LOVELAND, Colo. (KDVR) — A Loveland woman is gearing up to go to Africa next month for the ninth year in a row, each time with the goal of giving clean drinking water to thousands of people.
Georgia Evans first visited Africa in 2016; her initial trip was as a wildlife photographer. But a single photograph she saw in National Geographic changed her entire outlook on what she could do there in the future.
"I saw that and it was just like a lightbulb went off. It was otherworldly for me, you know? Maybe something I was supposed to be called to do," she said.
A trip to Tanzania in 2016 to take photos of animals turned into several more trips, each time bringing with her water filters. Evans has since turned the effort into a nonprofit called Village Care Project and said she has visited more than 50 villages, helping tens of thousands of people.
“I get a lot of hand-holding, I get a lot of hugs, I get a lot of smiles," Evans said.
What began with just the filters has evolved, every trip back, with more things like mosquito nets, tarps and now solar-powered lanterns.
“I see stuff on each trip and it's like, gosh, if we just brought such and such it would solve that," Evans said.
She now emphasizes teaching women of the villages how to work everything she brings.
“Women empowering women is just a huge thing," Evans said.
As she gears up for her ninth trip to Tanzania in January, Evans said it's those hugs and smiles that keep her going back.
“There’s just no words. It just fills me up," Evans said. "That’s basically all I want. I don’t want anything else from them.”
While Evans has everything she needs for this upcoming trip, she said it takes her the full year to get everything she needs ready for the next one. You can donate to the Village Care Project by visiting the organization's website.