Peace, Water & Wisdom Walk Begins 500-mile Journey to Raise Awareness and Funds for Clean Water in Burkina Faso

The BARKA Foundation and Danny Garcia, the "Walking Man", team up for a 'Walk for Water' to travel to 20 cities/towns in 20 days. The walk begins at Ralph Bunche Park across from the United Nations on May 11 and culminates on May 30 at the Unitarian Universalist Society of Bangor, Maine. Grassroots community effort aims to educate the public about the dire need for clean water in West Africa and to generate funds to increase its accessibility to the rural population of Burkina Faso.

New York, NY (PRWEB) May 11, 2009 -- "Walk For Water" coming through town. Local nonprofit and renowned prayer walker to raise funds for clean water in Africa. The BARKA Foundation and Global Walk announce the inaugural Peace, Water & Wisdom Walk to raise funds and awareness for the work of The BARKA Foundation. BARKA is a US and Burkina Faso-based NGO addressing the centrality of water's role in eradicating extreme poverty in Burkina Faso, West Africa, a country ranked 173rd out of 179 countries on the Human Development Index (UNDP 2008).

"We went to the women out in the bush and small villages and asked them what their greatest need was. They all said water. We took our directive from those women. Women in Burkina walk for miles every day to get water. When a village has a well, women can sustain micro-businesses, girls can attend school, irrigation leads to increased crop yields, and disease declines. It is the single most important thing. Clean water is a human birthright and it's our collective responsibility to ensure everyone has it," said Ina & Esu Anahata, Co-Founders, The BARKA Foundation.

The Walk will be guided by Danny Garcia, the "Walking Man" who has walked for children and world peace since Dec 1996. Garcia has walked over 25,000 miles (more than the circumference of the earth), on five continents and has met with and has been honored by kings, presidents, dignitaries, men, women and children all over the world.

Garcia said, "Water is priceless. When Ina & Esu asked for my help in their vision to build wells throughout Burkina Faso I felt compelled to step out on faith with the absolute certainty that God would bless this venture."

Itinerary of Walk:
Walk begins on May 11 at 10am in front of the United Nations, 1st Ave and 46th St, NYC
All walks along the journey begin at 9am at the Town Hall of each city.
May 11th: Arriving in White Plains, NY
May 12th: Chappaqua, NY
May 13th: Danbury, CT
May 14th: Kent, CT
May 15th: Great Barrington, MA
May 16th: Pittsfield, MA
May 17th: Northampton, MA
May 18th: Greenfield, MA
May 19th: Brattleboro, VT
May 20th: Peterborough, NH
May 21st: Manchester, NH
May 22nd: Durham, NH
May 23rd: Portsmouth, NH
May 24th: Kennebunk, ME   
May 25th: Portland, ME
May 26th: Auburn, ME
May 27th: Augusta, ME
May 28th: Waterville, ME
May 29th: Newport, ME
May 30th: Bangor, ME

Welcoming reception at Unitarian Universalist Society of Bangor, 120 Park St. Check websites above for up-to-date route information and locations of nightly press events.

"Join us in prayer, join us on foot, join us with a dollar, join us with 5 dollars, join us with whatever would move your heart, even sharing this request with friends… help us bring bubbling springs from the depths of the earth to give a thirsty land water for life," said Danny Garcia.

Raising Funds:
The BARKA Foundation and Global Walk, two non-profits working in concert to promote a culture of peace, are asking for donations for BARKA's efforts to increase accessibility to clean water for the rural population of Burkina Faso, a landlocked nation of 14 million that is among the poorest in the world.

Donations can be made online at www.barkafoundation.org, through a Peace, Water & Wisdom Walk "Cause" on facebook.com (Profile: Esu Ina), made out and mailed to The BARKA Foundation, P.O. Box 69, Housatonic, MA 01236 or delivered personally on the Walk.

RAISING AWARENESS :
Peace, Water & Wisdom Walk organizers are seeking participation from local schools, youth groups, women's associations, senior centers, health practitioners, businesses, faith-based organizations, civic and political leaders to join the walk and to open dialogue with BARKA about its local and international humanitarian efforts. BARKA has curriculum-based materials available for schools.

Nightly press conferences and screenings of "BARKA BURKINA", a new documentary film about BARKA's work in the U.S. and Burkina, directed by Ina & Esu at locations to be announced.

Please contact Walk organizers for information regarding sponsorship opportunities.

About Danny Garcia and Global Walk:
Garcia is 64 years old, a native of New York's Spanish Harlem, a former Marine, former law enforcement officer, and an ordained minister. The aims and purposes of all Danny's walks throughout the world are the same: to facilitate, promote, and support the needs of children and their families, which include engaging in humanitarian aid to victims of fire, poverty, flood, earthquake, or war. On July 4th, 2009, a new chapter will begin with a Peace Walk across the United States, South America and Asia. For more information, visit www.globalwalk.cc.

About The BARKA Foundation:
The BARKA Foundation is a 501(c)3 charitable organization that is working with the support of UN agencies, Burkina Faso and US governments, and indigenous villages to eradicate extreme poverty, empower women, foster education and co-create a culture of peace and sustainability for our global village. On Peace Day 2008, The BARKA Foundation unveiled the BARKA Burkina Consortium, an international collective of organizations working collaboratively toward an innovative model to achieve the UN's Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). BARKA and Consortium partner ZZYX Entertainment/Global Harmony are co-producing the Peace, Water & Wisdom Concert and Festival in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, September 19-21, 2009, to raise funds for the Consortium's "Clean Water for All" initiative designed to ensure a well in every village in Burkina Faso by 2015. BARKA is a member of the Culture of Peace Initiative, a project of Pathways To Peace.

Press Contacts:
Ina & Esu
413-446-7466
Email: InaAndEsu (at) BARKAfoundation (dot) org
http://www.barkafoundation.org
Facebook Profile: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1576717404&ref=profile
Facebook Cause: http://apps.facebook.com/causes/274528/59097979?m=6d54c0aa

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