TREAD
HERSCH X HERO BUILD
Bringing Awareness to the African Water Crisis
STORY BY RYAN LEE PRICE
PHOTOS BY JOSH WALKER
“DURING HIS STRUGGLE WITH ACUTE ILLNESS, BRIAN LEARNED THAT 37 PERCENT OF KIDS IN THE REGION WERE DYING BEFORE AGE 5.”
It all began for Brian King in 2008 with a bucket list trip to Africa, where he did something we would consider very routine, but it changed the course of his life forever: He took a simple drink of water. Turns out the water was contaminated—like most water in that region—and it sent him into a life-threatening bout with dysentery. Brian remembers: “After 48 hours of pain and constant fluid loss, my colleagues transferred me from the mud hut to a pickup truck and drove me three hours though the bush to a make-shift clinic, where they ran a crude IV and pumped my body with wrong medicine.” During his struggle with the acute illness, Brian learned that 37 percent of the kids in the region were dying before age 5 from water-borne diseases, and nearly 70 percent of people living in rural Africa don’t have direct access to clean water. It changed his entire perspective on everything in his world, but instead of doing nothing and coming home, he decided to do everything. “We decided to roll up our sleeves and do something about it and started Vox United. The word vox is Latin for ‘voice.’ Our motivation centered on bringing practical, real-time hope to the voiceless of our world.”
The HershX Tacoma is a purpose-built truck for off roading and fundraising.
Built to representation of a good cause, the Tacoma will tour sub-Saharan Africa to help raise money for wells and water to beleaguered villages.
“WHEN PEOPLE HAVE ACCESS TO CLEAN WATER, IT CHANGES EVERYTHING.”
Vox United is a specialized development organization that implements and manages sustainable clean water programs in rural Africa. “At Vox,” Brian explains, “we believe clean water access is the great equalizer. It flips the script on abject poverty and disease. As a result, we collaborate with African municipalities and local communities to install clean water access points. The entire process is embedded in an education strategy that empowers local workers to carry out the work and keep the water flowing. A big part of our sustainability strategy centers on WASH (water, sanitation, health & hygiene) mobilization and community development.