Blood:Water Mission
Encyclopedia
Blood:Water Mission is a grassroots organization that empowers communities to work together against the HIV/AIDS and water crises in Africa.
History
Founded by the multi-platinum, Grammy Award-winning band, Jars of Clay
, Blood:Water Mission began as a call to personalize the HIV/AIDS crisis in Africa. The members of the band were committed to share the often-untold stories: those of creative, compassionate, hard-working Africans bringing health, hope and healing into their respective communities.
Blood:Water Mission first stepped into funding a late stage AIDS hospice and discovered the vital link between living with HIV/AIDS and the need for clean water. As a result, Blood:Water Mission launched the 1000 Wells Project in 2005 as a nation-wide effort to raise enough money to provide clean water and sanitation to 1000 communities in sub-Saharan Africa based on the equation that $1 provides one African with clean water for an entire year.
Since its launch, Blood:Water Mission has raised millions of dollars from individuals seeking to make a difference. They have partnered with more over 800 communities in Africa, providing life-saving water and health needs for over 500,000 people in 13 different countries. Along the way the 1000 Wells Project has expanded holistically to include a variety of clean water solutions and sanitation and hygiene training, as well as funding health clinics, community health workers, and support groups, which help in the prevention, treatment, care and support of communities affected by AIDS, incorporating HIV/AIDS-specific programming alongside ongoing water programming. How Blood:Water Works Video One such example is a clinic in Lwala, Kenya which is now independently operated and community-led. The Lwala clinic is the focus of the award-winning feature documentary, Sons of Lwala. Sons of Lwala.
The results of Blood:Water Mission's efforts paints a new picture in these communities. Village leaders have the resources and training to bring clean water, sanitation and healthcare into their communities. Stomach aches, skin diseases and diarrhea have disappeared. Women and children no longer walk several miles a day to carry filthy water. Children are able to return to school. Those with HIV are living longer, stronger lives.
The 1000 Wells Project is Blood:Water Mission's main project, which has a goal of providing 1,000 communities in Africa with safe drinking water.
Jars of Clay
and other artists (Sara Groves
, Christopher Williams
, Derek Webb
, Forever the Sickest Kids
, Sixpence None the Richer
, Brandon Heath
, Matthew Perryman Jones
, Relient K
, and many others) as well as authors (Donald Miller and Anne Jackson
) have been raising funds for the 1000 Wells Project during their concerts since 2005. The organization is slated to complete the 1,000 Wells landmark in late 2010.
With the September 2006 release of their album, Good Monsters
, Jars of Clay partnered with The Global Water Challenge and the Coca Cola Company to donate $1.00 toward the provision of clean water in Africa for each of the first 100,000 copies of Good Monsters sold.
40 DAYS OF WATER
Make water your only beverage for 40 Days. By giving up what you'd normally drink in exchange for the water from your tap you can save that money to help build clean water projects for communities in Uganda. This takes place over Lent
each year. 40 Days of Water
TWO WEEKS OF SACRIFICE
This campaign is similar to "40 Days of Water" except it takes place over only 2 weeks versus 6.
WATER WALKS
Walk for Water so they don't have to.
Every day, thousands of young Africans must hike miles a day just for access to water. You can bring a group together and join in solidarity with people in Africa by walking the distance to your nearest natural water source (like a pond or stream) and back to bring back water. A water walk can be a very literal and impactful way to "walk a mile in someone else's shoes."
BACK TO SCHOOL
The cost of not having access to clean water is higher than just the loss of health, but it includes the loss of opportunity for education. Blood:Water Mission's "Back to School Campaign" encourages people to help provide the funds necessary to ensure that a child does not have to walk miles to collect water each day, but can instead spend that time in the classroom.
RIDE:WELL TOUR
The Ride:Well Tour, powered by Venture Expeditions, is a cross-country cycling campaign to raise money and awareness for clean water & HIV/AIDS support in Africa through the work of Blood:Water Mission.
