Win big for Lewisville girl, bigger for African children

Thanks to Anna LaVenture, 178 children in Africa will be sleeping under mosquito nets designed to protect them from malaria.

And thanks to the $890 that Anna, 11, raised to buy nets for those children, Anna and her mother, Suzanne, have tickets to the American Idol finale in Los Angeles in May.
Anna, a sixth-grader at Paisley Middle School, is the national winner of "Save the World Summer," a contest that invited children ages 8 to 14 to come up with summer projects to raise money to fight malaria.
The contest was sponsored by the nonprofit organization Malaria No More and Brooke White, a 2008 contestant on American Idol.American Idol provided the tickets for the winner. Anna's mother learned about the contest by happenstance when she picked up a copy of U.S. News & World Report on a trip to Iowa. When she saw the story, she thought that it would be just the thing for Anna.
For one, helping others, particularly those in poverty, is something that she and her husband, Craig, emphasize with Anna and with Anna's 14-year-old brother, Daniel. Plus, mother and daughter are big fans of the show. They have been watching it together since the second season.
"I always liked singing, and I like shows with real people," Anna said.
So, Anna's mom gave her a call, making sure to highlight the part about helping others and to downplay the part about possible tickets to American Idol.

"She told me I probably wouldn't win," Anna said.
But that didn't deter her. "I pretty much wanted to go out and do it," she said.
At first, she didn't know much about malaria. But, after she did research on Malaria No More's Web site, she knew a lot.
Malaria No More was founded in 2006 and is working to eradicate malaria by 2015. Although the disease, which is spread by mosquitoes, is no longer a problem in the United States, it continues to be a deadly problem in parts of Asia, South America and Africa.
Worldwide, 350 million to 500 million people become ill with malaria and 1 million people die each year. Children are particularly vulnerable to the disease. Estimates are that malaria kills a child every 30 seconds in Africa.
As part of its efforts, Malaria No More buys protective nets for $10 each and distributes them free. Because more than one child usually sleeps in a bed, the organization estimates that each net protects two children.
One idea that Anna had was to create a video for YouTube in which she talks about malaria and asks people to contribute. She did that with help from the rest of her family. Her video can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVBZzp8-x3Q.
She told family and friends and the people at school. She also made a triptych out of poster board that has lots of information about malaria. She set that up outside a Lewisville grocery store one day and invited shoppers to contribute. Through her mother's account on Facebook, she set up a "Help Anna Save the World" network.
In December, Emily Bergantino, with Malaria No More, sent an e-mail to Anna's mother telling her that Anna had raised the most money. "I read the first sentence and started jumping up and down and telling all my co-workers," Suzanne LaVenture said.
Anna's mother teaches Spanish at Davidson County Community College. Her father is a freelance lighting technician.
Anna didn't find out that she won until Christmas morning when she opened up the box filled with such goodies as a T-shirt, cap and tote bag that Bergantino mailed to Anna's mother. Because Anna didn't expect to win, it took a minute for everything to soak in. It also contained a congratulatory letter.
"Why would they send me stuff if I didn't win?" she asked herself.
Anna's other accomplishments include being named "Most Improved Swimmer" at the Willow Run swim club in Lewisville. Spelling is her favorite subject, and she likes to write. Her poems include one about Brazil and another about a car trip to St. Louis at Thanksgiving. At the moment, the top three items on Anna's "What I Want to Be When I Grow Up" list are photographer, dancer, violinist.
Because she has no way of knowing what will happen on the trip in May, she's a little nervous. In the meantime, she and her mother are looking forward to the start of the 2009 season on Jan. 13.
Both parents are quite proud of their daughter. "She really did help save real children's lives," Suzanne LaVenture said.

Kim Underwood can be reached at 727-7389 or at kunderwood@wsjournal.com.