Over + Above: 2021 Run for Water & VACFSS tip donation day update.
Since our partnership with Run for Water began in 2018, you have helped us donate almost $45,000 to their organization. These donations have changed lives by providing access to clean water to rural communities of Ethiopia. This year the community of Hawo will have access to their first splashes of water by this coming Fall. Last year in 2020, we supported the community of Buluk in rural Bale with a spring cap system. In 2019, three clean water points were constructed in the rural coffee-growing region of Yirgalem, allowing farmers and their families to drink clean water for the first time in their lives. $1 from every still water bottle sold funds clean water. You can learn more about this ongoing project at runforwater.ca/jjbean
Foziya Adem, 12, pictured at the water station constructed in her home town last year. Before this station was constructed, Foziya would go to the river several times a day to collect water. Direct access to clean water means that children in these rural communities can have more time focus on their education.
"This river is our main source for everything. We use it for drinking, cooking and washing our clothes. I also use it at my restaurant. The water appears clean when you look at it, but it is not. A lot of animals use this river and many of us have been exposed to different water-borne diseases. We hope to get clean water and to also send our kids to school without any problem. My kids have missed school sometimes because I get tired of coming to the river every day." Meko Kabeto, 39.
Meko Kabeto, and Amane Mamu, both run small restaurants in Hawo. They have been coming to the river to collect water 6-8 times a day since childhood. They and their families deserve easy access to safe water.
In more local news..
On July 16, 2021, we held a tip donation day, the tips from each JJ Bean location were counted and donated to the Vancouver Aboriginal Child and Family Services Society. JJ Bean matched the first $2,000, which was added to the final sum. In total $6,604.65 was donated. Thank you very much for any contribution you made to this. The VACFSS works to support Indigenous children, youth and families in the Vancouver region by providing restorative, holistic and culturally-grounded family services. You can see more about their organization here.
JJ Bean’s Over + Above program exists because the farmers who produce the coffee we enjoy so much also happen to live in some of the poorest areas of the world. While we are committed to always paying excellent prices for excellent coffee, we feel we can do more to make a positive difference in coffee growing countries over and above our basic responsibility as coffee roasters. You can learn more here.