UPDATE ON BILL’S HEALTH & COVID-19 IN NAVAJO NATION

We continue to look towards a sustainable future for our organization and the Reservation. Our initial goal was to raise $10,000 between now & the end of the year.  

You have blown us away with your generosity. We reached our initial goal of $10,000 in just under 7 days! 

In fact, you have already helped us raise just under 50% of our secondary goal of $25,000 before 2021 begins.

This secondary goal will help us perform vital facility upgrades as we prepare for our partnership with Moonshot Missions and other sustainability projects in 2021.

Donate now and read more below about Bill’s recent COVID-19 diagnosis and how COVID-19 has affected Navajo Nation.

The virus arrived on the Reservation in late March. The community is currently experiencing its second wave. While the entire country has been affected by this sickness, our area has been hit extremely hard.

Bill started feeling sick on Saturday and began experiencing Covid-specific symptoms on Tuesday. I took him to get tested on Wednesday.

Yesterday, we found out that Bill tested positive.

So far, he is doing well. We are thankful his symptoms seem to be mild so far. Please pray for a quick recovery. Also, pray for us as we are all obviously disappointed that we will have a “Quarantine Christmas.”

In spite of this hard news, our family now knows first-hand the privilege that we have compared to the many others in Navajo Nation who have also tested positive for COVID-19. The fact is, Indigenous Americans are among those who experience the highest death tolls from COVID-19.

• Almost 60% of homes do not have electricity, and it’s difficult to self-isolate/quarantine when a large family lives in a home with no electricity and less than one to two rooms, if that. Bill is able to quarantine in our bedroom. Though he is alone, he has all he needs to keep him safe & comfortable.

• The majority of homes in our area do not have running water so for most families it’s impossible to continually wash your hands and have good hygiene. In contrast – we have the ability to consistently wash our hands, shower, and clean & sanitize our bedding, towels, blankets, etc. because of our water situation.

• General health concerns and “underlying conditions” are a significant issue on the Reservation. Because our family has had good health insurance and excellent & consistent preventative medical care – Bill has the health, time, and resources he needs to fully recover.

The COVID-19 crisis has been hard here on the Reservation, and it has freshly revealed the systemic & sustainability problems in our community.

Hidden Springs Mission seeks to directly address these vital needs of water, housing, sanitation and health.

Because of this, we are extremely excited to announce our partnership with Moonshot Missions. This organization works with underserved communities like ours to customize water projects to ensure that its members have access to clean water. Access to clean water is the foundation of any sustainability work.

In 2021, Hidden Springs will serve as the pilot site for a water project that will install four filtration systems into water tanks throughout the area. This will provide clean water to our neighbors. We will share more about this project early in the year!

Each and every dollar we raise helps bring sustainability to Hidden Springs Mission and our neighbors. Would you help us reach our new, secondary goal of $25,000 to help grow our impact in 2021?

Merry Christmas! Thank you so much for praying for us & walking with us.

We appreciate it more than you know!