Global Volunteers Are Advocating and Serving to Change Lives
Ending the global water crisis cannot be done alone. It requires collaboration and engagement from people and organizations all around the world.
At Water Mission, our volunteers help make it possible for people to have access to safe, clean water. We need every voice that advocates for safe water, every hand that builds our water treatment systems, and every person who volunteers their time at events.
Water Mission’s volunteers are a diverse group of individuals located around the country—and around the world. Many have unique cultural experiences that have motivated them to get involved.
Cristina Lugmayer is from Moldova, an Eastern European country situated between Romania and Ukraine.
I’m coming from a country where access to safe water can be scarce sometimes. I was lucky to live in a town, and we had a sewage system and tap water, but a lot of villages in Moldova don’t have access to it, so I have a personal motivation to actually promote access to safe water.
Cristina first heard about Water Mission in early 2022, when Water Mission responded to the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine after Russia invaded the country.
“Another thing that motivated me to volunteer with Water Mission was because Water Mission had a project in my country of origin, which is Moldova, and it happened when Ukrainian refugees had to flee the war,” Cristina said. “A lot of them were transiting through Moldova, and Water Mission came with a latrine and water purifying system.”
So I wanted to also contribute to the mission of Water Mission in that part of the world—in Eastern Europe.
In 2022, Water Mission responded to the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, bringing safe water to Ukraine and surrounding countries receiving refugees, including Cristina’s home country of Moldova.
Now living in Charleston, South Carolina, Cristina has served as a Charleston Advocate for three years, including volunteering at local tabling events and the Walk for Water in Charleston. She says she enjoys serving at an event that raises funds and awareness so that women and girls no longer have to walk for their water.
Before coming to the U.S., I was working in empowering women.... Water Mission helps girls and women in providing safe water so they have access to education and to develop and grow.
Cristina volunteered at the 2026 Walk for Water in Charleston—the third Walk she has served at.
Not all of Water Mission’s volunteers are based in the U.S. Across the pond, Delight Cajo raises awareness for Water Mission in the United Kingdom as a Water Mission Champion.
Delight, a native Ugandan, first got involved with Water Mission when she was selected for UNHCR’s Graduate Trainee Program and was placed with Water Mission at Bidibidi Refugee Settlement in West Nile, Uganda. She later became an assistant engineer on our Uganda team.
It's semi-arid, and the water crisis is real. I saw it firsthand. Long queues of jerrycans empty, waiting for drops from just one tap. Women—mothers—walking miles for unsafe water that's surface water. Children—girls—missing school because they lack sanitary conditions. The situation was just so pathetic, and seeing it, knowing that I had what it took to improve the situation, is what kept me going.
Now, Delight lives in the UK pursuing her master’s degree in water, sanitation, and health engineering, an opportunity she said wouldn’t be possible without her experience with Water Mission. While in the UK, Delight became a volunteer Champion for Water Mission.
I have been pitching ideas to my colleagues, my course mates in class, my lecturers. So I try to find avenues to see how Water Mission can grow its impact.
One way that Delight used her time and talent as a Champion was during Water Mission’s recent disaster response to Hurricane Melissa in Jamaica. She and a Jamaican friend created a fundraising video and posted it on social media, receiving more than 1,300 views.
“I made a video pitching for funding from whoever could get to see it in order to grow the resources for Water Mission to do its work,” Delight explained. “It was a storytelling technique to get people to know more about Water Mission, what it's doing in Jamaica, and get them to contribute.”
The main things that motivate Delight to continue advocating for Water Mission are the organization’s alignment with her faith and her experience as a mother.
[Water Mission] looks at work as worship... That is a key driver for me—the faith-based aspect and the ‘love, excellence, and integrity’ bit of it.
Delight used to work as an assistant engineer for Water Mission, helping bring safe water to Ugandan refugee settlements.
I'm a mother, and I've seen mothers lacking the bare minimum. Water is a basic need…. I mean, it's a semi-arid region. The sun is scorching. It's so hot. You're panting for water as a mother. Imagine how your child is feeling.
We are so grateful for all of our volunteers around the world who are making a difference every day. We invite you to join us and be part of that impact—you can use your time, talent, and treasure to change lives through safe water.
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