Who do you think of when someone asks you to name a strong woman in your life?
Do you think of your mother, or grandmother, your wife or sister? And what attributes do they have? Are they strong in spirit, always helping others, and giving of themselves? Women all around the globe work tirelessly to improve the future for their families; to give hope for a brighter tomorrow. Today the world pauses to celebrate women and JAM joins in this recognition. As a development organization working in Africa, JAM witnesses everyday how women are the foundation of a family. For many of these women, this comes at a great cost.
Women in underdeveloped countries face struggles with access to health and hygiene, clean water, preparation of nutritional food for their families, contributing to farming and other economic contributions to their families, decisions to send their children to school, and caring for the sick. JAM is working to improve these struggles in African communities where we provide nutritional school meals to children, educational training for parent-teacher groups, hygiene training, and life saving water wells.
As we approach World Water Day, we are reminded of the daily water harvesting that women and girls must endure in communities where clean water sources don’t exist. I invite you to learn more about women in developing countries, especially around hygiene and water. Please visit http://waterday.org/ to learn more and then consider supporting JAM as we work with women in Africa to become more determined to lift their communities out of poverty, one family at a time.