Water, Water everywhere, but is it Safe to Drink?

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (March 18, 2013) – For the poorest of the poor in the Caribbean and Latin America, access to clean water is virtually non-existent. Thousands of families in the countries we serve need safe, clean drinking water. Sadly, for many in the rural communities, their only source of water comes from a watering hole, river or a stream. These waters may appear clean, but they are often harboring harmful and potentially deadly bacteria.

International World Water Day is set aside each year as a means of focusing attention on the importance of fresh water and advocating for the sustainable management of freshwater resources. As World Water Day celebrates its 20th year on March 22, Food For The Poor will launch its fourth annual Water Weekfundraising campaign, March 18 through March 25. During this weeklong donation drive, the charity is seeking to raise money for water filtration units, water wells and pumps.

“Food For The Poor understands the vital importance of providing the villages we build with access to clean water and proper sanitation. Many of the very young and the elderly die from preventable waterborne illnesses such as dysentery, cholera and parasitic infections,” said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor. “The theme for this year’s World Water Day is ‘International Year of Water Cooperation’ and by supporting Water Week 2013 you will be helping to provide a community with safe drinking water. It only takes a little to make a big difference.”

Over the past decade, Food For The Poor has completed more than 1,475 water projects, which include wells, cisterns, tanks, distribution systems, and water treatment units in the countries the organization serves. Thanks to generous donors and a partnership with Water Missions International, since the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Food For The Poor has installed 60 water filtration units that purify 600,000 gallons of water each day, and drilled 136 wells in Haiti. Together, these projects provide a safe water source for more than a million people. 

Can you imagine trying to live just one day without clean water or anything to drink? Sadly, this is the daily reality for Choupette, a 10-year-old Haitian girl. Choupette leaves her home early each day and treks down a rocky, treacherous mountainside to fill two one-gallon containers with contaminated, dirty water.  Please click on the following link www.foodforthepoor.org/quest to view a short video of Choupette's daily quest for water, and to learn how you can help quench her thirst and the thirst of those within her community.      
                                       
Food For The Poor, named by The Chronicle of Philanthropy as the largest international relief and development organization in the nation, does much more than feed millions of the hungry poor in 17 countries of the Caribbean and Latin America. This interdenominational Christian ministry provides emergency relief assistance, clean water, medicines, educational materials, homes, support for orphans and the aged, skills training and micro-enterprise development assistance, with more than 96 percent of all donations going directly to programs that help the poor.