CROSSING WATER: WORKING TOGETHER FOR FLINT

***** UPDATE *****

A huge THANK YOU to all of our volunteers, donors, and supporters, as we continue our work in Flint. Our partnerships have expanded in just a few short weeks since this fundraiser began, and we are now partneringwith officials from the Office of the Surgeon General, the Emergency Operations Center in Flint, the American Red Cross, Michigan Faith in Action, the Genesee County Latino/Hispanic Collaborative, NASW-Michigan, CUFFEJ (Communities and Universities United for Flint and Environmental Justice), and other agencies, organizations, and community leaders working in Flint.

Crossing Water has been working with Gud Marketing to create public service announcements to spread awareness among Flint residents regarding how they can get and keep their families healthy during this crisis. One very exciting result of that has been the multiple billboards that have been created that are visible around the city, warning residents that Boiling Water Does Not Remove Lead, in both English and Spanish. Additional billboards and messages are in the works. Also, Crossing Water is partnering with the GCLHC and the University of Michigan School of Public Health to create videos to raise awareness among various communities that have been underreached, including Spanish speaking families, the deaf community, residents with low literacy levels, and others.

Thank you for your continued support! <3 Flint

About Crossing Water’s work in Flint:

Crossing Water is working with multiple community-based organizations, churches, and community residents of Flint, MI, and a legion of volunteers from around the state,to ensure that ALLresidents have access to safe drinking water, information on how to access and utilize resources available to them, and access to medical care. Our network of volunteers includes social workers, public health professionals, RNs, paramedics, aid workers, front-line mental health service providers, social activists, case workers, and others. From the directors of Crossing Water on down the line,all are volunteers donating their time to this effort.

The public is being told that all neighborhoods, all households, have been given water and filters. This is not true, as we have met with many Flint residents who have not received any resources from the state, the Red Cross, the National Guard.Many residents have little or no information regarding the danger of drinking tap water, how to access safe drinking water and other resources available to them, and how to utilize the resources, specifically filters, when they receive them. In addition, many children have not been tested for lead exposure, many residents are unable to leave their homes due to disability, many residents do not have plumbing systems that will accommodate the provided filters (see image), many residents have not had their water tested for lead,and many residents have limited English language proficiency, or low literacy levels. As of the start of this fundraiser,none of the state-provided documents have been translated into other languages to support the large immigrant and refugee populations in the city.

Crossing Water and their legion of volunteers are working to remedy these ills and to ensure that ALL residents of Flint are supported during this crisis, and beyond. All of your donations will go directly toward supporting this effort and supporting Flint, MI. This is our fight, these are our neighbors, this is our Michigan.

Any donation is welcomed and appreciated – $10will provide water to a family for twodays,$20 will provide clean water to a family for a month,$140 willprovide clean waterto a household for a year, $1500 will provide an institutional filter to an organization to support the drinking needs of aneighborhood. Help as you are able, and please send us a message if you would like to volunteer and provide on-the-ground assistance to help the residents utilize these resources.

We need you! <3 Flint