Dear Colleague Letter to Senator Clinton.

Update.

Just a quick update - my presentation for my project yesterday went really well! I'm glad I got the opportunity to share about Congo with my classmates and hopefully inspire them to take some action too. As I said in my presentation, I hope to continue this blog and my support even after I'm done with the project, and that's exactly what I'm going to do!

Art Supplies.

All the art supplies that were collected for my drive!

Kids 4 Congo's Kids.

This is such a great quote:

"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world" - Anne Frank

Robin Potawsky, one of the women who was there when I went to D.C., and who was also a fellow North Carolina representative, is the founder of an organization called Kids 4 Congo's Kids. The organization's aim is to "create change and connect cultures through education." Check out their website and look into sponsoring a Congolese child's education. It's such a great cause!

I'm doing my part to help Congolese education through my art supplies drive. Like I said, look at sponsoring a child's education or see how you can get involved through donating or volunteering!

Link.

Congolese Women Speak Out Against Violence

Link.

This article connects a lot with the research I've been doing in my English class on the effects of domestic and sexual violence.

http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900sid/FGAI-8AZQDP?OpenDocument

Powerful Women.

Here are all the amazing and inspirational women that I got to meet and photograph during my day in D.C.

Here's me with my mom, who encouraged and inspired me to get involved with everything happening in Congo. She has been such an inspiration!

Link.

This is a New York Times article that came out recently about the rapes in Congo. Simply awful.

"United States officials call Congo the worst place in the world for sexual violence, and even the longstanding presence of international peacekeepers has not been able to stop it."

Project.

I have another surprise project up my sleeve - hopefully I will post it by this weekend!

Quote.

"One person with passion is better than forty people merely interested."

Art supplies drive.

While my major focus for this project is on the women in Congo, I also want to help give back to the children and help improve art education in Congo. To do this, I'm trying to collect art supplies to send over there. If you have any art supplies, or would like to help out in any way, please contact me. The art supplies can be anything - crayons, markers, paper, pencils - any little thing helps.

Side note.

So I know this isn't a personal blog, but I just want to take a brief moment to reflect on why I am doing all of this. This past week has been especially challenging for me, with built up stress, project after project due, as well as other numerous issues. As cliché as it sounds, though, my problems really are nothing in the grand scheme of things. I can't help but feel guilty for feeling sorry for myself when I know about all the horrible things happening right now in Congo. These women are living everyday in fear for their own lives. I could never imagine the life they must live, day to day. It's unfathomable. I just need to learn to stop and count my blessings. Not only that, but I want to use what I have been blessed with to help others, such as the women and children of Congo.

Just something to think about.

Links.

Here are a few interesting links to check out regarding Congo.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130851869

http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs034/1103318109797/archive/1103845959428.html

Photography.

Wanting to make a change.

Hello everybody, and welcome to my blog!

While I have set this up for a school project, I want to look at it as more than just an assignment and just a grade. I have always had a true passion for giving back and helping others, so this is the real reason why I am doing this. My assignment for one of my art classes is to make a "gift" for somebody in my community, whether on a local, national, or global basis, using my artistic abilities. I brainstormed many ideas, but all of them just didn't seem quite right to me. Until just a few days ago.

Just a week ago, I had no idea where Congo even was on the map. I had heard stories about what was taking place there, but didn't know much beyond that. Then I heard about Run for Congo Women, an organization founded by Lisa Shannon, that raises money through organized runs and walks, and helps women in Congo rebuild their lives. After exploring the website and doing some research on the current situation in Congo, I knew this was exactly what I wanted my focus to be for my project.

Click here to learn more about Lisa Shannon and Run for Congo Women.

I knew I wanted to help out with this organization and give back to the women, men, and children of Congo some way or another, but I wasn't sure where to get started. That was until I got a phone call from my mom saying I had the amazing opportunity to go to Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. with Lisa Shannon and several other women and photograph their day in the House of Representatives, helping spread the word about Congo and raising awareness.

Many years ago, I told a close friend about my dream of becoming an aspiring photographer. She responded by saying that she wanted to do something meaningful with her life. While eating lunch with Lisa Shannon this weekend, I overheard her say that "there are images and videos that can stop the world." I wanted to be the one to capture those images, even if I was just an art student with little experience. While I knew I couldn't go to Congo and photograph what was going on there, I knew I could start by capturing the change that was happening right here. So here I am, starting on a mission to use my photographs to help bring about change and raise awareness about the situation in Congo.

I encourage you to read about Congo and learn about what is going on there currently. Horrible things are happening unnoticed, and that needs to change. These Congolese women have no money and no voice, so why not use our voices to help bring about change?

Please subscribe to my blog and spread the word!

Thank you so much,

Annie Watts