Loading...
"You have to walk a mile to get fresh water?" I couldn't believe what I was hearing from the young village girl in the small settlement on the outskirts of Accra, West Africa.
After 20 years in America, I had returned to my childhood home to visit family and friends. The young girl explained that many villages are without fresh drinking water. Indeed, she considered her mile-long journey a short distance compared with the remote location of many other villages. She and other water-seeking villagers had learned to steer clear of nearer disease-infested watering ponds and trenches.
The reality of walking a mile or more to get a fresh drink of water began to sink in as I reflected on the conveniences to which I had grown accustomed in the United States. I had labored earnestly raising a family, working night jobs, and providing nursing care to my husband, the Rev. Samuel Akuamoah, an Episcopal priest. Nonetheless, it seemed I had forgotten the ordeal of fetching fresh water. That night, I decided I had to do something.
No one should be without fresh water! It was from that simple thought that the idea for a foundation was formed. I contacted my nephew, Ebenzer Okye-Asidu, an engineer working in Accra, and we talked for hours about the suffering in the countryside, where fresh water can be a scare commodity. The danger of drinking and cooking with unsafe water is disheartening. We discussed how it could be minimized and hopefully one day eliminated.
Since returning to the United States, I have established the Father Akuamoah Charities, a non-profit foundation located in Bethesda, Maryland. Our mission is to continue to build and repair needed fresh water pumps in the rural regions of Ghana, West Africa, and eventually expanding to other parts of Africa and the world.
Our first donations, many stemming from my personal contributions, are already at work. On my last trip to Ghana, we installed a new water pump in Nyensi Camp, which will service approximately 300 people. During the same trip, we discovered that two other villages in the eastern part of Ghana, approximately 60 miles from the City of Accra, also had pumps in disrepair. We repaired those two pumps, located in the villages of Asirima and Okrakwadwo.
If we can supply villages with fresh water, lives will be healthier and communities more productive. We are committed to this task, but cannot succeed without your help. Please help us help those without water by making a contribution to this tax deductible cause today.
Send your donation(s) to Father Akuamoah Charity, 9821 Fernwood Road, Bethesda, Maryland 20817. To sign up for our quarterly e-News, please send your e-mail address to gakuamoah60@yahoo.com.
