On September 5, 2014, Hannah, a 2016 graduate from Saint Louis University, decided to carry a jerry can to her classes to support a friend's non-profit water organization. A jerry can is a typical water container that many women and children have to carry to collect water, often up to four miles every day. A jerry can weighs 40 pounds when filled.
Hannah thought she would be able to carry the can filled with water all the way to the top, at least for the day, but when she tried to pick it up she could barely lift it. In that moment, she realized how important raising awareness of the vital need for clean water was. Hannah learned that 1 in 9 people in the world do not have access to clean water. She decided to carry her jerry can with her every day, all day, to spread awareness about the water crisis. Hannah also made a personal goal to fund a windmill aqueduct for Solea Water, the non-profit organization started by her friend and fellow classmate, Rachael Burchett. A little over five months later, on February 10, 2014, Hannah reached her goal of $7,500 with the help of family, friends, and strangers who donated, as well as her classmates who took turns carrying jerry cans for weeks at a time. However, Hannah did not want her efforts to end there, so she created Billikens For Clean Water (B4CW) in hopes of getting more SLU students involved in her clean water campaign. Hannah is a big believer that small steps can create big change, so she is excited to see where this journey goes!
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