Safe Water Brings Joy to Refugees Like Martha
When East Timor, now called Timor-Leste, voted for independence from Indonesia in 1999, violence erupted in the small colony, causing two-thirds of Timorese people to flee. A young mother named Martha was among those who fled, leaving with her baby after witnessing unparalleled violence in her neighborhood.
“We were traumatized and chose to run away,” Martha shares. “I had one child at the time who was only nine months old.”
Martha sought refuge in Indonesia, staying at a temporary refugee camp for a short time before settling in the community of Boneana. Although Boneana offered her the safety that her previous home had not, there was a lack of access to her family’s basic need for water.
The nearest water source was a 4km roundtrip journey from Martha’s home, and she traveled there every morning around 3 or 4 a.m. to collect her water.
Martha’s four-kilometer roundtrip walk for water was tiring and time-consuming. During hours when she could have been taking care of her growing family or cooking meals, she was forced to walk and collect unsafe water that could make her children sick.
“I am Protestant Christian [but] to be honest, my faith was shaken and unstable because of the problems we faced,” Martha says. “I thought, if I keep having such a hard time, who is going to help me?”
In 2022, the Lord provided for Martha and the residents of Boneana. When generous faith leaders found an underground water source on local mosque’s property, they donated the land to share the water with everyone in the area, not just the Muslim community. Thanks to faithful supporters like you, Water Mission installed a safe water solution that provides water for 268 residents straight to their homes.
In 2022, Water Mission implemented a safe water project in Boneana that brings safe water straight to the homes of 268 people, including Martha.
Finally, after years of adjusting to her new reality in Indonesia, Martha no longer worries about having enough water.
“I even cried,” Martha says, recalling the day she heard about the safe water project, “because I couldn’t ever imagine there would be a tap in front of my house.”
Martha no longer walks for hours every day to collect her water. She and her children can drink it without fear of getting sick.
“I am very happy because my kids do not need to go far to collect water like in my experience before,” Martha says. “They can turn on the taps and have water for the kitchen, the latrine, everywhere. When I told my daughter that we now have water flowing, she said, ‘Mama, we won’t have difficult times again.’ Every time I tell this story, I am crying.”
Martha is so passionate about having safe water in her community that she now serves as one of the project’s coordinators in the community. “I need to…make sure this community will not face those difficult times again,” she shares.
Refugees like Martha uproot their entire lives in search of safety. When they find that their new homes do not have access to safe water, you can help bring joy and hope.
To generous partners like you who gave to help her family have safe water, Martha says, “I will never run out of thanks, because this project is a miracle from God.”
Access to safe water allows refugees to have their basic needs met when they are forced to flee to a new home. Just $50 will provide one person like Martha with safe water and an opportunity to experience God’s love.
Will you partner with us to bring safe water to other families around the world?
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