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Local church helps give Kenyan orphanages clean water

Contrary to what some might believe, Kenyans do not have a problem getting access to water. It's getting clean, potable water that's the problem.

According to Water.org, only 59 percent of Kenya has access to safe water supplies, and both sanitation and water resources are unavailable for many in rural and urban areas.

Due to the lack of clean water and sanitary conditions, diarrhea is second to pneumonia in deaths in children under five years of age (excluding neonatal). Water, sanitation and hygiene related illnesses and conditions are the number one cause of hospitalization in children under age five.

To combat this crisis, several Kenyan churches and orphanages were given filtration systems that would allow for nearly endless supplies of clean water by Mission Kenya, an international missions project conducted by the Apostolic Assembly of the Faith in Jesus Christ.

In conjunction with the Apostolic Assembly, Fallbrook House of Prayer sent five local church members, including senior pastor Rudy Verdin, to help build the filtration systems and give them to communities in Kenya as part of their international missions. The trip also included a national convention, where pastors were able to elect a local bishop, as well as an evangelical crusade.

After arriving in Nairobi, on April 17, the Mission Kenya team began building the systems, which were made of two buckets, the filter, rope and wax. While seemingly rudimentary, it was essential for the filtration systems to be made with simple items that could be easily replaced by items that are easily found in Kenya.

Each filtration bucket can process approximately 65 gallons of water per day, which is then used for cooking, cleaning, bathing and drinking. The churches that received the water systems were not asked to pay for the systems; instead they were encouraged to share them with the local communities they were built in.

The Mission Kenya team visited two orphanages, Bethsaida Orphanage and Zion. Bethsaida Orphanage, began as a shelter to house children whose parents have died from AIDS, but now accepts all orphans. Traditionally, Kenya's government does not offer any financial aid to individuals who decide to start an orphanage, but it does regulate it once the orphanage is established. Because of this, many orphanages rely on the aid of its neighbors for food and supplies.

In addition to giving the Bethsaida Orphanage a filtration system, Mission Kenya threw a birthday party for the orphans, many of whom had never celebrated their birthdays before. Children were given shoes, backpacks with supplies, bubbles, candy and cake. It was a first time experience for the orphans, who wore their best clothes for the event.

When the Mission Kenya team left Africa, they were proud of the fact that they gave the children one of the most precious gifts possible: clean water.

 

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