Unity Water Foundation

05/26/2026

On Monday morning, Sarah Van Heerden from the Unity Water Foundation visited Shiyaz in uMngeni with Stanton R L Goodenough.

Stan and a friend volunteer their time to guide and support people in their efforts to improve their living conditions and build a better future for themselves.

During the visit, Sarah met Shadrick and his aunt. As conversations turned to water, it quickly became clear just how badly additional support is needed in the community.

Thanks to our generous donors, we had a 90-litre Hippo Roller available, which Sarah had taken to show Stan.

It was quickly decided to give to Shadrick and his aunt. They had no idea it was coming, and the joy and excitement around the gift was something really special.

What stood out most was Shadrick’s immediate commitment to using the Hippo Roller not only for his own household, but to help his neighbours as well. He said he would pour the water he collected into his storage buckets then collect more to deliver to his neighbours!

As he rolled it home, neighbours gathered around, curious about what it was and how it worked. Shadrick stopped to show them the Roller, explaining how it works. It became one of those genuine “hope floats” and “pay it forward” moments that seriously brightened our day.

The reality is, moments like this remind us that personal interactions still matter deeply.

We will continue working with Stan to support the people of Shiyaz who are trying to improve their daily lives and create better opportunities for themselves and those around them.

Help support a family today: www.unitywater.life

The Unity Water Foundation is a registered NPC, NPO, and PBO in South Africa.
The Unity Water Foundation USA is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Colorado. EIN and IRS determination letters available on request.

The Foundation is also registered with GuideStar and accepts donor-advised fund giving through Fidelity Charitable and Daffy.org.

05/04/2026

On Friday, 1 May, while South Africa marked Workers' Day, Sarah and our director, Jacintha Toohey, headed out early to Evendale, just outside Pietermaritzburg, to deliver a 90-litre Hippo Roller to Nontobeko and her family.

Nontobeko lives up a hill. The road runs in front of her property but it does not reach her home. It is narrow, steep, and from there the climb continues up a sharp bank to the house.

When the water truck comes, the day is spent walking down that hill, queueing, and carrying 20-litre buckets back up. Then up again, from the path to the house. Ten buckets in a day is not unusual.

That is ten trips.
With the Hippo Roller, it becomes two.

Nontobeko is already struggling with her knees. The weight she has been carrying every day has only made that worse. Being able to push water home instead of lifting it changes that strain completely.

She was ready to go and fetch water the moment the roller was delivered, and a little disappointed the truck was not on its way.

Her children and grandchildren stood close, watching, excited. They understood exactly what had just arrived.

There is no tap at the house yet. The walk is still there. But the load is different now.

Two trips instead of ten.

04/28/2026

Can you help our friends at Hippo Roller?

Calling on
We’re looking for a small favour from anyone travelling from South Africa to the United States, ideally the West Coast. If you have spare baggage allowance, we’d really appreciate help taking an extra item with you. A team member in the US will collect the items.

Each item: • Weighs under 8.5 kg

• Is securely packaged and wrapped
• Has been safely transported on airlines many times as checked oversized luggage
• Is completely safe and supports our work

This is a charity request, so we’re not able to offer payment. With shipping costs being so high, this kind of help makes a real difference.

We have four items (or at least two) that need to reach our team in the U.S. If you’re able to assist, please get in touch.”

Email us
[email protected]

04/27/2026

Water infrastructure matters. Pipes, treatment plants, maintenance and long-term investment are essential.

The question is: What happens while people are still waiting?

For millions of families, the issue is not only the source. It is the last mile between supply and the person who needs to use it. Large numbers of people still do not have water on their premises, and the burden of collecting it falls largely on women and girls.

It is not realistic to ask people to wait for infrastructure while they are walking for water today. At the same time, short-term solutions cannot replace the responsibility to build that infrastructure. The bridge matters, but it must remain a bridge.
Access alone is not enough. Even where water is piped, it is not always safe by the time it reaches the user. Contamination at household level, unsafe storage, and risks such as lead in plumbing are well documented.

So the centre of this work is the end user. Not the system on paper. Not the ribbon cutting. The person. The mother carrying water. The child missing school. The household storing water because supply is intermittent. The family trusting that what reaches the tap is safe.

This is an area Unity Water Foundation prioritises. Not as a replacement for , but as a practical response in the space between supply and safe use. Because the is where water access either works or it doesn’t.

04/13/2026

A lot has been happening in our world, but no matter what happens, one thing does not change. There are people out there who need help!

The majority of our work centres on the last-mile challenge between water source and household. Yes, we can yell that governments and water authorities must fix it, but until that happens people suffer... and that is not ok.

To support or learn more about the work we do, visit www.unitywater.life

The Unity Water Foundation NPC is a registered PBO, and NPO in South Africa (can issue S18A certificates). We also have a USA division, The Unity Water Foundation, which is a registered 501(c)(3).

03/22/2026

Water doesn’t start at the tap.

It starts with a walk. Sometimes a long one. Often alone. And not always safe.

This is the part of the water crisis that is easy to overlook.
Not just access to water, but the cost of getting it.

The time. The physical strain. And the exposure to risk along the way.

In many communities, that cost is still carried by women and girls. The further they have to walk, the more that risk increases.

That is not always measured, and it is not always spoken about, but it is there.

At the Unity Water Foundation, our work is focused on reducing that daily burden in practical ways.

Through practical, community-focused interventions, including the deployment of Hippo Rollers, we are helping to reduce the physical strain of water collection, return time to households, and make access to water safer and more manageable.

It is simple work, but it has real impact.

Because when you reduce the distance, you reduce more than just effort.

You reduce risk.

If this matters to you, you can support the work:

www.unitywater.life

03/22/2026

Water changes everything, but not in the abstract way we like to talk about.

For millions of people, it comes down to something very simple.
How far you have to walk.
How much can you carry.
And how many times a day you have to do it.

In many communities that responsibility still falls to women and girls.
It takes time. It takes energy... and sometimes, it puts them at risk.

This is the part of the water crisis that is easy to overlook.
Not just access to water, but the cost of getting your daily water.

At the Unity Water Foundation, our work is focused on reducing that cost.

Through practical, community-focused interventions, including the deployment of Hippo Rollers, we are helping to reduce the physical burden of water collection, restore time to households, and improve access to water in ways that are safer and more sustainable.

It is not complicated work.
But it matters.

Because when you reduce the effort it takes to access water, you give something back: Time. Energy. Choice.

And these things add up.

This World Water Day, we are thinking about the people who are still walking for water, and the small, practical ways we can help change that.

If you would like to support the work visit www.unitywater.life