Latest News-Wells 4 & 5

Connection Ministries has received the money for water wells numbers 4 & 5!  The funds should be transferred by January 14, with the drilling scheduled to start on the 28 of February.  A protective wall will be built around each well, with a plaque also on each.

So far a total of five schools have been reached, but there are more asking for aid.  Each school has up to 300 children who need access to clean water.  This does not include the parents of the children, the workers at the school, and the general populace that also live nearby.  As many as 2000 people can use one well regularly.  The goal of ourselves and Pastor Tom Abungu is to place 10 more wells in the Siaya District before moving on to giving aid to the Maasai.

Pastor Tom Abungu thanks everyone for their support and he will try to attend the Water Walk this upcoming year.

Donations As Gifts

We are now announcing the ability to give donations as gifts! A donation to H2O makes a great gift for holidays, graduations, and birthdays. Through this program, the mere existence of a person will result in the lives of other people being improved. Follow the link in the navigation bar above (see the picture below), and you will find a form. Fill out the information marked by a red star, and a card will be sent to the person whom the gift is being given to. The card will explain who we are, how they have helped, and what you've done for them. All we ask is that the donation be a minimum of $15, the cost of a pair of shoes for a child in need.

About Time For An Update

Well, sorry it's been so long since we've gotten anything up here; but we've been pretty busy as Angie's family has expanded again.  Cade and I are going to try to keep some updates going on the blog.

The big news is that wells #4 and #5 have been fully funded, due to the great efforts of many friends in the past several months.  These two wells will be drilled in the near future at primary schools in the Siaya District of Western Kenya.  And as soon as they're completed we will try to get some pictures posted.  After seeing the water situation in East Africa with many folks walking long distances to get water, which often is from a dirty surface water source, we have become committed to helping develop more sources of clean water.

We also have great news on the Shoe Ministry!  There is a school in the same district which has about one hundred kids who are all about to receive a pair of shoes.  This will be the first shoes ever for most of these children!  Tom Abungu and his team will travel to the site where they perform a footwashing ceremony and present the kids with their new shoes.  Shoes are not just a luxury over there, they are actually a means to provide better health for the children by preventing several maladies which the kids pick up walking barefooted.  These include: jiggers, tetanus, fungal infections, and a disease caused by parasites carried by snails (which then burrow into the kid's feet).  A big thanks to all the friends who have donated to help get this group of kids their shoes and we are looking forward to working on another batch in the near future.  Shoes for out in the country cost $15 a pair, while shoes for kids in the orphanage in Nairobi cost $10.  Any amount donated is welcome!  One hundred percent of all donations go directly to the shoes or the wells.

Donations can be sent to Trinity United Methodist Church at:

1320 West 21st Clovis, New Mexico 88101

or:

Connection Miniestries P.O. Box 1973 Oregon City 97045

Please note on your check if your donation should go toward a water well or shoes.  Thank you!

Walk and Giveaway

The Rio Rancho Water Walk is on Saturday! We can't wait! 

My sweet friend, Jaime, donated this beautiful Origami Owl locket and we'll be giving it away in conjunction with the walk. All donations of $25 or more will be entered into a drawing, which will be conducted at the end of the event. You don't want to miss the chance to win this special necklace!

Also, don't forget that we have a matching grant for this well. All donations will be 100% matched.

Hope to see you Saturday at Rio Vista Park!

Oh, almost forgot! Cade has been working on the blog lately, posting updates and such. Way to go, Cade!

Water Walk Flyers

What do you think of our flyers for the upcoming Water Walk in Rio Rancho?  Haven't heard about it yet?  Click here for more information!

Some Unexpected Difficulties

We just learned that the City of Rio Rancho is doing extensive work down in the area we were going to walk in the upcoming water walk.  The event is still on, but we may have to take a different route to get there.  Our plans are to meet with the city tomorrow and see what can be done.  In the meantime, please keep us in your prayers.  Thank you and God bless!

New Widget

In case you haven't noticed, we have a new widget on our page.  Every time a page loads, you will see a new fact about the water crisis.  It's located underneath the Blog Archive and is entitled 'Check This Out:'.  There are only eleven facts so far, but we plan to add more soon.  Thanks for reading and God bless!

Also, don't forget to come to the Rio Rancho Water Walk!  We hope to see you there.

New Feature!

We have an exciting new feature that we want to tell you about!  You can now subscribe to our blog by email.  Just put your email address in the text box in the top left corner and click on the submit button.  Then enter the security code in the text box in the pop-up window.  Finally go to your email, open the email from feedburner, and click on the link to activate your subscription.  This enables you to get emails every time we have a new post.

One last thing, are you coming to the Rio Rancho Water Walk?  We'd love to see you there!

Rio Rancho Water Walk

You may have read our previous post on the upcoming Water Walk in Rio Rancho!  We are so excited about this opportunity to once again raise money for a water well in Africa.  Let me go over the basics of the event again:

Who: H20: Hydration 2 Others

What: A mile-long walk from the park down to the river to collect water and bring it back in a jug as a reminder of what people across the world have to do every day.

