Photos from Raleigh can be found here

Photos from Charlotte can be found here

Originally published in the Winter 2017-2018 edition of NC Currents

   Francisco Javier Palacios is creating  healthier futures in the district of San Rafael  del Norte, Nicaragua by changing the way  people think about sanitation.  For sanitation to be sustainable and  reach everyone forever, the entire marketplace  has to be considered. There must  be market demand for toilets, access to  capital for families to invest in them, locally  available construction supplies, and local  knowledge about how to construct safe  and hygienic sanitation facilities. That’s  where Francisco comes in. 

  Francisco was one of 36 masons  trained by Water For People and a local  partner, Cuculmeca, to construct sanitation  facilities. This training sparked his passion  to make sure the community is educated  about the importance of safe and hygienic  sanitation services and that everyone has  the resources to pursue their own healthier  futures – forever. 

  “It is very important that a community  has access to water and sanitation,  because they are basic needs,” says  Francisco. “Nobody can live without water,  and when a community has access to  water, everyone lives better and is healthy  – which is the most important thing.  Sanitation goes hand in hand with health.”  Francisco has been busy since completing  the masonry training – with not only  building bathrooms, but also applying to go  back to school. Armed with a commitment  to continue learning and create change in  the community, he applied at a technical  school to a two-year program focused on  drinking water, with the goal of becoming a  water technician. With this more advanced  training, he’ll be able to create larger-scale  change by educating his community about  water resource management and why  safe water and sanitation are critical to the  future of their families, communities, and to  all of Nicaragua.

   “My main goal is to share my  knowledge with other people so that we  will all be educated. Then our home, our  community, our municipality, and finally our  country can change – starting with us.”  When you just add water, people  like Francisco are impacted by water and  sanitation programming and go on to  inspire even greater change. 

  About Water For People  Founded in 1991, Denver, CO-based  Water For People is a global nonprofit  working across nine countries in Latin  America, India, and Africa to achieve  lasting quality water and sanitation  services. Water For People brings together  communities, local entrepreneurs, and  governments, to build, operate and  maintain their own reliable water and  sanitation systems and services.  Currently working in 30 districts with  4 million people, Water For People is  growing to deliver services to over  By Water For People  7 million people in 50 districts globally over  the next 10 years. Water For People is also  working at the national level in Rwanda,  Uganda, Bolivia and Honduras.      

Originally published in the Spring 2018 edition of NC Currents

By Lamya King, Hazen and Sawyer, and Keller Schnier, Brown and Caldwell 

This is an exciting time to be a part of the North Carolina AWWAWEA Water For People Committee! In addition to testing two new concepts at the annual NC AWWA-WEA Annual Conference, the committee plans on hosting its first benefit concert to support Water For People in 2018.

 Each year, the committee hosts a Silent Auction at the NC AWWA-WEA Annual Conference where several in-country items and hanging rights of a famous Kircher print are auctioned off. This year, the committee opted to use the mobile bidding application, Handbid, for the silent auction. Unlike previous years, where bidders would hand-write their bids on a sheet of paper, attendees downloaded the app and placed their bids on their phones or an iPad located at the table. As such, bidders did not have to physically be at the conference to place a bid. One of the drawing features of Handbid is that bidders are notified when their items have been outbid, prompting a quick response and potentially increasing the number of bids. Committee volunteers were unsure how this app would be received at the Conference, knowing that people are often weary of downloading more apps to their phone. The general feedback from bidders, however, was positive, and the majority of bidders used the app on their phone. From the volunteer’s perspective, managing the auction was straight forward, with only one volunteer required to explain the app and place bids on the iPad as needed.

 Alongside the Silent Auction, the committee also hosted a College Flag Competition, where attendees paid $10 to hang the college flag of their choice in the Exhibit Hall. The committee collected college flags from schools across the country (and was sure to include local rivals such as UNC and NC State) to provide a wide variety of schools that conference attendees would support. With the help of committee members who collected flags, the College Flag Competition was a success and netted a total profit of over $260 in just two days. Since there were several school flags that attendees wished were available, the committee plans to collect even more flags and host the competition again next year.

