Read this recent blog post from BH2O+ newest team member, Chelsea Barabas! She just returned from serving as Nuru’s Education Program Manager for seven months:
As I stepped out of the airport in Houston two weeks ago, I felt a mixture of apprehension and excitement at the prospect of returning home from Kuria. Although I was really looking forward to reuniting with my friends and family back in the States, I already felt homesick for the community I’d left behind in the Nuru seed project.
As I prepared to settle into my old life in Texas, I asked myself how I could carry over my experiences abroad into my daily life back home. I wondered how different it would be working with Nuru in the US, where the realities of living in extreme poverty were no longer literally waiting for me at my doorstep.
Luckily, my new stateside role has helped me realize just how connected I still am to our work in Kenya… and I’ve made the exciting realization that there is a whole network of people in the States who are informed and passionately involved with Nuru’s work abroad. For the past couple of weeks I have been assisting in the preparations for Be Hope to Her, Nuru’s annual awareness event designed to shed light on issues concerning access to clean, safe water in the developing world.
In my new role I’ve gotten to speak with volunteers working hard to bring the campaign to college campuses and city centers all around the country. I’ve had the opportunity to talk to individuals who, like you, are passionate and informed about the plights of my friends in the developing world, women and girls in Kuria who spend a significant part of their daily lives collecting water for their families.
Working on BH2O+ over the past couple of weeks, I’ve realized that there are thousands of people all over the country who are taking tangible steps to contribute to our efforts in Kuria. They know about the issues I had the opportunity to experience first-hand… and they’re doing something about it. I’ve come to understand that, though I am far from my friends and coworkers in Kuria, I am still working very closely with them by joining y’all here working on BH2O+. Can’t wait for the actual week of the event, April 12-17th!