Defiance College concert to benefit Tanzania water project

March 24, 2015

DEFIANCE, Ohio – When Defiance College student Dava Donaldson spent two weeks in Tanzania last year as a McMaster Scholar, she was impacted by the people’s need for clean water. In rural areas of the country, water is not easily accessible, and it is often contaminated, causing illness to those who use it.

Donaldson decided that she would address the problem by helping to outfit one area of the country with water relief equipment. She has been raising funds throughout this school year to purchase sump pumps, chemical dosing equipment, and Lifestraw filtration systems to alleviate the harm of poor water quality.

With Donaldson’s coordination and the support of the McMaster School for Advancing Humanity, a benefit concert will be held Saturday, April 11, beginning at 7:30 p.m., to raise funds for the purchase of water filtration equipment for the Katungulu Bible Training School and its wider community. The event will be held at St. John United Church of Christ, Webster Street, with $10 general admission or $5 admission for DC students, faculty and staff.

The concert will feature talented Defiance College and Defiance community musicians, including both vocal and instrumental performances that will vary in genre.

Refreshments will be available. Assisting with the event will be members of Defiance College’s Service Leader Program, Alpha Phi Omega, the McMaster Tanzania learning community, as well as other student organizations.

Donaldson is a junior from Elyria, Ohio, majoring in international peace and conflict resolution. She spent time in Tanzania last year with fellow students and faculty, conducting research on micro-lending, and will return again this summer hoping to deliver the much-needed water relief equipment.

She is a Presidential Service Leader and current Alpha Phi Omega president and Project 701 director of project development. Earlier this year, she was a student presenter at the Southern Political Science Association Conference held in New Orleans.

Donaldson has a strong volunteer background. “However, not until I went to Tanzania did I realize that so many people in the world do not have access to a single glass of clean water,” she said. “While many may consider clean water as an inherent right, the lack of access to clean water kills millions of people every year.

“I feel it is my responsibility as a global citizen to do what I can to help alleviate the problem. If this project, if our McMaster Tanzania Team, can help build a relationship with our community partner based on a foundation of clean water, we can later grow together to improve the human condition through projects focused on sanitation, economics, education, and a number of other key components of life.”

Persons interested in making a direct donation to Donaldson’s project can contact the McMaster School at mcmasterschool@defiance.edu or 419-783-2552.

Defiance College’s McMaster School for Advancing Humanity is distinctive among colleges and universities across the country. It gives students opportunities to conduct research and service in specially-designed projects around the world. This year, DC students are carrying out projects in Belize, Cambodia and Tanzania.

Defiance College, chartered in 1850, is an independent, liberal arts institution in Northwest Ohio offering more than 40 undergraduate programs of study as well as graduate programs in education and business. Defiance College has received national recognition for its educational experience of service and engagement. The college website is www.defiance.edu.