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THE HERALD BULLETIN-Monday, November 15, 2010-ANDERSON--Fifteen years ago, Carretta "Corky" Corzine and her best friend began putting pennies into an old glass jug for water coolers. It was never decided what the pennies would go toward, that is, until a recent Bible study class. "Our teacher was saying that, even a penny or a nickel, you would be surprised how far this would go for digging a well," 73-year old Corzine said. On Sunday, that jar of pennies became the symbol for the Indiana Chapter of Widow's Mite Experience, a North Carolina based organization of women that raises money to build wells in third-world countries. "It's penny by penny," said Darlene Browning, a Franklin member of the Chapter. "We're not asking for commitments; we're not asking for pledges. We're asking for people's change." Corzine's penny-by-penny donation was presented Sunday at a Praise and Worship session at the Madison Park Church of God, which served as a sort of kick-off for the Chapter. Bob and Esther Crnkovich said they attended the hour long session because they'd wanted to praise, but were interested in learning more about the well program. "We just heard about the music," Esther Crnkovich said. The two-foot glass jar was wheeled in the Madison Park Church of God on a stand made special for the presentation. "I would be very curious to know how much is in there," Corzine said. "It's just pennies, as far as I know." Corzine said she was making the donation in the name of her best friend, Lynn Henthorn, who died in March at age 71. The two women had been best friends for 20 years, Corky said. They traveled the nation and world together. They lived together. And, somewhere along the way, they decided to start putting their pennies together. "Every couple nights, we would empty our billfolds and put the pennies in there," she said. "We had no idea at the time what we would do with them." Browning said her Chapter members, and maybe her grandchildren, will begin the task of rolling the pennies this week. "Since this is going to a nonprofit, I don't want to lose whatever the percentage is that it would cost to have someone count them for us," she said. The Indiana Chapter of Widow's Mite began in October 2009 after a group of women attended a conference in North Carolina, Browning said. Browning said the Indiana Chapter is expecting to fund 20 well projects this year. It costs $1800 to drill a well, she said. A small silent auction on Friday raised enough for the first well, Browning said. "I hope people will feel inspiried to help in this well drilling because this is the only way for them to get fresh water," Corzine said. According to the World Health Organization, the lack of safe drinking water is the cause of about 80 percent of sickness and disease globally. Corzine said she knows her best friend would approve of the donation. In fact, she's already stood in their "hobby room", where the jar has been for 15 years, and told Lynn all about it. "I said, 'Lynn, I know you would approve of this," Corzine said this week, "because you will be a part of that well'." Contact Christina M. Wright, 640-4883, christina.wright@heraldbulletin.com