‘Running for Water’ Family Walk/Run
A Fundraiser for DigDeep – The Navajo Water Project!
Our second annual Walk/Run,
held at Frame Park on September 14, 2024,
was a great success!!
Almost $18,000 was raised!!!
Many thanks to all who donated,
all who joined the Walk/Run,
all who spread the word,
and all who helped in any way!!
Donations are accepted at any time, of course!
Make checks payable to Community of the Living Spirit
with ‘Running for Water’ on the memo line.
Mail to Event Organizer Sandy Peters
412 N. West Ave. Waukesha 53186
Sponsoring Partners:
‘Running for Water’ is a local fundraiser organized by the Community of the Living Spirit and Plowshare. The event benefits DigDeep – The Navajo Water Project, raising funds to provide families living on the Navajo Nation with clean, running, hot and cold water and solar power.
The Navajo Water Project is part of the larger human rights nonprofit Dig Deep Right to Water Project, which serves some of the 2.2 million+ people in the U.S. without running water and the sinks, bathtubs, and toilets that the rest of us take for granted. As a compelling ‘Good Morning America’ interview with DigDeep in April 2023 informs us, ‘When we began the Navajo Water Project in 2014, we never imagined we would serve hundreds of families across 3 states – New Mexico, Utah, and Arizona. Navajo are 67 times more likely than other Americans to live without running water or a toilet. That’s an injustice.’
’24 RunningforWater Information
New for 2024 is the opportunity to buy DigDeep – Navajo Water Project T-Shirts!
Click on the following link to view items and order!
https://digdeep.me/running-for-water
HEARTFELT THANKS TO ALL OUR 2024 SPONSORS!
(* Indicates that this is the second year as sponsor!):
Champion for Water ($1,000 and above):
*Robe Law Office
*The Destination 
*Good Health Saunas 
*Steeltank Brewing Company 
*Tina Ignacio
*Sandy and Jeff Peters
*Bonnie Birk
*Green Earth Realty 
Advocate for Water ($500 – $999):
*Community of the Living Spirit
DAR – Mary Warrell Knight Chapter
*Salamone Supplies 
*Karen Magedanz
*Landscaping Specialists Inc 
*Michelle Mader
Peter and Laurie Byrne
Neighbor for Water ($250 – $499):
*Faye Flesia
*Donny Klein
*Joseph Walsh
Friend for Water ($100 – $249):
Waukesha State Bank
*Plowshare
Vicki Salyer
*Tonya Smith
*Terry Smith
*Lynn Gipril
*Joan Scheeler
Marie Kingsbury
*Bev Bradford
*Cynthia Graves
*Mike and Joanne Riordan
*Craig and Lauran Landry
*Heidi and Simon Farmery
*Patty Sarvello
Gina Dundun
Denni Drake
Betsy Forrest
Danny and Victoria Salyer
Jean Richter
Mary Franke
Karla Francken
*Diane and Dennis Voit
*Karen L. Johnson
Linda Wainstock
Katharyn Kominiarek
*Lynn Tompitch
Stephanie Riley
Joe Beine
*Marilyn & Gene Baus
Gloria Ford
Committee Meeting Host – Martha Merrells Bookstore
Graphics Designer – Barb Kirschner
Snacks & Water – Woodmans, Lynn, & Joan
Cross-Body Bags for Participants – The Destination
The Drum Circle – Gary Huber
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9-15-24 Photos:
Event Organizer Sandy Peters
Gary’s Drum Circle
Bonnie, Sandy, Lynn, Michelle, Jane, Faye, Judy, Nancy, Troy, Linda, Jeff
Lynn and the snacks from Woodman’s Market
Gary
Celebrating at The Destination after the Walk/Run
A great article published the Waukesha Freeman 9-13-24:
Running so people can have clean water
Saturday’s event in Frame Park raises money for DigDeep
WAUKESHA — Sandra Peters said two years ago her granddaughter, Ava Wengren, wanted to raise money for DigDeep, a nonprofit organization that provides clean, running water for some of the 2.2 million people living in the United States without it. They decided to have a family walk/run in Frame Park called Running for Water, but didn’t know quite where to begin.
They found help from Michelle Mader of Plowshare and Bonnie Birk from the Community of the Living Spirit. Last year they held their first fundraising event, and Peters said they raised more than $16,000 for DigDeep.
“That is just a drop in the bucket due to the expense of installing water systems on semi-arid land,” Peters said in an email. “But with our contribution and many others across the country, DigDeep brought clean, running water to more than 350 households in 2023. They expanded into 10 new communities across the Navajo Nation. They installed more than 170 off-grid home water systems, shattering their previous record of 99 systems in a single year.”
Peters said a water system costs approximately $3,500 to install. If that also includes a solar panel system, the cost is about $4,500.
DigDeep has three major water projects: the Colonias Water Project, the Appalachia Water Project and the Navajo Water Project, Peters said. To learn more about DigDeep’s projects, go to www.digdeep.org.
“We chose to raise funds for the Navajo water project because a treaty and a doctrine with the United States government has never been honored. And they are still fighting for their Colorado River water rights,” she said.
