Record-breaking fundraising brings safe water to nearly 2,000 people

photos by Paul Nurnberg

Nearly 700 Beaufort County residents joined forces to raise an estimated $93,000 to fight the global water crisis in the 10th annual Walk for Water events in Port Royal and Bluffton. The record high boosts the Walk past the $700,000 mark in total fundraising over its 10-year history.

Walkers and volunteers met Sept. 19 at Live Oaks Park in Port Royal and Oct. 3 at Bluffton United Methodist Church for a three-mile walk to symbolize the burden millions of women and children in developing countries carry daily to collect water that’s often contaminated or in dangerous areas. The walks promote awareness of the desperate need for access to safe water and raise money for Water Mission International, a nonprofit Christian engineering organization based in Charleston that builds sustainable, safe water solutions in developing countries and disaster areas.

“You are a community helping another community you’ll never see,” Walk committee chair Nan Krueger told the crowd in Port Royal. “That is love in action.”

Les Stokes of Beaufort participated in the Walk for the first time, alongside his wife, Jessica, and their two children, Ayla, 8, and Wren, 3. “We take the basics for granted in our lives every day,” he said. “I told my daughter, ‘You get up and walk to the kitchen for water, but other children have to walk miles for it.’ No one should not have access to water. It’s the source of life.”

The $93,000 raised this year will help provide clean water and sanitation solutions to an estimated 1,860 people around the world, according to Water Mission.

Nena McSween of Beaufort has been part of the Walk every year since it started 10 years ago. “It’s a great cause,” she said. “We’re not just digging a well, we’re giving people a different means to get water. It’s a great community-builder, too.”

Supporting her community also led first-timer Debbie Ball of Port Royal to volunteer as a “water-uber” driver, using her golf cart to help people who can’t manage the three-mile trek still join the effort. “I love this community and I wanted to be part of it,” she said. “People need clean, fresh water to survive. This saves lives.”

Visit the Walk for Water website at walkforwater.com/beaufort to learn more about the Beaufort County Walk for Water. Follow Beaufort County Walk for Water on Facebook and Instagram @BeaufortWalkforWater, and on Twitter #bftwalkforwater.