Written by Mary Kornegay, Relate Contributing Writer

“I have lost two of my three children to cancer. My children inspired me to appreciate every day & to follow my heart. Our family was very fortunate to receive great support from our family & community during Avery & Nolan’s battles with cancer. When they passed, the support waned while the pain & difficulties continued in our lives.”

–Erin

Would you help this woman if you could? Fortunately for her and many others, you can with one click of your mouse. The Pepsi Refresh Project is a campaign that will donate money in the amounts of $5,000, $25,000, $50,000, or $250,000 to those with the most votes at the end of the month. Erin is just one of the thousands of people with ideas that could make the world a better place. That is what Pepsi is trying to do.

According to the Pepsi Refresh homepage, “The Pepsi Refresh Project focuses on promoting positive social change and collaborating with people who have the ideas and the passion to refresh the world. We are committed to giving away $1.5 million in mid-March to what will now be 33 grant recipients and more than $20 million by the end of the year to help people bring their positive ideas to life. More than anything, this is the most important commitment of all.”

Most of the ideas are truly inspirational, and the good that will come out of this event is encouraging. The six categories are health, arts and culture, food and shelter, the planet, neighborhoods and education. All six are filled with stories and plans of motivated people who are working for a change. Erin dreams of creating an organization that will help the families with chronically ill children both financially and emotionally.

Anyone can submit ideas that they believe will help their community or maybe even the world. Ultimately, Pepsi plans on giving $20 million worth of grants to worthy candidates. This “Refresh the World” campaign is a welcome ray of sunlight during such a difficult time. Be sure to check out the Refresh website, refresheverything.com, to vote for your favorite idea. Help Erin and others make their dreams of helping others come true.

Tags: donation, Pepsi Refresh Project, social change, volunteering