 With both Handbid and the College Flag Competition being successful endeavors in 2017, the committee will continue to take on challenges in 2018 by hosting the inaugural Water For People Benefit Concert. With the full support and encouragement from the NC AWWA-WEA Board, the committee hopes to leverage its enthusiastic volunteers and local resources to host a concert that the community will begin to look forward to each year. The Chair of NC AWWA-WEA specifically mentioned this event at the Awards Banquet as a new and exciting way that volunteers are continuing the generous philanthropy that is so important to tackling the global water crisis, and demonstrated the overwhelming support from himself, the Board, and the entire Association! While the committee understands that trying new concepts and planning new events does entail taking on risk, the committee plans to continuously evolve fundraising and outreach tactics to become more effective. Furthermore, none of these changes would be possible without the inspiration and support from fellow committee members across the country whom the committee Chair and Vice-Chair had the chance to meet at this year’s committee workshop in Denver.

 ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Keller Schnier is a senior engineer at Brown and Caldwell with nearly 10 years of experience. He earned his Bachelor’s degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Cincinnati and his Master’s degree from North Carolina State in Environmental Engineering. He and his family reside in Charlotte.

 Lamya King is a senior principal engineer with Hazen and Sawyer. Lamya has more than seven years of experience in designing water and wastewater treatment systems. She is currently the vice-chair of the Water For People Committee and is the lead planner for the Raleigh Water For People 5K held in April each year. 

  (L-R) Kara Meyers, Kelly Schier, and Lamya King.

The 216 villages in the Traditional Authority of Chapananga in Chikwawa District in Malawi have been declared open defecation free – a huge milestone for the district and for Water For People.

“Today is a very big day for our community,” said community member Samuel Ngomondo at the Open Defecation Free celebration that took place in April. “The celebration symbolizes a change of behavior and state of living to the community. We never thought we would reach this far.”

In sustainable water and sanitation projects, building infrastructure is just a first step. People must also recognize the importance of the new services and be motivated to use them. Fostering this type of behavior change takes time, and is one of the most difficult parts of water, sanitation, and hygiene sector work.

Change has taken hold and is spreading through places like Chapananga that are home to tens of thousands of people.

Chapananga’s open defecation free milestone is the result of Water For People’s implementation, along withpartners, of the Community Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) model, which encourages community members to promote a shift in behavior change among themselves and move toward safer defecation practices. District health staff visit communities and show them how unsafe defecation practices can contaminate food and water, with the goal of prompting families to not only build latrines but to understand the importance of using them.

Samuel Ngomondo says the community used to think latrines were a waste of time and resources, and people would instead go to the river or to the bush to defecate. He says through CLTS, everyone’s mindset shifted.

As the CLTS model began to change attitudes, families started building latrines. However, then the floods hit in 2015, wiping out much of the newly built sanitation infrastructure, and it seemed like Chapananga would lose some of its momentum towards the CLTS model.

As soon as the floods subsided, community members mobilized among themselves to prioritize rebuilding their sanitation facilities. They did so independently of support from Water For People or the district government – a sign that permanent behavior change had taken. At the date of the article’s publication, Chapananga’s population of over 96,000 people is open defecation free.

“I can see a very bright future for Chapananga,” Samuel says. “Before we started using latrines we faced frequent cholera and diarrhea and spent more time and money taking care of sick family members. I have a healthy and strong family now.”

Chikwawa District government officials are encouraged by the progress in Chapananga, and they largely contribute it to CLTS.

“It has not been an easy road for Chikwawa,” says Veronica Nkukumila, the Chikwawa District Environmental Health Officer. “When Chikwawa District was faced with floods, it destroyed a lot of infrastructure. Community members were still able to reconstruct their latrines because they learned how important it was. CLTS has made the community more aware of the harm that comes with open defecation.”

Veronica hopes Chapananga is just the first step toward all of Chikwawa District becoming open defecation free. Since 2013, latrine coverage in the district has increased from 49% to 61%.

“There is hope for all of Chikwawa District to become ODF,” she says. “District staff are in the forefront trying to reach everyone.”  

About Water For People

Founded in 1991, Denver, CO based Water For People is a global nonprofit working across nine countries in Latin America, India, and Africa to achieve lasting quality water and sanitation services. Water For People brings together communities, local entrepreneurs, and governments, to build, operate and maintain their own reliable water and sanitation systems and services.

Currently working in 30 districts with 4 million people, Water For People is growing to deliver services to over 7 million people in 50 districts globally over the next 10 years. Water For People is also working at the national level in Rwanda, Uganda, Bolivia, and Honduras.

Five New Milestones Achieved

By Water For People

On the road to reaching Everyone Forever in the districts where Water For People works, we’ve defined different milestones to celebrate along the way – reaching every community, clinic and school, and family with reliable water services. We are thrilled that in 2016, we had three districts reach every community and two districts reach every clinic and school! 