In the past two years the Ride:Well Tour has raised close to $300,000 to provide clean water projects, clinics and educational opportunities for people in Africa while educating people in countless communities across America about the water & HIV/AIDS crises many Africans face everyday.
This year they will be cycling across the southern half of the United States and north along the Pacific Coast to provide people in Marsabit, Kenya with clean drinking water, hygiene & sanitation education and latrines.
History
Founded by the multi-platinum, Grammy Award-winning band, Jars of Clay
Jars of Clay
Jars of Clay is a Christian rock band from Nashville, Tennessee. They met at Greenville College in Greenville, Illinois.Jars of Clay consists of Dan Haseltine on vocals, Charlie Lowell on piano and keyboards, Stephen Mason on lead guitars and Matthew Odmark on rhythm guitars...
, Blood:Water Mission began as a call to personalize the HIV/AIDS crisis in Africa. The members of the band were committed to share the often-untold stories: those of creative, compassionate, hard-working Africans bringing health, hope and healing into their respective communities.
Blood:Water Mission first stepped into funding a late stage AIDS hospice and discovered the vital link between living with HIV/AIDS and the need for clean water. As a result, Blood:Water Mission launched the 1000 Wells Project in 2005 as a nation-wide effort to raise enough money to provide clean water and sanitation to 1000 communities in sub-Saharan Africa based on the equation that $1 provides one African with clean water for an entire year.
Since its launch, Blood:Water Mission has raised millions of dollars from individuals seeking to make a difference. They have partnered with more over 800 communities in Africa, providing life-saving water and health needs for over 500,000 people in 13 different countries. Along the way the 1000 Wells Project has expanded holistically to include a variety of clean water solutions and sanitation and hygiene training, as well as funding health clinics, community health workers, and support groups, which help in the prevention, treatment, care and support of communities affected by AIDS, incorporating HIV/AIDS-specific programming alongside ongoing water programming. How Blood:Water Works Video One such example is a clinic in Lwala, Kenya which is now independently operated and community-led. The Lwala clinic is the focus of the award-winning feature documentary, Sons of Lwala. Sons of Lwala.
The results of Blood:Water Mission's efforts paints a new picture in these communities. Village leaders have the resources and training to bring clean water, sanitation and healthcare into their communities. Stomach aches, skin diseases and diarrhea have disappeared. Women and children no longer walk several miles a day to carry filthy water. Children are able to return to school. Those with HIV are living longer, stronger lives.
1000 Wells Project
Jars of Clay
Jars of Clay
Jars of Clay is a Christian rock band from Nashville, Tennessee. They met at Greenville College in Greenville, Illinois.Jars of Clay consists of Dan Haseltine on vocals, Charlie Lowell on piano and keyboards, Stephen Mason on lead guitars and Matthew Odmark on rhythm guitars...
and other artists (Sara Groves
Sara Groves
Sara Groves is an American Contemporary Christian singer, record producer, and author....
, Christopher Williams
Christopher Williams (singer)
Christopher Williams is an American R&B singer and actor.-Music career:...
, Derek Webb
Derek Webb
Derek Walsh Webb is an American singer-songwriter who first entered the music industry as a member of the band Caedmon's Call, and later embarked on a successful solo career....
, Forever the Sickest Kids
Forever the Sickest Kids
Forever the Sickest Kids is an American pop punk band from Dallas, Texas, who have yet to be signed to a new label after the closure of Universal Motown Records. In issue 228 of Alternative Press, the group was named the number one underground band in the "22 Best Underground Bands". Their first...
, Sixpence None the Richer
Sixpence None the Richer
Sixpence None the Richer is an American rock/pop band that formed in New Braunfels, Texas, eventually settling in Nashville, Tennessee. They are best known for their songs "Kiss Me" and "Breathe Your Name" and their covers of "Don't Dream It's Over" and "There She Goes". The name of the band is...