When: April 20, starting at 10 A.M.

Where: Rio Vista Park in Rio Rancho.

Cost: A suggested donation of $10 per student, $25 per adult, and $50 per family.

Why: Because every year, the equivalent of the population of Los Angeles dies from lack of access to clean drinking water.  Really puts things in perspective doesn't it?  That's over 3.4 million people.  Currently, 780 million people lack access to clean drinking water.  That means every one in nine people die from lack of access to clean drinking water.  We are doing this to bring down those numbers.  Individually we can't do anything.  But if we stand together, we can bring down those numbers.  Join us in our Water Walk.

Rio Rancho Water Walk

Millions of people lack access to clean water. Many walk miles to gather water that is dirty and contaminated. H2O (hydration 2 others) is a group that raises money to install water wells in remote areas of rural Kenya. YOU can help us make a difference! Join us for a walk to experience what everyday life in Africa is like.

Bring an empty container and start at Rio Vista Park in Rio Rancho. We'll walk down to the Rio Grande River to collect water and then return to the park.

Suggested tax deductible donation is $10 for students, $25 for individuals, and $50 for families. However, any donation amount will be appreciated! We are currently fundraising for well #5 and are excited to have a matching donor! So, your donation will be doubled by our anonymous benefactors!

If you're unable to attend, you can still help! For information on how to make a donation through the mail or with Paypal please go to: http://hydration2others.blogspot.com/p/donate.html.

This event is hosted by h2O (hydration 2 others) and Celebration Baptist Church youth group. To find out more about h2O, look us up on Facebook or check out our blog at hydration2others.blogspot.com.

We hope to see you and your friends and family on April 20!

The Girls

A few weeks ago, the women of Celebration Baptist Church spent the day making cloth pads for the girls in Kenya. Women and girls miss work and school every month when they lack adequate supplies during their monthly cycle. The kits we are supplying will last for years and will allow the women to discreetly take care of their needs, while going on with life as usual. This is a project we're really excited about! I am a birth doula and have done a lot of childbirth and breastfeeding education and support. Women's issues are where my heart is. I love that my church has come alongside us with this project. Thanks to Cathy C. for leading the charge!

Shoe Ministry

Last year when he was in Kenya, Angie's dad's heart was broken for all of the kids in the village who didn't have any shoes to call their own. Many children grow up and never even own one pair of shoes. Without shoes, parasitic diseases are easily contracted. With shoes, the diseases are easily preventable.

Over the past year, Edwin and Doris [Angie' parents] have provided shoes for about 150 kids. Here are some pictures from the shoe distribution that took place this month.

We're excited to announce that we have a matching donor for all donations to well #5! This means that every dollar you give will be doubled. Pretty cool, right??!!

Also, we received some new pictures from Kenya! Here is the future site of well #4. That's our friend, Jerry, giving the tour.

An Overdue, Exciting Update

I know, I know. I'm a bad, bad, BAD blogger! It's unbelievable how life pulls us along at a frantic pace sometimes. Homeschooling our five kiddos and running to all of their activities keeps me away from the computer most days and leaves me exhausted every night. In spite of us, Hydration 2 Others continues to grow and be blessed. If you follow us on Facebook, there are more frequent h20 updates on our fan page. Look us up so you can stay in the loop!

I'll do a little update here:

• The Clovis Water Walk in October was a success! Despite the windy, chilly day, we raised over $2000 toward well #4!

• We have two new t-shirt designs that have gotten great reviews from our fans. Congratulations to Anneliese Nauck on winning our design contest! We love it!

• We heard exciting news from Kenya. While our team was in the village last June, at the dedication ceremony for well #2, a pastor who had been attending the pastoral training done by our team announced to those gathered that he was starting a church. It's called Celebration, after our home church of Celebration Baptist. The church has grown and thrived and now has a membership of about 100 people! They are planning to build a church soon, so they can have their very own place. How amazing is that??!! Our God is SO GOOD! Our mission is to spread the gospel through the work we're doing. It's so exciting to hear how many lives are being touched through our passion for clean water and the work our team did with the teaching last summer. People are being saved and lives are a changin' ya'll!

•  Ok. Now. The big one...... Well #4 is COMPLETELY FUNDED!!! Exactly one year ago, the first team was in country to see the installation of #1. In twelve short months, the funds have come in for three more wells. Thousands of lives are being saved, and changed, and it's all in the name of Jesus.

•  Here's a reminder of where we were a year ago:

• We have a big, gigantic exciting announcement coming up soon! We need to work out some details, but God is doing BIG work in Kenya!

I tell ya what, we are so humbled and grateful for this ministry and the many people who support it. When our son's birth mother passed away three years ago from causes related to lack of safe access to clean drinking water, it was not in vain. Because of her life, thousands of lives are being saved and redeemed! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for helping to create this legacy.