BOLIVIA

In Bolivia, the district of Villa Rivero reached every community with reliable water service – this means 42 communities now have access to water. The district of San Benito has reached every clinic and school with water and sanitation services – five clinics and 19 schools.

In 2012, Cuchumuela was the first district in Bolivia to reach Everyone at the household level with water service – igniting momentum in our other Bolivia districts and at the national level. When Cuchumuela declared Everyone, the national government came to the district to verify this achievement – they even declared October 30 Full Coverage Day. Since then, we have worked closely with the national government to support President Evo Morales’ vision of reaching universal water and sanitation coverage in Bolivia by 2025. By President Morales’ request, we are also serving in advisory roles in the departments of Tarija and Oruro – departments he prioritized to reach universal access to water and sanitation services. In the original six Water For People districts in Bolivia, we predict more Everyone milestones by the end of 2018. We have already started replicating our work in three new districts in 2017 – Arbieto, Pocona, and Toco.

INDIA

In India, Patharpratima and Sagar Island Districts have reached every community with reliable water service – 139 communities now have access to water.

These districts have been hovering close to reaching every community for a few years, and it’s a huge step for Water For People to be able to officially declare this milestone – the first Everyone milestones in our India districts. Reaching every community in these districts meant forming a closer partnership with the government and forming strong water user committees within communities. Proving our work in India has given us more credibility with the government, and we believe this will be a tipping point that leads to greater replication and scale, but also stronger emphasis on sustainability – the Forever portion of our work.

PERU

In Peru, every clinic and school in the district of Asunción has reliable water and sanitation services – four clinics and 51 schools!

Water For People created a school curriculum in Peru that focuses on water, sanitation, hygiene, and water resource management. Alongside this curriculum, schools in Asunción have built handwashing stations and toilet blocks with separate sections for boys and girls. The regional government has now adopted the curriculum we created and is replicating it beyond the districts where Water For People works. Reaching every clinic and school in Asunción is the first Everyone milestone reached in Peru, and we project we will reach the same milestone in the district of Cascas this year.

 In 2016, six districts reached or maintained reliable water service for every community:

• Cuchumuela, Bolivia
• San Pedro, Bolivia
• Villa Rivero, Bolivia
• Chinda, Honduras
• Patharpratima, India
• Sagar Island, India

In 2016, five districts reached or maintained reliable water and sanitation services for every clinic and school:

• Cuchumuela, Bolivia
• San Benito, Bolivia
• San Pedro, Bolivia
• Villa Rivero, Bolivia
• Asunción, Peru REACHING EVERY COMMUNITY WITH WATER

When Don Anacleto came to the community of Frontera in the district of Villa Rivero, Bolivia, the only way his community members could get water was from a hand-dug well at his home. Every day, all his neighbors would have to come to his house to get the water they needed.

 Now, all that has changed.

The community was able to finance a drinking water system with support from Water For People’s partnership with the national government program Mi Agua. One hundred people in Frontera now have access to drinking water from an improved drinking water system – every day of the year, every hour of each day.

Doña Esperanza, Anacleto’s wife, says each family pays about $2 per month for water access, which is affordable for most families. To keep the water system running smoothly, every three months the families get together to clean and maintain the system. Don Anacleto is Vice President of the local water committee, and he says he’s happy to lead his community in this way, which ensures his children will have safe and reliable water for years to come.

In 2016, the district of Villa Rivero reached a critical Everyone milestone: every community in the district achieved access to reliable water service. This means 42 communities just like Frontera can now depend on water for generations to come.

About Water For People

Founded in 1991, Denver, CO based Water For People is a global nonprofit working across nine countries in Latin America, India, and Africa to achieve lasting quality water and sanitation services. Water For People brings together communities, local entrepreneurs, and governments to build, operate, and maintain their own reliable water and sanitation systems and services. Currently working in 30 districts with 4 million people, Water For People is growing to deliver services to over 7 million people in 50 districts globally over the next 10 years. Water For People is also working at the national level in Rwanda, Uganda, Bolivia and Honduras.  

By Kara Meyers, CDM Smith

It was a chilly February afternoon and we had just stopped for lunch at King’s Hot Dogs in Rural Hall, NC. Planted in a sea of asphalt and yellow parking lines, King’s was a local town treasure that made you feel privy to a cherished secret as you pulled up to its landscape of weathered picnic tables and faded Pepsi-Cola umbrellas. I was with a group of hikers that were a part of the Climb for Water (CFW) team – a group founded in 2011 that raises funds for Water For People, an organization that helps people in developing countries improve the quality of life by supporting the development of locally sustainable drinking water resources and sanitation facilities. We had just completed one of our first training hikes for CFW’s fourth expedition to Mt. Washington and the hot dogs were our reward for a climb well done.

