Improve Health with Clean Water in Rural Cambodia

This opening photo may come across as funny, or perhaps insensitive. However, Lucy speaks the truth regarding the importance of water - water is life. Without water we would all die. But we not only need access to water, it needs to be potable to drink otherwise bad water causes dieases. The result of drinking bad water first manifests as diarrhea, leading to dehydration and malnutrition. For young children these conditions seriously jeapardize their health and often leads to death.

Poor rural Cambodian families face having the lack of safe drinking water every day. Finding and hauling water is typicallly the responsibility of the women and children. Often they walk long distances to water sources that are not safe to drink without proper filtration. But everyone has to have water, and if your children are thirsty there is little choice. That is, until they receive a biosand water filter from Trailblazer!

Our biosand water filters are easy to use and maintain. Each filter provides one to three families with safe, clean, good tasting water. Improving their health, saving money on medicines, giving them hope of a better life and reducing their level of poverty.

Our water program goals for 2023 are nearly complete. By the end of December Trailblazer will have:

• installed 320 biosand water filters, providing life giving water to a minimum of 1,600 people and potentially as many as 4,800 people [filters are designed to service 15 people and often families are clustered]
• drilled 100 wells, providing access to water to a minimum of 500 people and potentially as many as 1,500 people [often families are clustered so one to three families - average size is 5 persons - can use the well]
• constructed 100 latrines, providing a safe, sanitary place to toilet for a minimum of 500 people

We are very proud of these accomplishments and the thousands of poor rural people who now have clean drinking water, access to water for personal and agricultural pursuits, and better sanitation. Their lives will forever be changed through improved health, better sanitation, thereby reducing poverty levels.

But with 2024 comes a new list of families in need of clean, safe water. Your support is what keeps the gift of water flowing. We hope you will continue to invest and give the gift that keeps on giving. A sincere thanks to those of you who have donated to our water program, making a true difference in the lives of rural Cambodian families.