Students learn from inspiration

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This article was published 06/05/2010 (5877 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

An internationally-known philanthropist who has inspired everyone from five-year-old students to Oprah Winfrey was the star attraction last week at a Trans­cona high school.
Ryan Hreljac was a guest of honour at College Pierre Elliot Trudeau’s UNESCO National Project Day, which took place April 29 at the school. The founder of Ryan’s Well Foundation was considered a perfect fit for this year’s conference, which focussed on sustainable development.
“You can make a difference,” said Hreljac, who hails from Kemptville, Ont.
Kreljac, a 19-year-old university student, said he has learned a great deal since the day his Grade 1 teacher told him many people don’t have access to clean water. The teacher explained many citizens of African countries have to walk five kilometres or more to fetch water.
“I didn’t know how far that was so she said it was 5,000 steps,” Hreljac said, adding with a laugh the new information didn’t help much.
“So I walked to the water fountain in the hallway and counted my steps. I walked about 10.”
Hreljac heard that a $70 donation was enough to build a well in Africa. He thought that sounded easy enough and assumed that one well would solve all of the continent’s problems.
Through doing chores, he saved up the money only to discover the real cost of building a well was closer to $2,000. But he didn’t give up. He started fundraising and, soon enough, his well was built in Uganda.
Hreljac was eventually able to visit Uganda and see the well that his efforts helped build. Thousands of Ugandans turned out to welcome him and the experience was truly humbling.
“They were so happy just because they had clean water, just because they didn’t have to walk for hours to fetch water,” he said.
Since building that first well, Ryan’s Well Foundation has supported 546 clean water and sanitation projects in 16 countries, benefiting hundreds of thousands of people.
Hreljac told students that the foundation is not an all-consuming endeavor for him. He still loves sleeping in, playing video games and travelling. He encouraged them to likewise invest some spare time into helping others.
Teacher Larry Paetkau said the speeches delivered by Hreljac and other guests were inspiring.
“It’s very motivating and these are good examples for students,” he said.
“As a UNESCO school, we want them to learn to know, learn to do, learn to be, and learn to live together.”
For more information about Ryan’s Well Foundation, visit www.ryanswell.ca.

ryan.crocker@canstarnews.com