After a crash course in the intricacies of southern sides – hush puppies? They’re  like clumps of fried corn… pimento cheese?? That’s like super chunky cheesespread… where are you from again?! – I sat down with my ketchup-smothered hot dog and properly introduced myself to the group. I was with CFW veterans who in years past had climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Africa (2011); Pikes Peak in Colorado (2012); and Cotopaxi in Quito, Ecuador (2014). Among the group was Kraig Kern (W. K. Dickson & Co.) who founded CFW in 2011, and the late Paul Judge, a beloved CFW member who was committed to NC AWWA-WEA Water For People. We devoured our beef franks as we discussed the upcoming trip. The climb would be here before we knew it, and we needed to begin our fundraising campaigns. The group chatted on, an inviting chorus of laughter and comradery, reminiscing like the old and trusted friends that they were. I cautiously took a bite of my first apple fritter and looked up to see Paul smiling warmly. This was a tightly-knit group, and I was grateful to be there.

About a year prior, I had met Kraig at a North Carolina American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC/NC) event. I was new to the area and eager to start meeting other professionals in my field. Kraig and I instantly bonded over our experiences climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro, as well as our professions as non-technical marketers navigating our way through the engineering industry. The conversation quickly turned to CFW and we chatted excitedly about potential future climbs and shared our climbing bucket lists. An organization that raises funds for Water For People by climbing mountains and incredible peaks?! I knew I had just stumbled into something I wanted to be a part of. We clinked glasses, exchanged information and, within a few months, CFW’s fourth expedition – and the hotdog training hike – were on my calendar.

Ascending Mt. Washington was breathtaking. If you have never traveled to New Hampshire or taken in the fresh air of the northern east coast peaks, I promise it will lift your spirit and touch your soul. And for many, including myself, climbing is sometimes a solitary experience – it’s a time for self-reflection and introspection, a time to assess how far you have come and where you still want to go. Paul’s passing in March 2016 reminded us all of the fragility of life, and just how fast and finite our time really is. I thought back on the last two years. Although I cannot pinpoint the exact moment when it happened, or what served as its catalyst, at some point and by some extraordinary means, a fire lit within me. Not just a tamed fire with a few crackling logs, but a blazing fire that filled me with passion and a burning desire to succeed.

A little over two years ago, I relocated to Raleigh from Minnesota to join CDM Smith’s marketing team. While joining a new group and learning a new service sector had its challenges, I plunged into my role and refused to let the fact that I was not an engineer – or that I was a woman in a male-dominated industry – stand in my way. I was determined to join every committee, subcommittee, and organization that I could, and I resolved to attend every technical session, industry conference, and networking event available to me. I was going to ask for more responsibilities, volunteer to take on new and different things, and go above and beyond any expectations that had been set for me.

I remember being nervous on my drive to meet the CFW team for our first training hike; feeling unsure of myself, and worrying that I would not have the time or the ability to climb alongside the others. And I felt this way before attending and participating in many other industry events, too. But had I listened to any of that self-doubt, decided I was too tired to attend a networking event, or too busy to involve myself in a group like CFW, I would not be where I am today. I am a proud board member of the American Public Works Association (APWA) NC Stormwater Management Division; a founding member of the APWA-NC Young Professionals Committee; and an active member of multiple committees and subcommittees with the NC AWWA-WEA, including the NC Water For People Committee. I also volunteer with the MATHCOUNTS Foundation and will soon be working with the RTP Professional Chapter of Engineers Without Borders.

My point to all millennials is this: take initiative and get involved. No one approached or asked me to join or participate in any organization; I took it upon myself to seek out the information, ask questions, and get myself involved. If a marketer from Minnesota can dive headfirst into the North Carolina engineering community, you can too. We are the future of this industry, so get to know your peers, make connections, and foster those relationships. Don’t wait for opportunities to present themselves; take the initiative to get involved and connect with others in your field. Attend conferences, networking events, and industry socials, and look for ways to give back to the community in creative and meaningful ways, like CFW. Don’t just aspire to find a job that you love; aspire to build a meaningful and rewarding career. You alone are responsible for the progression and trajectory of your professional path – take accountability and responsibility for your own success.

