clean water for Christmas.

I posted images from a portion of our trip in Ethiopia this summer with Visiting Orphans (here), but never really talked about it.

Remember when we went to Branson ?

Well it was for this DIG DEEP project fundraiser!

Our good friends, Rob & Julie Neal, have an amazing story.

I got to hear it from Rob this summer & when we were in Springfield, I got to hear more of it.

Their youngest, Cruz, remember my boyfriend?

Well he's from a very remote village in Ethiopia called Chuko.

a village that doesn't have access to clean drinking water.

Julie, his mom, felt a nudge to go to Ethiopia on a trip with no reason to why.

but she & a few friends went and they ended up in Chuko with A Glimmer of Hope

{an awesome Austin based organization that does work in Ethiopia}

and this is what what happened after meeting Cruz's grandmother....

"Seeing the journey these beautiful people make each day to lug 40+ pounds of water through the muddy trails and treacherous, slick, rocky slopes with no shoes, and yet still with smiling faces, brings new meaning to the word “heartbreaking.” And the real heartbreak is that the water they find is unknowingly infested with leech larvae and other parasites; and by the time they exhibit the symptoms of the diseases, it’s too late to save them. 80% of deaths in that area are due to water-borne illnesses.

So that night while Julie was sleeping under the mosquito net with no electricity and complete darkness, God called us, beyond a shadow of a doubt, to bring clean water to the people of Chuko (Cruz’s village). Not only clean water, but when it was done, to dedicate it to the honor of Cruz’s birth mother. So hopefully, in some way, it would bring some meaning to the devastating loss experienced by Cruz’s precious grandmother. We were determined to help make a difference.

What does this mean for our family? After initial testing was completed by the Glimmer team, it was determined that a deep borehole well would be needed to supply over 2,500 members of the Chuko village with clean water. After the shock wore off of the significance of the fundraising project (the cost of this deep borehole was more than double what we had expected), we realized it was not just OUR project--it was God's, and that $193,000 is no more difficult for Him than $50,000. And as a family, it’s been indescribable to see our three older children get a hold of this and turn their focus from themselves and onto this cause and the potential it has to literally save the lives of those living in their brother’s home village. "

ps- when I was in Springfield, it was the girls birthday & they asked instead of presents for people to donate to the well project! They are 14. WOW!

While we were on our Man Up trip this summer, we got to visit.

We actually left Addis to make the 7 hour trek to Chuko the morning after our time at the trash dump.

So imagine we went from the image on the left, to the one on the right.

destitution to beauty.

Chuko really was the most beautiful place I've ever seen. Pictures don't do it justice. it was clean, it smelled wonderful and was so pure.

We knew we were going to visit the village Rob's son was from, so we affectionately named this "Rob's day" and shouted on numerous occasions, "we love Rob's day!"

{well, not really on the 7 hour drive in which numerous people got sick & Amanda and I had to potty so bad that we went on the side of the road and I apparently showed everyone a "full moon"...good thing we are family!}

Besides knowing a little bit about the Neal's story and knowing that a team of 5 high school students and their teacher, April, started their own campaign off of Dig Deep called "Pirates dig a well" Check out their fundraising site here.....we didn't know much about what this day entailed.

{Josh, Alyssa, Caleb & Rob Neal, April, Anna & Amellia}

These HIGH SCHOOL students have raised to date over $24,000 for this project.

I was blown away.

Michael Gibson (son of our leader, Roger and Mama Kiki) leads this team fearlessly.

His life has been changed by the work they've done.

The silent auction we went to Branson for was put on by this group.

Raised over $5,000

Anything is possible my friends! You don't have to be a grown up to put your gifts & passions to use for the Kingdom!

Back to our day in Chuko.

It was one of the best on our trip.

We traveled by 4 wheel drive into the bush to be greeted by the village singing, dancing, clapping & welcoming us.

I've never been so blown away.

Rob was like the king.

They were so thankful that we want to bring them clean water.

I remember a teammate of mine, Jason, said it well when he said "now I feel a sense of responsibility & urgency to help these people. They expect it from us!"

We went to the site where they get their water. their dirty water.

just thinking about eliminating this problem for them is overwhelmingly exciting.

Why am I telling you about this now?

Well as the Christmas season approaches and we are all buying buying buying, consider doing something different this year. This is what Julie has to say.....

"So as the Christmas season approaches, we invite you all to join with us as we “Dig Deep” in order to change the lives of those who cannot enjoy something we take for granted every day. Clean Water. . .what a concept. Be creative. Go a little crazy. Think about donating in someone else’s name in lieu of a traditional gift. It’s exciting to think of all the possibilities, but more than that, it’s going to be incredible to know that we’ve been able to play a part in reaching “the least of these.”

So....head over to their fundraising site & help bring clean water to these beautiful people of Chuko!

http://www.aglimmerofhope.org/campaign/dig-deep

If you want to join us in becoming a part of this project this Christmas & give a gift of clean water in honor of a friend or family member visit the website above!