CAFOD’s Call to Walk for Water
You may have already read about CAFOD’s inspiration for Lent 2021 – the story of Abdella in Ethiopia and his daily struggle to collect clean water.
During 2019, CAFOD workers in Ethiopia joined Abdella to hear his story and to walk with him on his daily 10-hour round trip for water. It was a startling reminder of the hardship that so many people across the globe still face and CAFOD are determined to try and help this year. We are therefore calling on people during a continuing Lenten lockdown situation to use their recommended exercise time for a good cause and there are two specific ways to do this.
Firstly, for those who want a real target, there is the challenge of completing 10,000 steps every day for the 40 days of Lent. Many fitness experts say that we should be aiming for that kind of distance each day – the equivalent of approximately 5 miles. However, those steps don’t have to be done all at once on a specific walk. If you have a step counter on your phone or your watch, you could easily collate your steps throughout the day. Think of all the times you nip upstairs, pop to the garden, and even when you’re having a quick dance in the kitchen – while nobody’s watching, of course. Those steps will quickly add up!
Secondly, CAFOD have pinpointed Saturday 20th February at 2pm as a one-off moment to join a national walk for solidarity. Those already signed up to the 40-Day Challenge can complete their walk at that time and join CAFOD supporters all over the country – distanced yet together – in our appeal for access to clean water for everyone.
CAFOD’s work across the globe covers so many issues of injustice, but to not have clean water on a daily basis really does strike a fundamental human chord. While we are being constantly reminded of the need to wash our hands multiple times a day for at least 20 seconds, millions of people like Abdella are struggling for any water at all.
Please join us this Lent and do something simple yet powerful for our global sisters and brothers, knowing that we really can make a difference. £10 can buy sturdy water containers so families can store water safely and £40 can bring safe drinking water to a hard-to-reach school. £198 can buy bikes for a team of three water engineers to service water pumps in remote communities and £750 can give a whole community a water supply.
Visit cafod.org.uk and follow the links to ‘Walk for Water’, where you can sign up to the appeal. Count up your steps as a family, contact other members of your parish and arrange to collect your steps together, or set yourself a personal target. Contribute a sum of money personally, collect sponsors as a community group, and even set up a ‘Just Giving’ page online – all the instructions are on our website.
And don’t forget to take photos of your wonderful walks, perfect perambulations and satisfying saunters, and email them to Angela Powell – [email protected] so we can celebrate our steps together!
