200 students join Walk4Water at Richmond elementary

More than 200 students from Diefenbaker Elementary in Richmond laced up their running shoes for Walk4Water, a fundraising event to raise awareness about Uganda's lack of clean water. 

Students met outside the school on Friday afternoon to collect jerrycans, partially filled with water, and walk for a certain distance. 

Event organizer Jeff Golby, CEO of Acts for Water, told the Richmond News that the walking event is an "exercise in empathy" to help more Canadians understand what kids in Uganda go through on a daily basis. 

"They need to fetch dirty water from contaminated sources, such as a swamp, or a ditch or a pond, before starting their day," said Golby, who was visiting Uganda twice a year before the pandemic. 

In solidarity with children on the other side of the globe, local students not just carried jerrycans of water but also donated a toonie.

This is what it costs to help set up the infrastructure that would provide one child with clean water for a year, noted Golby. 

In communities where that’s been done, young lives have been radically changed, he added.

"They went from having no clean water to being able to walk outside of the door and turn on the tap to enjoy fresh, clean water for life. I see kids go to school instead of spending the day collecting dirty water," said Golby. "I see the impact right away."

Acts for Water is an organization that has been fundraising for clean and accessible water for the past 29 years.