Author Doc Hendley was a bartender and a musician in Raleigh back in 2004 when he decided to change the direction of his life by thinking less about himself and more about others. He awoke in the middle of the night with the words "wine to water" on his brain. In an effort to interpret the meaning of those words, he searched the Internet and learned that more than 1 billion people worldwide do not have access to clean water.
He stuck to what he knew – pouring wine and playing music – and hosted his first wine-tasting fundraiser in Raleigh in February 2004. By that August, he was installing water systems for genocide victims in Darfur.Seven years later, his 501(c)3, Wine to Water, has brought clean water and sanitation to India, Cambodia, Uganda, Ethiopia and Haiti.
"I didn't intend to be standing here," he said last night. "You don't have to have your act together to do something good in the world. You just have to start somewhere."
Check out our slideshow of photos from last night's event.
Latest Comments