Stories from the Field
As we work to provide water, we're committed to helping people like you meet your global neighbors and to realize that we all share the same basic needs. We hope to break down stereotypes and the false distinctions between the so-called winners and losers, rich and poor, the needy and charitable, by introducing you to the people we serve with the respect and admiration they rightfully deserve.
These are stories of hope, told in the words of those who carry out this work every day - our friends in the field.
A Year Later: "Huge, huge impact."
Last year when we first visited Ebumbayi Primary School, the students spent much of their time collecting water outside the school campus. They either hauled water from home, which left them tired before the school day even began, or they went to the local stream during class time when they should have been learning. And if that were not bad enough...
A Year Later: The Confidence of Clean Water
Before we protected the spring in Makhwabuye, people had to painstakingly scoop water from an open water source. The water was open to contamination, which made community members sick, and fetching the water took up too much of their precious time. "The water was being fetched using [a] jug," said 12-year-old Leah. "We could at times wash our feet...
A Year Later: Better Grades and Better Hygiene!
Before we protected the spring in Tombo B, people drank contaminated water every day, and spent a long time collecting it. "Before the spring was constructed, fetching water was so challenging because [the adults] used to tell us to wait for them to fetch water first," said 13-year-old Musa. "I used to waste a lot of time at the water point rather...
A Year Later: "Water-related infections are now a thing of the past."
Before we installed a rain tank at Ivola Primary School, students had to leave school grounds multiple times a day to fetch water just so that the school could continue functioning. "Students used to walk out of the school compound to fetch water for use in school," said 14-year-old Eperphroditus. "Water collection was carried out in the morning,...
A Year Later: "I am just happy."
Before we protected the spring in Shianda, fetching water for community members was an arduous, time-consuming task. First, they would have to wait in line. Then, when it was their turn, they had to stand on slippery rocks placed in the water, scooping water from the surface and pouring it into their jugs. This painstaking process was meant to keep...