MANSFIELD — Some members of Ohio State University-Mansfield’s Social Work Student Association did not go to a southern beach for spring break.
Instead, Terrahl Del Taylor, a graduate student and six other from the department helped move a U-Haul truck with 10 tons of water to Flint, Michigan, to distribute via Catholic Charities. The goal was to help that community with its water crisis.
Flint, a city of 99,002, has nearly 42 percent of its citizens living in poverty. On Jan. 5, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder declared a state of emergency for Genesee County because the water was contaminated with high levels of lead. Boiling the water makes the contamination worse.
“I wanted to do this because I think every single person needs to have clean, healthy water. Every day, I take having clean water to drink and bathe in for granted,” said Taylor, the catalyst of the project. “When I heard about the water crisis, I started to think about how much I rely on water daily, and I knew how much it would mean to them to have additional help.”
Inviting other Ohio State satellite and main campus schools to participate, the team collected 263 cases and 266 gallon jugs of water. A GoFundMe account raised $4,060 in cash donations. Kroger provided free shipping for 840 cases of purchased water.
The OSU Mansfield social work association parked a van in front of Riedl Hall, collecting 159 gallons and 107 cases of water in two days.
“Ohio State Mansfield Social Work students were happy to join the College of Social Work in this humanitarian effort,” program coordinator Mary Jo Hawk said. “I am so proud of the Social Work Student Association for their hard work and to our campus community for the generous donations.”
Social Work student Ashley Sanchez said the experience of being a part of the distribution team in Flint was unforgettable, and the idea of being unable to have clean water is a horrible thought.
When Sanchez, one of the three students who went to Flint, passed a water fountain covered in plastic wrap with a sign above saying, “You cannot drink this water. It is contaminated.”, it really hit home how hard it is to live without water.
“This is what they deal with every day,” she said. “I was wondering if I could wash my hands and ask for ice in my drinks because I was unsure of the risks. People can donate water all day, but the (water) system needs to be fixed.”
