MORGANTON -- In Ethiopia clean water is hard to come by, leading to disease and infections, but two Drexel natives are looking to change that.
Karey Digh, 29, and Cam Bumgarner, 30, started a journey in Nags Head on May 30 and plan to ride almost 4,000 miles to San Francisco, Calif. by Aug. 1. For most people this would seem like an impossible journey, but these two life-long friends have a mission, and, according to Digh, it makes the journey worth it.
The two are raising money for Water is Life International, a nonprofit organization that provides access to safe and sufficient water sources to impoverished communities throughout Ethiopia. WiLi works within communities to empower those with the fewest resources to find immediate, affordable and sustainable access to safe water, according to its website.
“In February of 2008 and in August of 2010, I had the opportunity to go to Ethiopia, and I worked with Water is Life International, and I thought there cause was such an important one, so that’s why I wanted to get involved,” Digh said. “I’ve always loved riding my bike and this just seemed like something I needed to do.”
Team Wooha, which is the English pronunciation of the Amharic characters that make up the word “water” in Ethiopia, is accepting donations through its website. The team is hoping to raise around $20,000. According to Digh this will pay for approximately five wells to be built in Ethiopia. Digh said so far he thought they’d raised between $3,000 and $4,000.
“We joined this cooperation because they give the money straight to the people,” Bumgarner said. “We see where the money goes. We were wary of dealing with some organizations, but they are very reputable and 100 percent of the money goes to wells, and that’s why we ask people to give money, so that they will deal with all of the money, and we can concentrate on riding.”
The two will make their way through Burke County on Monday, and they said they were excited to see everyone and have the support of their families.
“It’s been something I’ve wanted to do something about … over the past couple of years,” Digh said. “Through high school I always wanted to do more than just for myself. My parents have a very big heart, and I learned from them.”
Bumgarner said when Digh approached him with the idea he was thrilled to be able to get involved because he thought clean water was an issue that needs more attention.
“There are so many problems in the world, and it seems like the water issue isn’t talked about and dealt with as much,” Bumgarner said. “We had decided we wanted to do it and we were talking about what we could do to help people and he brought this up. I knew that he felt really strongly about it. And so I just got on board.”
He continued, “It would solve so many things if these people just had water. There are things that we take for granted that we get so easily and I hope this ride will help people realize that.”
Digh is the son Randy and Kathy Digh and Bumgarner is the son of Don and Meg Burmgarner.
For more information, visit teamwooha.wordpress.com.
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