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“Where there is charity and wisdom, there is neither fear nor ignorance.” - St. Francis of Assisi

There is nothing like too many philanthropists or charity givers! This is because there are more economically underprivileged people than privileged in the world. And there also are many different ways to give charity to the needy.

A young American businessman named Adam Braun, who is barely 30 years old, started a charity in October 2008 to give pencils to children around the world who have no access to education. He was inspired to start the charity during a visit to India, where he met a boy begging on the street who wanted a pencil. Braun gave the Indian boy his pencil. The boy gave Braun an idea.

Upon returning home, Braun quit his job at Bain & Company, an American global management consulting firm in Boston, to found “Pencils of Promise,” a non-profit organization that builds schools for children in the developing world. The charity has been supported by many celebrities like Justin Bieber. The pop star has participated in the charity’s fund-raising events and donated parts of the proceeds of his concerts to the charity.

“Pencils of Promise” had built more than 150 schools in many countries in Asia, including Laos; Africa, including Ghana; and Latin America, such as Nicaragua and Guatemala, by June 2013. In March this year, Braun published a book titled The Promise of a Pencil: How an Ordinary Person Can Create Extraordinary Change.