, Brandon Heath
Brandon Heath
Brandon Heath is a contemporary Christian musician from Nashville, Tennessee. He has released three studio albums: Don't Get Comfortable , What If We and "Leaving Eden" . He is best known for the No. 1 "I'm Not Who I Was" and "Give Me Your Eyes". He was nominated four times at the Dove Awards of...
, Matthew Perryman Jones
Matthew Perryman Jones
Matthew Perryman Jones is an American singer-songwriter who currently lives in Nashville, Tennessee.Jones began his career as a singer-songwriter in 1997, playing his first public performances at Eddie's Attic in Decatur, GA...
, Relient K
Relient K
Relient K is an American rock band formed in 1998 in Canton, Ohio by Matt Thiessen, Brian Pittman, and Matt Hoopes during the band's junior year in high school and their time at Malone University...
, and many others) as well as authors (Donald Miller and Anne Jackson
Anne Jackson
Anne Jackson is an American actress of television, stage, and screen.-Life and career:Jackson, the youngest of three sisters, was born in Millvale, Pennsylvania, the daughter of Stella Germaine and John Ivan Jackson, a barber who ran a beauty parlor...
) have been raising funds for the 1000 Wells Project during their concerts since 2005. The organization is slated to complete the 1,000 Wells landmark in late 2010.
Good Monsters
Good Monsters is the eighth full-length album from Jars of Clay, released by Essential Records on September 5, 2006. This is their last album of new material from Essential Records and it is said to be lyrically their most aggressive album to date. It features eleven original songs, and a remake of...
, Jars of Clay partnered with The Global Water Challenge and the Coca Cola Company to donate $1.00 toward the provision of clean water in Africa for each of the first 100,000 copies of Good Monsters sold.
US Campaigns
Blood:Water Mission's core purpose is to build community through creative social action.40 DAYS OF WATER
Make water your only beverage for 40 Days. By giving up what you'd normally drink in exchange for the water from your tap you can save that money to help build clean water projects for communities in Uganda. This takes place over Lent
Lent
In the Christian tradition, Lent is the period of the liturgical year from Ash Wednesday to Easter. The traditional purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer – through prayer, repentance, almsgiving and self-denial – for the annual commemoration during Holy Week of the Death and...
each year. 40 Days of Water
TWO WEEKS OF SACRIFICE
This campaign is similar to "40 Days of Water" except it takes place over only 2 weeks versus 6.
WATER WALKS
Walk for Water so they don't have to.
Every day, thousands of young Africans must hike miles a day just for access to water. You can bring a group together and join in solidarity with people in Africa by walking the distance to your nearest natural water source (like a pond or stream) and back to bring back water. A water walk can be a very literal and impactful way to "walk a mile in someone else's shoes."
BACK TO SCHOOL
The cost of not having access to clean water is higher than just the loss of health, but it includes the loss of opportunity for education. Blood:Water Mission's "Back to School Campaign" encourages people to help provide the funds necessary to ensure that a child does not have to walk miles to collect water each day, but can instead spend that time in the classroom.
RIDE:WELL TOUR
The Ride:Well Tour, powered by Venture Expeditions, is a cross-country cycling campaign to raise money and awareness for clean water & HIV/AIDS support in Africa through the work of Blood:Water Mission.
In the past two years the Ride:Well Tour has raised close to $300,000 to provide clean water projects, clinics and educational opportunities for people in Africa while educating people in countless communities across America about the water & HIV/AIDS crises many Africans face everyday.
This year they will be cycling across the southern half of the United States and north along the Pacific Coast to provide people in Marsabit, Kenya with clean drinking water, hygiene & sanitation education and latrines.
Related Info on HIV/AIDS & Water Crises
- World Health Organization: Water and Sanitation
- UNICEF: Water & Sanitation
- United Nations: Water for Life Decade
- World Health Organization: HIV/AIDS
- United Nations: HIV/AIDS
- UNICEF: HIV/AIDS