Second Annual Walk for Water 5K in Support of Palestinian Refugees

PRESS RELEASE:  April 22, 2017
Contact: Nidal Al-Azraq
Executive Director
1for3.org | 646-667-9917 |
nidal.alazraq@1for3.org
1for3.org’s Second Annual Walk for Water 5K in Support of Palestinian Refugees
Water the Seeds of Hope by walking along the beautiful Charles River
Cambridge, MA April 22, 2017.  327 people walked for water in support of Palestinian Refugees and together raised over $60,000 for the non-profit 1for3.org’s projects. The money raised from this walk will support a Community Health Program with Lajee Center  and the establishment of a pre-school in Aida Refugee Camp.  The pre-school will serve over 200 children, between the ages of 3-5, who currently have little opportunity for this important stage of development.  In addition, 1for3.org will continue to fund environmental and water quality/quantity programs in Aida and Azzah camps.  These programs are being replicated in other refugee camps in the West Bank (Al-Walaja Village and Al-Arroub Refugee Camp) with the hope to expand to 12 refugee camps in total.
Access to clean water is a HUMAN RIGHT.  Unfortunately, the refugees living in the West Bank, Palestine, cannot exercise their right to clean water.   They are left with only a small percentage of the water that comes from the natural springs on their occupied land. Water is the most basic human necessity and without it, one cannot live.  The success of the 2016 inaugural walk included more than 300 walkers, and over 1000 supporters, raising funds to build a rain catchment cistern which is serving the 6000 residents (half under the age of 18) in Aida Refugee Camp, in Bethlehem.
Participants started and finished the 5k walk from South Plaza at Kendall Square in Cambridge. They walked alongside memorial drive turning just before the Hyatt Regency Hotel. Back at South Plaza after the walk the participants along with friends and families enjoyed music, festivities and even some Dabke dancing (traditional Palestinian dance).
1for3.org, a 501 (C) (3) nonprofit organization hosted the event with support from the following sponsors:   US Campaign for Palestine Rights, Jewish Voice for Peace-Boston, National Council on US-Arab Relations, Cambridge Bethlehem People to People Project, Siena Construction, Solar One, Rethink Restaurants, Aceituna Grill, Kurban & Fereidouni, Café Algiers and the Andala Coffee House.
100% of our money raised will go straight to start funding 1fo3.org’s Community Health Program and Pre-School.  The donation page for these projects is still open, people can donate at 1for3.org.
###
About 1for3.org
1for3 empowers underserved Palestinian communities to address environmental health and quality of life issues. Our goal is to create sustainable projects to rally the community around programs that promote water and food security, better health care, children’s right to play, education, and effective communication through multimedia production. Water is the conduit through which it tackles these other issues — without reliable water, these other programs cannot exist.  1for3 is a section 501(c)(3) registered non-profit organization, incorporated in 2010 in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, USA. We are committed to collaborating with Palestinian grassroots organizations and ensuring inclusion of women and youth.