Imagine daily life without safe drinking water. Imagine the fear of knowing that a family member might become terribly ill or even die from a single sip of contaminated water.
Montessori By The Sea students sold their hand-made jewellery at a school function to raise money for the Water is Life project. Photo: Guy P. Harrison |
This is the harsh reality of life in 2007 for millions of people around the world. According to the United Nations, more than a billion people do not have access to potable water. As a result, some five million people, mostly children, die from water-borne disease each day in the developing world.
Imagine the suffering endured by all the estimated 6,000 children who die each day. Imagine the pain felt by the fathers and mothers who watch them die.
Students at Grand Cayman’s Montessori by the Sea have imagined and now they are taking action. Under the guidance of teacher Sarah Genereux, the students have committed to raise as much money as they can for ‘Amman Imman: Water is Life’, a project dedicated to diggiing wells for people in Niger, Africa who lack access to safe water. Ms Genereux says her students eagerly embraced the challenge.
‘I explained the difficulty of attaining water to these students by having them visualize a beautiful day at Rum Point,’ said Ms Genereux. ‘Then I got them to imagine the hotel disappearing, the restaurant, the tourists and the ocean. I got the children to imagine that their younger siblings and families were parched with thirst and it was up to them to walk the entire length of Grand Cayman in order to reach a well in the most desperate heat of the Caribbean.
‘Once they were there, I told them to imagine 50,000 other people gathered at the well who also required water for their families. I told them to imagine that once they had finally gotten to the front of the queue, that the poorly dug well had gone dry.
‘I told them they had a choice: they could stay at the well spot for a few days and wait for the well to refill, or they could walk another 30 miles in order to reach another well, keeping in mind that their family at home had no water.
‘The children responded immediately. They were shocked that such a thing could be occurring in a world which they had known to be fairly kind. It is difficult to imagine in our beautiful environment that anyone, let alone 500,000 men, women and children could live under these conditions on a daily basis. The students wanted to get involved immediately. The children are passionate about making a difference, and I feel sincerely touched and lucky to be able to witness and help fuel this passion.’
So far, the Montessori By The Sea students have sponsored read-a-thon, sold brown and blue ribbons for donations, and set up two information tables at a holiday concert with Christmas decorations for sale. Jewellery, hand made by the students, are now sold at the Butterfly Farm with 100 per cent of the profits going to support Amman Imman.
Ms Genereux encourages other Cayman schools to raise money for the Amman Imman project.
‘It is an empowering project for students and it allows them to deepen their sense of empathy and solidarity on an international scale,’ she said. ‘Students have the ability to accomplish something which will open up the region for humanitarian aid workers to enter the Azawak region and begin to bring a sense of infrastructure and self stability.
‘For better or worse, we help to shape the world in which we live. I would like Cayman students to feel empowered to make contributions to this world that they can feel proud of.’
FYI
Ms Genereux can provide information to any schools or individuals who wish to get involved in this project. She can be contacted at [email protected]. For more information about Amman Imman: Water is Life, visit www.waterforniger.org
Related Videos
