Flint still needs help with their water crisis.

Kid Congeniality is a blog that focuses on imagining the world through a child’s eyes.  I have always looked around and thought about what children think of the situations in their little part of the world.  We don’t take ourselves too seriously.  We like to keep it light-hearted.  Funny jokes, whimsical memes. But sometimes we get a little serious.   Sometimes we can’t help it.  Because sometimes we just can’t shy away from reality.

My friend Mari recently sent me an article she wrote.  It stopped me in my tracks!  How do kids in turmoil see their lives, their country, their world?  How do we let something get to the point where kids lose their trust in the adults who are supposed to take care of them?

Mari is a mom.  She is a professional woman who kicks ass at her job.  She is smart and she is passionate.  Mari is me and I am her.  She is you and every other busy woman in the world.  Mari is outraged and you should be too.  She is going to do something and I hope you do too whatever your cause, whatever your passion.  Mari is upset that the children of Flint Michigan have no water.  You should be too…because it can easily be you the next time.

Flint (Still Needs) Water Crisis

By:  Mari Datz Trupiano

I wish someone would have protected the water!

I am the mother of a 3-year-old boy who works full-time and rarely has a moment to watch the news to catch up on world events. The other night I did have a moment. I read some articles which were quite frankly heartbreaking.

The articles that I couldn’t stop reading were about Flint, Michigan and the current water crisis. I felt like I was hit with a ton of bricks. The articles were all about my neighbors. The city where I was born and that also employed my mother up until her retirement from General Motors. The city where my grandfather, aunt and friends worked for many years. The town that has always brought you the latest automobiles from GM has been in dire need for over a year. How has this not been on my radar? I live in Ortonville, MI. It is approximately 23 miles from Flint. The residents are practically my neighbors and I honestly did not realize how bad the situation still was.

Why is Flint, MI still in this horrible condition?

Why have I not participated in helping out my neighbors that are desperately in need? The power of one person can influence the power of many. This is my new motto along with “Go big or Go home”.

After reading these articles, I decided I needed to do “something”. I could go and buy a couple of cases of water and take them to Flint, but what kind of impact would that make? Not much. I thought, I can do better than that. I have connections, family and friends and therefore I have power! That night I drafted an email that I sent to all of my colleagues asking them to join with me to collect donations for Flint. They were on board instantly. That initiative snowballed into asking Advertising Agencies, TV stations, friends, family and Costco to also join forces with me and help. The response has been amazing.

I’ve been pretty blessed in life. If I lived in a town where this happened, I would have a place to go. I could easily get out of the situation. Most of the residents of Flint do not have another option. They can’t sell their homes. Most, if not all of their families and friends are in the same situation so they are stuck in a bad situation trying to make it.

So what can we do? We can buy water!

I can’t fix any broken pipes or take all of the residents of Flint into my home, but I can rally my troops. We can buy water! It is as simple as that. I kind of feel ridiculous even saying that. A city in my country, the United State of America, doesn’t have clean water? How is that possible? Think about it. Think about all of the ways you use water. Here are a few in case you’re stumped. Brushing your teeth, bathing, laundry, mixing baby formula, washing your hands…Daily uses that the rest of us with non-contaminated water take for granted.

We as individuals need to realize our power and to try to put this crisis back in the spotlight. We can’t sit back and wait for politicians to help or for someone else to initiate fund-raising efforts. Each of us has more power than we realize to make a change, whether big or small, to help our fellow Americans. Think about that while you are drinking your bottle of clean water. Flint needs help now!  “Go BIG or go home America!”

ALL kids need CLEAN water!

Help bring water to the residents of Flint.