The 6,288-foot ascent of Mt. Washington was no walk in the park. Our team journeyed up the Lion’s Head Trail and traversed 4,000 vertical feet in just four miles, including several hundred yards of steep and unstable bouldering. Slowly but surely, the CFW team gathered at the top to celebrate another successful climb – and to celebrate and honor a beloved team member who, albeit not physically, had climbed right beside all of us each step of the way. Some of Paul’s closest friends gave him a beautiful tribute that day, at the top of the mountain, as the sun warmed our cheeks and the fresh mountain air danced around us. The day could not have been more beautiful, nor the climbing conditions more perfect; all of us knew who to thank, and we did, and still do.

To date, CFW has raised nearly $50,000 for Water For People. Be a part of the next expedition – and play a meaningful role in the future of this industry. Let’s get involved and give back, together.

About the Author

Kara Meyers, BA, MA, is a proposal coordinator and marketing writer for CDM Smith. This was her first climb with CFW. For more information on ways to get involved, connect with Kara at linkedin.com/in/kara-meyers or Meyersk@cdmsmith.com.

Printed in the 2016 Fall issue of NC Currents magazine.

There used to be fights at the boreholes because of congestion,” Chief Elida Timbenawo explains with a flourish of her weathered hands.“Now I can rarely find somebody to help me lift my bucket onto my head because everyone can fetch water whenever they want.”

Chief Timbenawo, 73, has served as the Group Village Head for the past 12 years, overseeing 15 villages and chiefs in the Kakoma area of Malawi. She is a sturdy woman, and a force to be reckoned with. She is the reason 7,000 people across 15 villages now have access to safe water and sanitation.

At Water For People, we know that our work hinges on local partnerships and we wouldn’t be able to do what we do without the support and influence of community leaders.

Five years ago we approached Timbenawo with big plans to end open defecation and ensure safe water for all. Even with her support, convincing 640 households to install and maintain their own latrines wasn’t easy. To instill a sense of urgency and compliance, Timbenawo worked with the village chiefs to come up with a plan.

“We established bylaws to incentivize everyone to build latrines,” she says. “We agreed that households with latrines would be given priority at hospitals to receive health care. And it worked, soon everyone had latrines and we could start working on water projects to complement our sanitation efforts.”

Before joining forces with Water For People, villages across Kakoma lacked boreholes and the ones that did exist weren’t working.

“Now we have enough boreholes so everyone is able to access water in a good range of distance,” Timbenawo explains. “Each borehole also has somebody trained to manage it and we are collecting tariffs to fix them when they break.”

Capacity building and tariff collection is just part of Timbenawo’s commitment to Everyone Forever. Recently, community members have been taking advantage of borehole banking, a community-based form of micro-lending that encourages individuals to take out small loans from the borehole funds to help start small businesses or pay for various expenses. These loans are then paid back on a monthly basis with interest.

As the villages continue to rebuild after last year’s flooding and face this year’s drought, borehole banking has become a source of empowerment.

“Borehole banking has had the biggest impact on the household level,” she says. “Right now in our communities it is a lean period for food so people are prioritizing that and using the funds to buy food for their families.”

Over the past five years Timbenawo has seen a change in her people, and even though they still grapple with the effects of flooding and the current drought, the future is bright.

“We didn’t appreciate sanitation and cleanliness but through the work of health workers and Water For People we now see that what we had before wasn’t a life worth living,” she reflects. “It is part of us, part of our life and we are grateful for it.”

By Lisa Edwards and Kraig Kern

This article was originally published in the 2016 Summer issue of NC Currents.

Paul’s final wish was to have a successful Climb for Water campaign in 2016. Help him reach his goal by going to www.crowdrise.com/climbforwater.

It has been said that a hero is somebody who is selfless, who is generous in spirit, who just tries to give back as much as possible. Paul Judge was all of those things and much, much more.

Paul died on the morning of March 9, 2016 on the steep and dangerous slopes of Ixtaccihuatl, a 17,159-foot extinct volcano in Central Mexico. He was there to fulfill a dream of reaching his highest personal altitude. According to his guides, nothing seemed unusual as they started to descend – having been forced to turn back due to a fierce storm. But within just a few steps Paul collapsed, tried to rise, and then fell again for the last time. Despite an hour of resuscitation attempts, nothing could be done to save him.

To say that everyone who knew Paul was shocked and saddened by the news would be a monumental understatement. People would describe him as a friendly, quiet, and unassuming guy, but he had a pronounced impact on everyone he met. Since his death there have been thousands of comments, notes, pictures and memories on Paul’s Facebook page, and mourners were moved to a larger room during his memorial service because of the large number of people who came to pay their respects.

