HydrAid

By Myles D. Fish

The devastating cyclone in Myanmar (formerly Burma) stirs powerful personal memories for me. In my childhood, growing up as the son and grandson of American Baptist ministers, I had many opportunities to read and hear inspiring stories of missionaries serving in exotic, distant lands.

None was more memorable than Adoniram Judson, a colorful Baptist missionary who left the comforts of New England to evangelize the Burman people for nearly 40 years during the first half of the 19th century. Judson brought a brand of fiery Protestantism and the first translation of the Bible in the Burmese language to the overwhelmingly Buddhist nation.

Judson’s zeal for touching the hearts and souls of the people of Burma is reflected in his forceful appeal for more mission workers to join him in his efforts. In a letter recruiting reinforcements, Judson cautioned against “the sin of turning a deaf ear to the plaintive cry of millions of immortal beings who, by their darkness and misery, cry day and night, ‘Come to our rescue, ye bright sons and daughters of America. Come and save us, for we are sinking into hell.’”

Those words may reflect the idiom of a bygone era, but they echo with an eerie currency today as an estimated 2 million people in Myanmar - homeless, hungry, and losing hope - look for someone to come to their rescue and respond to their misery.

With the passing of the days and weeks since the cyclone, the sense of desperation - and abandonment - mounts. How long can we stand by? In my role as President of International Aid, I’m eager to deliver desperately needed humanitarian assistance to the precious people of Myanmar, to join with others in the faith community and people of good will in the restoration and rebuilding of that nation.

As it was for Judson two centuries ago, it’s a matter of demonstrating the love of Christ in a tangible, meaningful way. Judson believed the people of Burma are created in God’s image, and are worthy of any sacrifice. This is our belief today. The people of Myanmar are worthy of our support simply because they bear the image of their creator just as we all do.

For those of us who are followers of Christ, we answer to a higher authority. It’s inspiring to me that the biblical passage that precedes Jesus’ great commission to his disciples includes this declaration: “All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me. Therefore, go into all nations…”

Myanmar may be fading from the front pages, and we may well be numbed by the staggering toll of well over 100,000 people estimated to be perished or missing. But in the name of God, we have the commission and the authority to respond to the physical needs of the suffering. Join me in praying that the doors will be opened - and that the bright sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father will step forward with a strong response.

The HydrAid™ BioSand Water Filter is featured in a Dow Chemical Co. video shot on location in the mountains of Honduras where International Aid is installing the point-of-use filters in households in dozens of villages. The 3-minute segment highlights the beneficial impact of the filter on the village of Campo Alegre and the family of Floricelda Nunez. As a corporate partner with IA, Dow is donating $2 million of resin for the first 300,000 HydrAid™ filters IA is distributing to improve the health of more than a billion people who do not have access to safe drinking water.

Grand Haven Memorial Day Tournament

May 26, 2008
8:00 am – 8:00 pm
First Reformed Church
301 Washington Ave.
Grand Haven, MI

Come visit our booth and
help send water filters to the
survivors of Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar.

Download Poster (160 kb)

June 12, 2008
7:00 pm
Central Wesleyan Church
446 W 40th St
Holland, Michigan

Voices 4 Praise, a Nashville recording gospel quartet, will make a concert appearance in West Michigan to benefit survivors of Cyclone Nargis. There is no admission, but an offering will be taken to help provide safe water for the millions affected in Myanmar (Burma) by Cyclone Nargis. The proceeds will go to International Aid’s goal of installing 100,000 HydrAid™ Biosand Water Filters in homes as they are rebuilt. For more information, about the HydrAid™ BioSand Water Filter, please visit www.HydrAid.org. Join us on the 12th and you will not only enjoy great and inspiring music, but you will be helping IA save lives.

Download Poster (160 kb)

I hope you all had an enjoyable and restful Christmas and New Year. It has been a busy time for me also, with trips to Honduras and other important IA water initiatives taking place during the holidays, as well as time spent with my family.

