Written from my mind and heart to you, Amigos, and those you may share the link with:

From basic thirst to the medical need for safe drinking, cooking and cleaning water, access to uncontaminated water remains a luxury for 663 million people and their pets and livestock. It does not come in bottles on the store shelves. It does not flow from multiple taps in their houses, offices, schools, and restaurants. It may, if they are lucky, fall from the skies in quantities like it does here, but their containment and management systems are lacking.

DCWater in this region is on an uphill battle against the issues of stormwater runoff, sewage treatment, and an aging infrastructure (The Poplar Point Pumping station re-do is a $50m+ project alone.) Yet fire hydrants, public pools, and the Dupont Circle fountain has cleaner water than what over half a billion people have access to on a daily basis.

Simple solutions like drilled wells, spring protections and BioSand filters can provide clean water for one of the projects Charity:Water supports in 24 countries around the world.

This fundraising campaign was started to help the non-profit charity: water build these types of projects. I have been supporting their efforts (this will be my 7th campaign) since learning of them in 2008 or earlier and encourage you to learn more about their challenges and successes.

Thank you for donating your time, awareness and/or funds to my birthday campaign this year. Any amount of any of the above that you share is of value.

Private donors cover admin costs, so 100% of your donation is used directly for their projects. Charity: water also shares images and locations noting the community supported.

Image: http://hikingshenandoah.blogspot.com/2015/07/upper-shamokin-falls.html ...a location I was recently able to visit, and appreciate for its setting and clean water.

Thank you!

- Marianne

www.charitywater.org