Melesse

Melesse T. is in the fifth grade at John F. Kennedy School. She is 11 years old and has one brother and two sisters. Her parents work at a local government office. Melesse’s favorite subject is math; her favorite activities are studying in school and playing with her family.

Melesse says, “When I grow up, I want to be a hostess like my sister — she gets a chance to see different countries, and I like travelling.”

Before Splash worked with her school, Melesse said, “there was no clean drinking water, and students drank untreated water. Furthermore, the water was available only twice per week, so sometimes we did not wash our hands before eating.”

Now, after Splash’s partnership, clean, filtered water is available in the school for drinking. And there is no shortage of water, both for drinking and handwashing.

Melesse was one of the first students to join the school hygiene club. Melesse said that she loves learning about the importance of clean water and handwashing from her teachers, whom Splash trained on leading effective hygiene clubs and connecting students to the importance of clean water. Like many students, she used to think that a person could only ingest fecal matter if they did not wash their hands properly; however, after the training, she understood the many different ways that could make a person vulnerable to different diseases. Equipping students and staff with this knowledge helps keep the entire community safer for years to come.

Melesse describes, “clean water is so important for our health. If students eat without washing their hands, they may get sick, so it is really important to wash our hands.”

As hygiene ambassadors, she and her friends in the hygiene club help other students with personal hygiene like their nails and hair, check water availability in the handwashing and drinking water stations, and help ensure social distancing around the stations to keep kids safe.

“As a Hygiene Ambassador, I am most excited about teaching other students to keep their personal hygiene. By doing this, I help keep students from getting sick” says Melesse.

Melesse described that her parents are so happy about the knowledge she gained from Splash’s training. “My father and mother encourage me to participate in hygiene activities at my school. I am also a hygiene ambassador at our house by showing my brother how to wash his hands properly, using soap and water,” says Melesse.

In the future, Melesse and other hygiene club members plan to transfer the knowledge that they have gained from Splash’s training to future generations of students. Melesse wishes to see students’ hygiene behaviors changed for the better well into the future.