When Clementine thinks about the future, her primary worry is no longer about sickness.
Just a few years ago, that wasn’t the case.
Clementine, a 36-year-old mother of five, and her husband worked hard to provide for their family in Mugesera, Rwanda. But with two young children under the age of five, every day brought difficult choices. Like many families in their community, they relied on untreated water from Lake Mugesera for drinking, cooking and daily life – leaving their children vulnerable to waterborne disease. Living in poverty and with little access to health information, they had few opportunities to change their circumstances.
After seeing the family’s need for clean water, World Relief, in partnership with 20 Liters, provided her them with a Slow Sand Water Filter. At the same time, a community facilitator invited Clementine to join their Community Hygiene Club. Twice a week, she meets with other families to learn practical ways to improve health, sanitation, nutrition and financial stability. Together they share ideas, practice new skills and encourage one another to make changes at home.
These lessons reshaped nearly every part of her family’s daily life.
Clementine’s family now drinks safe, filtered water. They built a hygienic latrine, a handwashing station, a dish drying rack, a clothesline and a kitchen garden – small improvements that have created a cleaner, healthier home for their children.
But the Community Hygiene Club didn’t stop with health.
Members also had the opportunity to join a World Relief Savings for Life group where they learned the importance of setting aside small amounts of money that could eventually be invested back into their families. Clementine embraced the habit. Over time, those savings helped her family purchase chickens that provide eggs for their children, goats and pigs – valuable assets that strengthen their nutrition, generate income and provide greater financial security for the future.
Looking back, Clementine sees just how much has changed.
“I sincerely thank 20 Liters and World Relief, for introducing Community Hygiene Clubs and teaching us how to improve both our health and our livelihoods. This program has transformed not only my family’s hygiene, nutrition and economic wellbeing, but also the lives of many families in our community.”
For Clementine, the greatest change is visible in the everyday moments that matter most. “Today, we drink safe water, our children are healthier and we have built valuable assets through saving.”
The transformation hasn’t stopped with her own family. She is now a trusted voice in her community, sharing what she’s learned with neighbors and encouraging other families to adopt healthy habits, improve nutrition and save for the future.
“I am proud to share what I have learned with others so they too can improve their lives.”
Lasting change rarely comes from a single solution. Safe drinking water, practical health education, encouragement from neighbors and the opportunity to build financial security have worked together to help one family move from surviving to planning for the future. Through Community Hygiene Clubs, World Relief and 20 Liters are helping families build healthier homes, stronger livelihoods and communities where hope continues to spread from one household to the next.
