By JOLENE OGLE
MANY take access to clean, safe water for granted, but for more than 740 million people around the world, dirty water is a reality.
Tewantin local Lisa Hill said she was guilty of taking the precious resource for granted and wanted to do something to help those who didn’t have access to a clean water supply.
Lisa joined the WaterAid project, H2Only, where participants drink only water for the month of July while raising funds for water sanitation projects in some of the world’s poorest countries.
Lisa, who is a self-confessed “tea addict” said it was tough to ditch the warm drinks and stick with only water for 31 days.
“It was tough as I’m a big tea drinker, so I had to break the habit,” she said.
“On the first day, I had a headache by lunchtime and then I got the flu. But after that I actually started to feel good and my energy levels increased.”
Lisa, a childcare worker in Cooroy, said she received great support from the community including the children at the childcare centre who all did one day with water only to show their support.
One boy named Ayden, 10, even made the commitment to drink only water for the month and Lisa said it was great to have a buddy helping her through the month.
“He did an amazing job,” she said.
“On cold mornings, all the kids would be having hot Milos, but Ayden would stick to water. He was great and made it so much easier.”
Lisa said she set out to raise $300 and was amazed when she managed to raise $800 for WaterAid.
“It’s a great feeling,” she said.
