for breakfast.

"I wanted to send the seeds to Africa, but my mom said they don't have clean water to grow them.

With help from students and staff at Lasalle Secondary School, six-year-old Tayler Demontigny raised $7,000 through the Walk for Water event that Tayler started last year. The Water Project will use the money to construct a new well in an African village. Photo by Heather Green-Oliver.

With help from students and staff at Lasalle Secondary School, six-year-old Tayler Demontigny raised $7,000 through the Walk for Water event that Tayler started last year. The Water Project will use the money to construct a new well in an African village. Photo by Heather Green-Oliver.

"So I said 'I'll make a water project.'"

Taylor's initial plan was to ship bottles of water to Africa by airplane, but his mom, Kerry, told him it wasn't that easy.

Then, a better idea came to him while looking at photos of people in Africa carrying water jugs on their heads.

"That's when he said 'What if we carry jugs and walk around?'" Kerry said. "'Then people will see how hard it is.'"

With help from his parents, Tayler set up a website through The Water Project and started going door-to-door collecting donations to build a well for a village in Africa.

Inspired by Tayler's dream, about 150 students and staff at Lasalle Secondary School helped collect funds for the Walk for Water project and marched alongside Tayler, carrying large water jugs of water down Lasalle Boulevard and Barrydowne Road on Oct. 18.

Together they raised $7,000, which is enough to cover the cost of digging and the construction of a well that will provide clean water for a small African village.

"We will get co-ordinates of where the well will be," Kerry said. "It may be built in Keyna or wherever it's most needed right now.

"I'm extremely proud of Tayler. For a little guy that started this when he was just five-years-old, it's unbelievable."

To make a donation or for more information, visit Tayler's website at thewaterproject.org/community/profile/tayler-demontigny.


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Heather Green-Oliver

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