The Clean Water Connection: Da Bomb Bath Fizzer Founders on Hygiene, Empowerment, and Impact

Since 2018, Da Bomb Bath Fizzers have supported The Water Project (TWP) both through generous donations, matching fund gifts, and proceeds from the sales of their beautiful Earth Bomb. 

At the beginning of 2024, we interviewed sisterpreneurs™ Isabel and Caroline Bercaw, Da Bomb’s founders, about their company. Now, we’re thanking them for providing a challenge fund to help Evalyn in Museesu Community get clean water. So, instead of another profile on Da Bomb, Isabel and Caroline decided to send us a few questions they’ve always wondered about The Water Project and our work. 

Below are their questions and our responses.

As a bath and body product brand, we’re interested in learning how water and hygiene are linked. How does access to clean water improve hygiene for communities, and what does that mean for the people there?

We humans need water not just for drinking, but also for staying clean. Imagine having to walk for miles just to find enough water for drinking, let alone for bathing. Or, picture being surrounded by surface water sources like rivers or lakes, but getting a rash every time you try to bathe with the unsafe water. Think about trying to wash your hands after using the restroom with water you know is dirty. How clean would you really feel?

Safe water means people can wash their hands regularly, keep their homes and surroundings clean, and prepare food safely. These actions reduce the spread of diseases that come from dirty water or poor hygiene. Once a community has clean water and their rate of water-related infections (hopefully!) reduces, they can switch their focus from finding clean water (because water is an everyday concern) to their work or education or even to developing their surrounding communities.

We know The Water Project is focused on making sure that the projects last and clean water continues to flow. How do you make sure your water projects last a long time? 

To us, broken water projects are the same as broken promises. When one of our water projects stops working for whatever reason, we always work as quickly as possible to fix the issue. But, more than that, we monitor our water projects to prevent breakdowns before they occur. We call to check in with water user committees, visit water points to evaluate their functionality, and test water quality for possible contamination. 

We monitor to keep the community members we serve safe, but also to ensure that every donor’s contribution continues to make a difference for years to come. This valuable work of keeping the water flowing is what we call The Water Promise, overseen by our Monitoring, Evaluation, Resolution, and Learning division. We, and the donors who support The Water Promise, are fiercely dedicated to keeping our water projects working over the long term.

What impact does clean water have on local entrepreneurs in the regions you serve? Are there any projects or success stories that have particularly inspired your team?

One of our favorite stories about an entrepreneur whose business was sparked by access to clean water is Isabella from Western Kenya.

As a mother of four, Isabella wanted to add to her household income to pay for school fees and help put food on the table. But she needed a way to make a living without leaving the home where her small children depended on her. 

The new protected spring yielded extra (clean!) water that no one was using. Isabella started using the surplus water to make small batches of liquid soap and sell them to local businesses. From there, she expanded: she knew other women in her community would jump at the chance to make money for their households from home, so she started selliing soap-making chemicals as well. 

Years passed, during which her little enterprise grew and grew. Finally, she bought land — a tricky thing to do in Western Kenya, where the dense population makes free land scarce and expensive — and built her own building. Now, two of her grown children help her run her thriving shop.

Aside from being a major businesswoman, Isabella also serves as the treasurer of the spring’s water user committee, helping to maintain the protected spring and ensure it remains functional for her children and her children’s children.

Isabella reminds us of something fundamental. For our donors, the completed water project is often the end of the story, the “happily ever after.” But for enterprising individuals like Isabella, clean water is the opportunity they need to start something huge for themselves, their families, and their communities.

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Not only are our wonderful friends at DA BOMB Bath Fizzers helping us with a 2X donation match throughout this holiday season, but they’re also giving YOU something special, too! 

Use code DABOMB20 at checkout on their website between now and December 24th for 20% off your purchase! Every Da Bomb bath bomb has a fun surprise inside. Surprises include small toys, charms, figurines, and even casual jewelry.

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