On Saturday, Peters and Wengren have planned another Running for Water. They have raised about $14,000 so far. There will be a drum circle and the leader of the drum circle will kick off the walk/run with a Navajo time-keeping beat. Afterward, people can join the drum circle.
The event starts at 10 a.m. in the shelter near the playground in Frame Park. The cost
is $20 per person or $35 per family to register. To learn more and to register, go to https://communitylivingspirit.com and click on Running for Water.
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The 2023 Running for Water event was also a great success!!
Over $15,000 was raised in our September 2023
‘Running for Water’ Family Walk/ Run!
Sponsoring Partners:
Many thanks to all who so generously helped
Navajo Nation families access a basic human need – WATER!
An Excellent Recent Article from the LA Times:
“This epic slice of Arizona feeds their souls but lacks a basic necessity: Water”
Adapted LA Times article by Tyrone Beason — April 7, 2024
DENNEHOTSO, Ariz. — Gilarya Begaye looks out across the brush-blanketed pastures, red-dirt plains and flat-topped mesas that surround her home in the Navajo Nation. “Everywhere I’ve ever moved, it never felt like home,” says Begaye, 36. “My heart’s always been here.”
But for all the ways that living on the reservation feeds the soul, one basic necessity has been sorely lacking for Begaye, her six children and other Navajos: water.
The Navajos live in the same 1,400-mile-long Colorado River Basin that brings fresh water to millions in Southern California, yet about 30% of homes on the reservation were built without indoor plumbing.
With the absence of pipes connecting homes to a water source in this isolated corner of the reservation, many Navajos must spend hours each week driving to a community center in the tribal settlement of Dennehotso to refill portable tanks.
While California wrangles with other Western states over the drought-stricken Colorado River’s water supply, Navajo water rights advocates estimate that the 175,000 members who live on the reservation subsist on average on just 5 to 10 gallons a day per person. Compare that to the 76 to 100 gallons of water the Environmental Protection Agency says most Californians use daily.
The failure to extend water service to all Indigenous Americans is especially galling given their traditional role as nature’s caretakers, says Heather Whiteman Runs Him, associate clinical professor and director of the Tribal Justice Clinic at the University of Arizona in Tucson.
“We respect water in ways that many other Americans don’t,” says Whiteman Runs Him, a Crow tribal member from Montana. “The vast majority of Americans take water access for granted. You pay a water bill but don’t think about what you’re paying for.”
Recently, Begaye and about 200 other homeowners in Northeast Arizona near the Four Corners, where Arizona, New Mexico, Utah and Colorado meet, received free water systems, including cisterns, pipes and kitchen sinks with functioning cold-water taps, through a Los Angeles-based nonprofit, the DigDeep Right to Water Project. Begaye recounts her 4-year-old son Alex’s excitement when he turned on the tap for the first time. It was as if he had performed magic.
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I am so excited that we were part of that magic with our $15,350.00 contribution to Dig Deep from our Waukesha fundraiser, Running for Water. This is where our money went! Gilarya Begaye now has water, thanks to you! I hope you will consider donating again this year. We won’t quit until every home in America has access to clean, running water. Event Organizer Sandy Peters, Waukesha
Heartfelt Thanks To Our Generous 2023 Sponsors:
Champion for Water ($1,000 and above):
The Destination
Good Health Saunas
Green Earth Realty
Steeltank Brewing Company
Robe Law Office
Bonnie Birk
Sandy Peters
Advocate for Water ($500 – $999):
Community of the Living Spirit
Landscaping Specialists Inc
Audubon Hair Salon 
Salamone Supplies
Christina L Brown
Tina Ignacio
Neighbor for Water ($250 – $499):
Marilyn and Gene Baus
Joan C Scheeler
Bulldog Builders, LLC 
Karen and David Johnsen
Stephanie and Jason Smieja
Joseph Walsh
Friend for Water ($100 – $249):
Plowshare
Michelle Mader
Blake Builders
Lynn Gipril
Laraine and Mike O’Brien
Joanne and Mike Riordan
Mary Ignacio
Jill Kohler and Francie Shea
Lynn Tompitch
Glacier Point Family Dentistry, LLC
Bev Bradford
Karen L Larson
Karen Magedanz
Heidi and Simon Farmery
Cindy Graves
Jeff Konrad
Spring City Wine House
Diane and Dennis Voit
Lauran and Craig Landry
Tonya Nicole Smith
Starlyn and Pete Jezdimirovic
Patty Sarvello
Faye Flesia
Dave Meyers and Robyn Allen
Gus Copoulos and Linda Wainstock
Committee Meeting Host – Martha Merrells Bookstore
Graphics Designer – Barb Kirschner
Apples and Bananas Donor: Woodmans Market
More Photos from the 2023 Walk/Run:
9-16-23
9-16-23
Noah 9-16-23
Below is an article that appeared in the Waukesha Freeman on August 10, 2023:
More about the Navajo Water Project, from their website: navajowaterproject.org :
‘On the Navajo Nation, 30% of families live without running water. They drive for miles to haul barrels of water to meet their basic needs. They carefully ration water for drinking, cooking, cleaning, and bathing. But despite their struggle for water, these families still go to work, take their children to school and lead their communities.