It may sound cliché, but Paul died doing what he loved. Those who knew him best are comforted with the knowledge that he was truly happy. When Paul was not working, he was outside involved in one adventure after another. Although he left us much too soon, Paul experienced more of life than most of us could ever dream, and he also affected the lives of many others along the way.

He was not only influential in the adventurer community, but also within the water industry. Paul worked with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (formerly NCDENR), Public Water Supply Section as a Hydrogeologist for over 21 years in the Mooresville Regional Office. Although he was employed as a regulator, many operators formed a personal bond with Paul and contacted him as a trusted friend to seek guidance. He was a mentor to those inside and outside of his agency.

 
One word people would use to describe Paul was reliable. He was very knowledgeable and responsive, even answering his work phone calls while on vacation. Paul was always ready to help anyone. Paul’s brother described him as thoughtful – both in a kind, sincere, caring way and also in the thoughtful think things-through way, always evaluating consequences. Paul was calm during a crisis and was quick to help water systems through potentially catastrophic situations.

Paul was very active in the water industry and held many licenses and certifications including A Surface, A Well, A Distribution and Cross Connection. He was on the Public Water Supply Section’s Area Wide Optimization Program (AWOP) team helping water systems go above and beyond regulatory requirements and serving the citizens of North Carolina optimized drinking water.

Paul was a member of North Carolina Waterworks Operator’s Association for over 20 years and served as Chair of the South Piedmont Section. In addition, he was also an active member of NC AWWA-WEA, most recently serving as vice chair of the Water For People Committee. Paul taught at water schools, proctored certification exams, and was a guest speaker at many seminars and workshops. In short, he was a hero to the water industry in North Carolina.

Paul was also able to effectively combine his affinity for adventure with water quality issues on a global scale. After observing the success of the first Climb for Water campaign to Africa’s Mt. Kilimanjaro in 2011, he got heavily involved in the effort going forward. During the next two campaigns, Paul helped raise another $25,000 for clean water and hygiene projects around the world. Perhaps Paul’s greatest contribution to the team was his infinite patience. He was more physically fit than anyone who participated in Climb for Water, but always stayed in the back of the pack to make sure he was there to lend a hand or an encouraging word. Climb for Water was a turning point in Paul’s life, it gave him purpose while allowing him to pursue ever greater adventures.

In an article he co-authored in this very magazine (NC Currents, Summer 2014, pp. 58-60), Paul wrote “I stopped and reflected that this was precisely the reason the seven members of Climb for Water were in Quito, Ecuador. In the US, most of us do not need to think twice about the safety of the water that comes from our taps. In Ecuador, and many other places around the world, potable water is not taken for granted. Climb for Water wants to help change that.”

Paul was more than an adventurer and water quality practitioner; he was a humanitarian.

In a society bombarded daily with bad news, Paul was the very personification of what is good and right in this world. He believed that all of us have the power to make the world a better place and he lived that way every day of his life. In fact, Paul believed so much in the cause of helping others gain access to clean water that he revived Climb for Water two years after it officially shut down. Paul was planning on leading a climbing group this Labor Day 2016 with a new campaign that would take him and his team to the summit of Mount Washington in New Hampshire, while raising more life-saving money for Water For People .

In life, Paul Judge was more than a hydrogeologist and outdoorsman. He was a loving son, a beloved brother, a devoted father, and a best friend to everyone he met. Paul was a man who could take you out of your comfort zone and help you conquer your fears. In addition, he was a hero to all of us who knew him and to countless others around the world who never got the chance to meet him.

Paul, our minds still talk to you, our hearts still look for you, and our souls know you are at peace. We love you and miss you.

	LEFT: In his trademark red shirt, Paul had an adventurous spirit, always challenging himself.   BELOW: Paul had a way of reassuring people they could do anyting, despite this lighthearted teasing of co-author Lisa Edwards.

About the Authors:
Lisa Edwards has been with NCDEQ (formerly DENR) for over 25 years. She was former Chair of the Water For People committee and served with the World Water Corps in several developing countries. She participated on the Climb for Water Ecuador campaign and plans to summit Mt. Washington in September.

Kraig Kern is the Vice President and Director of Marketing at WK Dickson & Co., Inc., and a member of the board of directors of the American Council of Engineering Companies of North Carolina (ACEC/NC). He is the original founder and team leader of Climb for Water and has been active with the Water For People committee since 2010. Kraig will lead the 2016 Climb for Water expedition in September.