We are excited to be participating in the first ever #GivingTuesdayNow: a new global day of giving and unity that will take place on May 5, 2020 as an emergency response to the unprecedented need caused by COVID-19.

In support of our partners fighting coronavirus in their communities, we are announcing our Frontline Funds campaign to help equip and empower our partners on the ground in Africa as they face this new health crisis in the vulnerable communities they serve. The outbreak is intensifying in many African nations, and experts predict the worst is yet to come for the continent. Blood:Water exists for moments like this. And you have a vital role to play.

Our partners have already been doing incredible work in their communities, as you may already know from our recent reports on our partners PaCT and LCA. They are taking it upon themselves to make sure that even the most rural of communities know about coronavirus and how to stop its spread. PaCT alone has reached over 21,000 people through their radio broadcasts and 114,000 through megaphone drives. They are all emphasizing the importance of social distancing, even though it’s contradictory to cultural norms. Some are even producing their own soap and masks both for their staff and their communities.

Although tremendous strides are being made, there are great challenges ahead. All of our partners are experiencing a shortage of PPE (personal protective equipment) and a lack of governmental healthcare infrastructure. Staff members need to be trained on protocol and provided with PPE and sanitizers, so that they can go out into the field to provide essential services such as supplying HIV-positive clients with an advance on their medication so they can maintain adherence to life-saving treatment. 

Health workers are putting their own lives at risk to venture out into their communities to spread information and treat patients. In our partner organization, LCA, all 300 of their community health workers chose to continue providing essential health services to the communities they serve despite the risk to their own lives. If not for all of these local heroes, our brothers and sisters in sub-Saharan Africa may not even know about the coronavirus, let alone be prepared to fight it.

They cannot accomplish this alone. We need your help to equip our partners with the resources they need to continue this fight. If you give between now and midnight on Tuesday, a Matching Grant DOUBLES your gift today, up to $7,500, to equip TWICE as many households with life-saving hand-washing stations and soap.  

• A gift of $80 DOUBLES to equip 6 12 households

• Your $160 gift DOUBLES to equip 12 24 households

• A generous $240 DOUBLES to equip 18 36 households

• And a special gift of $1,300 DOUBLES to protect one two entire villages* through hand-washing facilities

For a more long-term solution, you can also join our monthly giving program, Community:Builders, to provide countless individuals with tools to thrive.

If you are unable to give, there are still ways you can help our partners in these difficult times! You can create a peer-to-peer fundraiser and find a creative way to spread our mission with your friends and family. You can pray for our partners as they try to stem the coronavirus before it reaches their communities. And you can also spread the word about our campaign and mission through social media because together, we can give our partners the help they need to save lives.

Please help us reach our #GivingTuesdayNow goal of $15,000, by clicking here. In support of the campaign, our very own Dan Haseltine of Jars of Clay will be doing an Instagram Live concert at 8 PM CT this Tuesday, May 5th. Vote for Dan to play your favorite Jars of Clay song here!

*average of 100 families per village