Ukraine, Where Water With Blessings is Needed

"We cannot say how long our little, strong Mariupol citizen has been fighting for her life. We cannot imagine how much suffering an innocent child had to endure," Mayor Vadym Boichenko said in an online post, sharing only the girl's first name: Tanya. "In the last minutes of her life she was alone, exhausted, frightened, terribly thirsty.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said it was unacceptable that a child could die in such a way in the 21st century. "In 2022, from dehydration." https://www.reuters.com/world/ukraine-president-says-child-died-dehydration-besieged-mariupol-2022-03-08/

We could not agree more. Our hearts are broken for Tanya, and for every child of God who is suffering thirst in war-torn Ukraine.

We all know that Ukraine is under fire, and among many causes of suffering is the destruction of water infrastructure. People who remain in Ukraine are drinking groundwater and melted snow. Dirty water is adding to their misery. We want to get filters into Ukraine, not just to the refugee camps at the border, where most aid organizations are working.

For the sake of children like Tanya, Water With Blessings is partnering with Razom for Ukraine. "Razom" means "together", and that concept is exactly how we must work if we are to get our filters deep into Ukraine, where they are most needed. The word “razom” means “together”, which sums up our sense of how to best help those suffering in Ukraine; by working together. Razom is a smaller, scrappier organization of volunteer young Ukrainians that we have vetted thoroughly. (In this article, How to responsibly donate to Ukrainian causes, nonprofit scholar Beth Gazley highlights Razom as having an established track record in Ukraine.)

We like that Razom is a small, flexible organization led by Ukrainians. We like their pragmatic, gutsy approach: get supplies to the border, to meet up with Razom volunteers in private vehicles who are slipping under the radar to get relief to the front lines of the war. We’ve learned that these courageous volunteers are risking their very lives, and indeed, one was recently killed while transporting supplies deep into the conflict areas. We’ve researched Razom, talked personally with them, and we’re even in touch with their representatives inside Ukraine.

Thanks to special pricing from Sawyer Products for Ukraine relief, for $12 per unit plus shipping we can get small, pocket-sized filter kits and pouches. Another few dollars will help cover other costs, such as printing Ukrainian instructions using the Cyrillic alphabet. Please consider a donation of $20 per filter. Razom is shipping supplies every week from Chicago to Ukraine, and we want to see Sawyer PointONE filters in every load.

Read more about how Water with Blessings is helping those in Ukraine, find the link to donate, and spread the word.