As I mentioned in my previous post, I was in Honduras for a couple days before Christmas for a special meeting requested by the Honduran First Lady. She presented me with a replica check for $175,000, a generous donation that will cover the cost for 11,000 HydrAid™ water filters.

_{From left to right: Cesar Salgado, the Executive Director of FHIS, Honduran First Lady Aguas Ocaña de Maduro, Myles Fish, CEO of International Aid, and Pastor Evelio Reyes, the pastor of Vida Abundante Church, our partner in Honduras}

This presentation was on national television and included a speech from the First Lady where she identified the provision of clean water as one of her top priorities.

The government of Honduras has conducted a very detailed survey in which they identified almost 300,000 households who still need clean water. The Honduran leadership recognizes the country’s great need for clean, safe water, and knows the impact it will have on community health. It is great to see how committed the Honduran First Lady is to this important cause. International Aid is so eager to help, and we have a team in Honduras now that is already starting a new round of filter installations.

This contribution is the great beginning of much more good to come!

I am visiting Honduras this week for a special meeting with the Honduran First Lady. Having witnessed our water-related work in one of the country’s villages earlier this year, she was moved to present us with a donation of $175,000. Those funds will go a long way to help ensure that the impact of IA’s HydrAid™ water filters will continue to grow.

Access to safe, clean drinking water is a critical issue in Honduras, especially in rural areas. I found this great overview on the Honduran water supply on Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_supply_and_sanitation_in_Honduras

It is great that the political leadership of Honduras is taking such an active role in addressing this crisis. We’ve already sent many mission teams to install HydrAid™ filters. This donation will help us to do so much more.

More to come on Honduras when I am back in the U.S.

If you live in the Greater Grand Rapids area, you may soon notice a billboard or two (donated to us as a Christmas gift from one of our Grand Rapids-based partners) encouraging people to consider donating a HydrAid™ filter this Christmas.

It’s our hope that holiday shoppers take this important invitation to heart, out and about town doing their Christmas shopping, and consider how easy it is to give the gift of clean water this Christmas.

The contribution isn’t all that much, yet the impact could be so great. If each person in a family gives up just one stocking stuffer ($5-$10 gift) this Christmas, they could contribute their family’s total toward a filter that would provide a family clean water for years to come. What’s more, it’s a gift that will actually save lives.

Welcome to the HydrAid™ blog and our newly launched HydrAid™ website! For those of you not familiar with International Aid, we are a Christian relief and development agency whose focus is to positively impact the health of needy people worldwide.

Since our founding, we have touched thousands of lives in 170 countries, linking those in need with those who can help.

Through our ongoing healthcare-related programs and projects, we aid people who have little or no access to health care, and often live days away from the nearest doctor.

But how could we really make a difference in these areas and be true to our ministry without addressing one of main causes of death and disease worldwide? Dirty water is killing more people each day than AIDS and cancer, combined.

So along with the other health care resources we provide, we actively sought a solution to provide clean, safe water to the millions who live with out it every day.

Working with several of our partners, IA built its new HydrAid™ filter around a proven filtration method, known as BioSand. BioSand filters are currently in use around the world but they are typically made from concrete and can be difficult (because of their size and 300 lb. weight) to deliver to remote areas of the developing world.

Using a new plastic technology, we’ve created the first lightweight plastic BioSand filter — HydrAid™. The filter is easy to transport to remote areas and install right in the home, is effective at eliminating harmful disease-causing pathogens and, at only $32, it will provide a family clean water for years.

The HydrAid™ is not a silver-bullet for the world’s water crisis – but it is a one of the most promising and effective filtration solutions available. And with the involvement of others like you, this filter will make a tremendous impact on this global health crisis that claims millions of lives each year.

We’ve already installed 10,000 of these filters around the world, and they are truly making a difference in the lives of others. Now, we ask you consider helping us meet our goal of 300,000! That’s a big number, but the crisis demands big-picture thinking.

These are my “starter” thoughts for now. Check back often for updates on our progress, spread the word to others, and please get involved today to help us achieve the goal of making clean water a reality for everyone, everywhere.

Myles