Turning Point

Carol Brown’s life changed when she lost her mother in December 2011.

- KANDACE CHAPPLE

As she navigated her grief, she found herself searching for something more, something “bigger.” And she found it, in the most unexpected way: In running shoes … and running water.

She was living in Troy when her church group was challenged to raise money to build water wells in Kenya. Carol was interested, but the fundraising was based on signing up for, training for and running the Chicago Marathon.

The first problem: Carol was not a runner. The longest she’d ever run was maybe two miles, tops. But when she learned about those in need in Kenya—women and children who walked miles each day to fill tubs with dirty water (weighing 45+ pounds) and carrying them home on their heads, her “problem” seemed laughable.

Now, eight years later, that group is a non-profit called Hope Water International (HWI). They have raised $3.7 million, and installed more than 150 water wells in Africa, with teams all over the Midwest participating.