Water to Thrive – Build Wells, Change Lives
Wednesday, April 1st, 2020 | Uncategorized | No Comments
Providing Life-Giving Water to Africa from East Tennessee
Founded in 2008, Water to Thrive is a faith-based non-profit headquartered in Austin, Texas, that is dedicated to spreading awareness of the global water crisis while raising the funds needed to construct water wells for those who desperately need them in rural Africa. They work with communities in need that take ownership of their wells.
Lack of access to safe drinking water is the cause of 80% of diseases in rural Ethiopia alone. The objective is to ensure at least 15 liters per person per day of clean water for drinking, cooking, and personal hygiene. It is difficult, if not impossible, for us to think of not being able to turn on a tap and have clean, safe water fill our cups. In some areas of the globe, however, people must travel miles to access water that is not tested, not clean, and is the cause of many diseases and even death.
Each day these new projects provide clean, safe water to hundreds of people. The communities participate fully in the construction and implementation of these wells, and the villages have now taken full ownership of the projects. Water committees, selected by the communities themselves, maintain the water points and ensure that they are being properly used. The committees, along with the communities they serve, work hard to make sure that the wells are sustainable and will be able to provide clean water for many years.
In 2018, Shepherd of the Lake began a partnership with Water to Thrive, and to date we have funded the completion of seven wells through member donations. We are grateful to know that these communities no longer have to face the fear of illness and death from dirty water. Women will be able to spend hundreds of additional hours a year looking after their families instead of traveling miles to collect water that may not be safe to drink. Children will not have to miss class to help gather water.
We at Shepherd of the Lake are passionate about this ministry and continue to support Water to Thrive in their life-saving mission to provide well water, as well as living water to those in desperate need.
Shepherd of the Lake Lutheran Church
143 Chota Center
Loudon, TN 37774
865-816-4756
www.shepherdofthelaketn.org
