This is my daughter, whom we'll call Little T for the purposes of this campaign (a nickname given to her by one of the teachers at her elementary school).

In order to explain the motivation behind Little T's campaign, I first need to provide a bit of backstory.

Normally on Sunday mornings, Little T goes to a church service with other kids her age, but sometimes she decides she'd rather accompany the rest of us to "big church," which is her name for the main service. Yesterday, she opted for a "big church" day, and it turned out we had a guest speaker: Scott Harrison, founder and CEO of charity: water.

Scott spoke eloquently and passionately about his story, and his organization's mission to bring clean water to every person on earth. He gave us sobering statistics about how many people in the world are without clean water (about 663 million, or 1/10th of the world's population) and how, every day, about 1,400 children die from diseases caused by unsafe water and poor sanitation. He told personal stories about the people he'd met on his travels, and showed us photos of the murky, contaminated water they were forced to use for drinking, cooking, and washing.

He talked about how charity: water uses simple solutions like drilled wells, spring protections and BioSand filters to help provide clean water to communities around the world, and the importance they place on making sure their solutions are sustainable by partnering with local contractors to do the work, and making sure that they're the ones who receive the credit.

Now, typically on a Sunday morning, my kids are a little wiggly, but yesterday, both of them remained still and wide-eyed, enraptured by the stories Scott was telling. I just knew that as soon as church was over, they were both going to be asking me what our family could do to help, and so I paid close attention to what Scott was saying, determined to have some practical answers ready to go.

Then he talked about how some people like to "donate their birthday," by asking people to match their age in dollars with a donation. And as Scott continued to speak about the impact those birthday donations have made and the lives they have changed, I glanced over at Little T to see her curled into a ball in her seat, her brow furrowed in deep thought.

You see, her 10th birthday is today.

For weeks, Little T has been practically buzzing with excitement over her birthday. Every night before bed, as I tuck her in, she reminds me how many days are left until she turns 10.

Not only is 10 a significant birthday anyway -- double digits! -- but because her birthday falls at a weird time of the year, typically right on top of the first week of school, we've taken to planning a "Day of Fun," where, instead of a party, we let her invite one friend to join her for a whole day of her favorite activities. This year's Day of Fun includes ice skating, swimming, and going to see the movie "Christopher Robin," all with her best friend.

Little T spends most of the summer planning the perfect Day of Fun, and due to alternating summer camp and travel schedules, this would also be one of only two times this summer she's been able to see her best friend. Needless to say, it's a Big Deal.

As her face crumpled more and more, I could imagine what was going through her head. Sure enough, as soon as church ended, she tugged on my sleeve, a sober expression on her face. "I need to talk to you in private," she whispered.

We stepped out into the hall, and as people streamed past, she said in a wobbly voice, "I feel like I'm supposed to donate my birthday." And then she burst into tears.

I knew this was coming. "That's wonderful that you're willing to do that," I said carefully. "But are you crying because you think that donating your birthday means we have to cancel your Day of Fun?"

She nodded. "I don't want to," she gasped. "But I need -- to give kids -- clean water."

I gave her a hug. "Honey, we don't have to cancel your birthday in order to do a birthday campaign. We can do both."

Immediately, her face lit up, although the tears were still streaming (there was no stopping them at this point). "I can still have my birthday AND give kids clean water?" she whispered.

"Absolutely."

I'm sure we can all remember being a kid, and what a big deal it was to turn 10. I'm so proud of her for deciding all on her own, even in all her frenzied excitement on the day before her birthday, that some things are more important than a Day of Fun. It turned out to not be necessary for her to choose between one or the other, but if she had to, she would have chosen giving water to people who need it over her own celebration. She has such a kind, sacrificial, generous spirit, even when it means giving up something she desperately wants, and I hope this campaign encourages her to embrace her tendency toward selfless generosity in an even bigger way as she gets older. If she's setting the bar this high at 10, who knows what she'll be capable of as an adult.

She recently told me she wants to be a judge when she grows up, because she wants it to be her job to make sure people are treated fairly. I told her that the world needs more judges who think that way.

But until then, as Little T turns 10 today, we're asking for those of you who are able to give $10, one dollar for every year of her life, although any amount you can give is a huge help. 100% of the money will be used to build clean water projects, and when they’re complete, charity: water will send us photos and GPS coordinates so we can see the exact community we helped. $30 can provide a sustainable, clean water solution for one person. Since Little T is turning 10, she's set her goal at $300 -- or 10 people.

So, how about it?

Ten years old. Ten dollars given. Ten lives changed for the better.

Will you help her change the world?