Water for LIFE: Fighting an Illness More Deadly Than Coronavirus

No access to clean drinking water is a leading cause of death for children under the age of five.

Thy and her family beside the graves of her two children killed by drinking impure water.

By Nancy Flory Published on June 24, 2020

A mother knelt by the graves of two of her children and wept. She lost her children to diseases brought on by drinking bacteria-laden water from a pond outside her village in Cambodia. Now she’s terrified she’ll lose her last child.

Each day, the mother, Thy, takes a bucket to the pond to get drinking water for her family. When she gets home, she lets the dirt settle to the bottom before using the “clean” water on top for drinking. The water causes diarrhea, vomiting, fever and intestinal cramps. But she has no choice. There’s nothing else she can do.

The Water for LIFE outreach team traveled to Cambodia. Thy showed the team her water source, then begged them for help. “I have lost two of my children already,” she sobbed. “Please don’t let this water take my last!”

Unlike the coronavirus, this is completely curable and avoidable — mothers like Thy all over the world are in desperate need of clean water. With a new well, a local doctor said that recovery happens “from the first cup of water they drink.”

How You Can Help

Water for Life

The Stream’s parent organization, LIFE Outreach International, is doing something about it. Since 2000, LIFE Outreach’s Water for LIFE program has drilled more than 6,500 wells. That means LIFE Outreach, with the gracious help of friends like you, has been able to provide access to clean water for several million people. This year, Water for LIFE has promised 350 villages a new well. With your help, we can secure the final 150 wells of the year.

Join us in praying that the Lord move in the hearts of His children to meet this need. And please consider giving to Water for LIFE yourself. With your gift, Water for LIFE can provide clean, disease-free water for villagers in the poorest countries.

150 wells. Stream family, together we can get it done. Click here to help.

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Nancy Flory is an associate editor at The Stream. You can follow her @NancyFlory3, and follow The Stream @Streamdotorg.

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