The Bucket Ministry has dedicated a decade to aiding underserved communities across the globe, including the people of the slums in Africa. On May 7, the Rockwall nonprofit gathered volunteers to assemble water filters that will provide millions of gallons of clean drinking water to families in the Kibera slum in Nairobi, Kenya.
Kibera is the largest slum in not only Africa but one of the largest in the world. For the 250,000 people living in Kibera, daily necessities are difficult to access. With the average household income at a mere $26 per month, many residents live without sanitation, electricity, health care, and the most fundamental need of all, clean water.
“The water available to the people of Kibera is unsafe,” said Christopher Beth, director of The Bucket Ministry. “In fact, many of the kids there have never tasted fresh water in their life. Waterborne diseases run rampant through the area as there is little to no public access to clean water. The water filters assembled today are going to radically change the lives of people living in one of the largest slums in the world.”
The filter Beth referred to is called the Sawyer PointONE filter. It works much like a kidney dialysis machine to remove harmful bacteria, protozoa, and cysts like E. coli, Giardia, Vibrio cholera, and Salmonella typhi.
At The Bucket Ministry headquarters in Rockwall, volunteers assembled 25,000 filters at a massive world-record event. Approximately 800 Dallas-Ft. Worth volunteers gathered to install the filters in 5-gallon buckets. The filters are designed to last for 20 or more years, providing 1 million gallons of clean water for each family who receives a bucket.
During the all-day event, volunteers worked in an assembly line fashion to assemble 540 water filters per table. To kick off the event, the mayor of Rockwall, Kevin Fowler, built the first bucket of the day.
“The Bucket Ministry is an important addition to our community,” Mayor Fowler said. “They are providing an opportunity for Rockwall residents to make a global impact and be a force for good, providing clean drinking water for people all across the world.”
