Cause of Choice: World Vision (worldvision.org)
How did you become involved with World Vision? “I’m really big on humanitarian work and using my time to help others around the world. It fills my soul up and is something that I believe I was put on this earth for. I’m also a huge Meghan Markle supporter and saw that she had worked with them. I read everything about World Vision, studied their mission and what they believed in. It checked off a lot of the boxes that I wanted — clean water, children, providing food, security, education and so many things. I was like, ‘Okay. This is who I want to work for.’ ”
Was there something in particular that resonated with you? “I love their sponsorship program and their clean water program. So many countries around the world do not have access to clean water. By sponsoring one child for $40 a month, it also provides four other children with the benefits, which are having access to clean water, helping them have food and being able to stay in school, just having an overall better quality of life. That was a huge thing for me, and also working with children. I believe every child deserves to have all of life’s simple necessities, and World Vision helps provide that.”
Do you sponsor a child? “I do. Her name is Babycarlo. At the time, you could go and look at pictures of children and see who you connected with. I actually picked Babycarlo. She has these eyes that are so captivating. [I could sense her] little spirit and how shy she is, but also that she had so much to say. I just wanted to crack her open and make her smile and giggle. I felt like I wanted to get to know this little girl. I got to meet her last summer [when] I did a big trip with World Vision to Africa. I went to give service in the field. I was so excited to get to meet Babycarlo. I cried right away.”
What were some other highlights of your trip to Africa? “I did water walks while I was there. Mostly women and children are making long walks, 6 kilometers every day, to get access to water. This water is not clean. It’s contaminated, muddy and has feces and bugs in it. I carried it myself in jerry cans, and they are heavy, roughly 50 pounds. I also spent an afternoon with this group of women who are helping each other save money and learning about money and savings.” What else does your work with World Vision consist of? “Basically, it’s any way I can bring awareness to the organization or be hands-on with it. It started last year going on that trip and running a marathon. One of the main ways World Vision raises money for providing clean water is through marathons, running and doing a 6K. I’ve already done two marathons. My first was in Zimbabwe, last year. In March, I did the LA Marathon, and I’ve also done two 6Ks.”
Courtesy of Sal Stowers
