Scott Harrison traded the bright lights of New York City for the rural, impoverished regions of sub-Saharan Africa.
He swapped nights of sipping $16 margaritas as one of the city's hottest nightclub promoters for helping solve an issue that affects 1 billion people across the world the lack of clean, clear, drinkable water.
After nearly a decade of being paid to drink and pump up the status of clubs in New York, Harrison founded charity:water, a not-for-profit organization that uses a combination of public and private donations to fund investment in clean water projects in 26 countries, mostly in Africa.
Harrison brought the emotional, entrepreneurial message of charity:water to Big Omaha, a conference founded by Silicon Prairie News to connect and inspire the region's top creative minds to connect and take risks.
In 3½ years, charity:water has raised $19 million and brought clean drinking water to 1.13 million people, Harrison said. Many of those people previously had to hike miles, gasoline cans strapped to their backs, only to collect dirty water teeming with bacteria or worse contaminants.
Let's go back for a second and take a look at how charity:water came to fruition.
Harrison was in Uruguay partying, he said, “with all the right people.” There was booze, drugs, beautiful women and important people all around him, but he lacked purpose, happiness and meaning in his life, Harrison told the audience of about 500 gathered at Kaneko, 1111 Jones St.
And like that, Harrison decided to change. He began seeking volunteer work with not-for-profit organizations but at first was turned away because his skills didn't mesh with the job openings. Eventually, Harrison got his shot from Mercy Ships, an organization that sends doctors and nurses around the world to provide free medical treatment to people without access to health care.
Harrison with little photography experience besides snapping shots of his pals at the club acted as a photojournalist for the giant, water-bound hospital that floated along the coast of Africa.
“Talk about culture shock,” Harrison said.
What Harrison saw and the people he met during his two-year stint in Africa fueled charity:water. There were people with facial tumors the size of small melons, people sick from drinking dirty water, a widespread lack of sanitation.
“The toughest part about all of it was the people we couldn't help. That made me angry. That made me want to do something with my life.”
So Harrison chose the issue of water, the one problem linked to so many others: disease; lack of sanitation; time wasted trekking back and forth collecting water.
Harrison and charity:water have began scratching the surface of the global water problem. A donation of $5,000 digs a well that yields enough clean water for 250 people. For every $10,000 raised, 500 people get clean water, and so on.
Harrison's message and charity:water's work inspired attendees of Big Omaha, including Roger Fransecky, CEO of the Apogee Group, a consulting company that provides advice on entrepreneurship and leadership to many Fortune 500 business executives.
“I thought it was one of the most powerful, authentic and affective presentations I've heard in years,” Fransecky said. “It's about the power of ideas and how each one of us can make ideas real and realized. I was very moved by it.”
In starting charity:water, to which Big Omaha attendees donated more than $5,000, Harrison said he wanted to build a not-for-profit that was different. He wanted people to see exactly where their money was going.
Using geolocation and digital maps, donors can see exactly where their money goes, to countries such as Ethiopia, Uganda and Bangladesh.
In Omaha for the first time, Harrison said in an interview that he hoped Big Omaha would encourage others to take risks and leverage their passions.
“I think it's a message of possibility, of opportunity. I didn't have any training to go out and save the world,” he said. “I didn't go to school for international development or anything, so I guess I want people to find where they're passionate and not be afraid that they don't have the qualifications.
“I would love for people to put themselves in situations that are uncomfortable for them, to go and travel and see poverty and see how they can use their network to make things better.”
Fransecky wasn't the only person at the conference motivated by Harrison's presentation, which differed from the high-energy talks from the other Big Omaha speakers.
“It was completely silent in the audience, and everyone was just captivated,” said Crystal Mackling. “(Scott Harrison) has made a living doing something that really makes a difference for people.”
“One person really can make a difference,” said Sarah Lukas. “I thought it was really moving and made me think, ‘Oh, I could maybe do something.'”
Contact the writer:
444-1414, ross.boettcher@owh.com
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