The Navajo Water Project is a community-managed utility alternative that brings hot and cold running water to homes without access to water or sewer lines. We do this primarily by installing our off-grid Home Water Systems, but our impact doesn’t stop there. We’re also investing in more effective septic systems, skilled job creation, and even making grants to individuals and communities stepping up to solve their own water challenges through the Water is Life Fund.’
From a ‘Good Morning America’ interview with DigDeep in April 2023: ‘When we began the Navajo Water Project in 2014, we never imagined we would serve hundreds of families across 3 states – New Mexico, Utah, and Arizona. Navajo are 67 times more likely than other Americans to live without running water or a toilet. That’s an injustice.’
100% of your donation will go to the Navajo Water Project, bringing clean, running water to American families in need. The Navajo Water Project is a program of the DigDeep Right to Water Project 501c3.
For more information see the following websites:
digdeep.org
navajowaterproject.org
goodmorningamerica.com/gma3/video/water-crisis-navajo-nation-98730553 (20 April 2023)
rotary.org/water is life (July 2022)
wateractionhub.org/projects/2568/d/digdeeps-navajo-water-project/ (2023)
BELOW IS A GREAT ARTICLE THAT APPEARED IN THE WAUKESHA FREEMAN ABOUT A PLOWSHARE DOCUMENTARY THAT WAS COMPLETED AND FIRST AIRED IN NOVEMBER 2023. THE ‘RUNNING FOR WATER’ WALK/RUN IS FEATURED AT THE END OF THE DOCUMENTARY AND IS MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE:
Documentary takes a deep dive into Waukesha water
The Waukesha Freeman 12-22-23
ikostolni@conleynet.com 262-513-2651
WAUKESHA — In their latest documentary, husband and wife duo Karen Slattery and Mark Doremus have opted to tackle a particularly salient topic in Waukesha — water. The film titled “Our Water, Our Responsibility” was produced in conjunction with Plowshare Fair Trade Marketplace & Education for Peace (a nonprofit center most recognized for their fair trade storefront at 219 W. Main St. in downtown Waukesha) and focuses on issues surrounding the community’s water resources. As a member of Plowshare’s Board of Directors, Slattery says water is a topic everyone at the organization was plugged into.
“So, we thought, we (could) kind of do a deep dive and look back at the history and see where we’re at,” she said.
The documentary opens with a shot of the gleaming Fox River and artist Bonnie Schetski painting the rushing water near Barstow Plaza. From there, Mark Doremus narrates the film and takes the viewer on a journey through stories about the water we can see and the water we can’t.
“It’s structured around the three levels of the water resources in Waukesha. We have the surface water, which is sort of characterized by the Fox River,” Doremus explained. “Then we have what’s officially called the shallow aquifer, which is a deposit of water … that runs down to 300500 feet. Then we have the deep aquifer underneath that, which is what the city has been relying on historically for its water supply.”
The first story follows a group of Waukesha middle school students who visited the E.B. Shurts Environmental Education Center, 810 W College Ave., to learn about organisms living in the Fox River. Doremus notes that the school district has an environmental education program with a curriculum that allows students the opportunity to engage with one of the city’s most iconic natural landmarks.
“Every year, students have some experience with the river. …In the case of the older students (it’s) actually getting in and collecting various samples of the aquatic life and oxygen content,” he said. “It’s a remarkable program.”
WAUKESHA WATER
The documentary then takes a foray into the city’s relationship with water. Recognizable Waukesha citizens like Steve Crandell, a former city planner who spearheaded the riverwalk project; Joan Skimmons, artist and owner of River’s End Gallery; and John Schoenknecht, a local historian with expertise in the Springs Era, are all featured.
About halfway through the film, Doremus gives context as to Waukesha’s current relationship with water. He explains the issue of radium and how the city sought an alternative water source — Lake Michigan. Waukesha Water Utility General Manager Dan Duchniak reflects on the process of making the transition away from groundwater a reality.
The last section of the film focuses more on the environmental and social issues surrounding water. Slattery and Doremus interviewed local resident Don Casey about his natural landscaping, biologist Tom Slawski about the Southeast Fox River Partnership, and retired teacher Sandy Peters who organized a fundraiser to help bring running water to members of the Navajo Nation in Arizona. Slattery says that viewers have responded especially well to the social issues surrounding water that the documentary touches on.
“Some people really liked that social piece of it, and then that community building that goes on with it,” she said.
Looking ahead, Slattery says that Plowshare is planning a showing of the documentary in the spring. But in the meantime, the documentary is available to watch on Plowshare’s website at https://www.plowshareftm. org/ or on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/@plowsharefairtrademarketpl703.
Regardless of when or where you watch the film, Doremus says he hopes viewers take one thing away from it: awareness.
“Most of us have grown up just turning the tap and not really thinking about it any farther than that,” he said. “But this is a really significant, global problem. … It’s not an unlimited resource.”