Today's post is from Water Ride creator, Emily Steele in recognition of World Water Day. Enjoy!
What is the furthest you have ever walked in one day?
I remember visiting hilly San Francisco from flat Iowa years ago and from a day of exploration, we totaled an entire marathon.
It took hours of navigating traffic, needing to stop for food and beverages, and hauling cameras, purses, and other traveling items around for 26+ miles.
As most of us do on vacation, I made no other plans to work or check in on my summer government class for college.
This was a choice I made.
Our friends in Ghana and many other third world countries don't have this luxury. Parents and kids walk hundreds of miles every week for clean water out of necessity.
They have to miss school, forego work opportunities, so they can fill their jerry cans with water that will hopefully last them the next few days.
World Water Day is an acknowledgment that water is critical... essential to life. When clean water is easily accessible, you quickly create more opportunities for education and employment. These are incredibly powerful opportunities to all individuals on this planet.
Over the last six years, we've chosen to create a bike ride in the Des Moines metro that raises money for clean water. Hundreds of cyclists have hopped on their bikes for 25-mile stretches on one day out of the year and because of their dollars we have built three water wells, built a school, and funded all the positions within the school so 150 students can be educated.
Twenty-five dollars doesn't seem like a lot, but when you multiply it a few hundred times, momentum quickly builds. If you're compelled to help create more clean water opportunities for people just like you around the world, drop a donation here or sign up for our ride on August 25, starting at Confluence Brewing Company.
If you have any questions about our work or would like to sponsor the event, please email us at TheWaterRide@gmail.com