Access to Drinking Water is Lacking in US Public Schools

Hello everyone,

The issue of access to clean water is not only an issue in developing countries but also in countries like the United States.

Please read the following shocking article about how many children in the United States do not have access to clean water during their school day.

Thirsty Students: Access to Drinking Water is Lacking in Public Schools

The situation in the communities we work with in Colombia, Costa Rica and Cameroon is even worse. They lack access to clean water at home and at school as well as have classes in extremely hot temperatures (95 degrees and above) without air-conditioning and lack the basic resources such as pencils, paper and notebooks. Many children also have to walk long distances (1 hour each way) to get to school on an empty stomach.

If you are interested in helping a school have clean water in Colombia, please check out our

water truck sponsorship program.

Thanks for your interest,

World Water Day and New Aguayuda Videos:

Happy World Water Day!

This World Water Day I will share with you some good news from the Millennium Development Goals Report from the United Nations.

• The number of people who lack safe drinking water is down to 884 million from 1.1 billion in 2006.

• Childhood deaths decreased from 12.6 million in 2007 to 9 million.

• Each dollar invested in safe drinking water and sanitation provides an eight dollar (8:1) return on investment in reduced healthcare costs and time savings.

It is great to see that we are on the right track and are able to reduce the number of people in need of clean water, but there is still much more to be done.

You can be a part of further reducing the number of people who lack clean water and children who die due to water-related illnesses by donating to Aguayuda.

You can also become a sponsor of water deliveries through water trucks for schools and communities in La Guajira, Colombia. To learn more about the schools and communities that participate in our water truck sponsorship program, please watch our new short videos.

Thank you for your support.

Volunteering for Aguayuda

We would like to share with you a short essay by Jack Levenson, a founding Board of Director of Aguayuda, about his volunteer experience with Aguayuda.

“I spent one week at the end of June 2010 combining my passion to help with my energy to discover. It was my first time volunteering onsite with Aguayuda and I had my doubts as to how much could be accomplished in my 5 ½ days in La Guajira, Colombia. I had been told that I would be busy but I didn’t know that meant I’d be able to witness the completion of 3 projects, work in 6 communities, collaborate with community members, local governments, multiple indigenous populations, schools, and other non-profit organizations.

After each full day, no matter how dusty we were or how many miles we had covered on back “roads”, Aguayuda’s leaders’ Sabrina and Simón, made it a point to cap each day off with a walk along the beach and a tall glass of fresh "jugo de Maracuya" (a type of passion fruit juice you just can’t find in the US). That to me was the balance of Aguayuda – a tremendous amount of diverse, hard work but always staying connected to what is special and important to life and to each community. Aguayuda’s network was vast and covered hundreds of miles but each community touched was different and had a unique issue with something special to offer. Everywhere we went children played and often helped as community members worked hand with their environment to create a sustainable future.

We did so much, but one of my favorite moments was in Ramonero as the sun was setting. We had made fixes to and cleaned a water storage tank, and were waiting for the cement to dry on structural changes made to a water basin for the community’s goats and pigs. I had a Frisbee with me and for about a half an hour I played Frisbee with the girls and boys and even a few older community members. It was obvious that this was the first time they had ever played Frisbee. We all smiled and laughed with the pride that we had done something good that day.

Thank you Aguayuda for giving me the opportunity to more than exceed my goals. My passion and energy combined in ways I never would have guessed. I look forward to volunteering for Aguayuda as often as I can in the future.”

Best regards,