Rebecca Girma's blog

Birtukan Bulki (right) is happy since the water source is clean, reliable and now much closer to her residence.
Photo: Rebecca Girma/Mercy Corps

In many parts of Ethiopia, water — or the lack thereof — is a matter of life or death. Birtukan Bulki knows this better than most.

Mercy Corps is helping bring water — and much-needed assistance — to thousands like 28-year-old Birtukan. In order to increase access to potable water sources and improve the health families in targeted communities, we're implementing comprehensive water, sanitation and hygiene activities in the Konso and Derashe Special districts of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and People Region (SNNPR) under the PROSPER project. This project includes development of new springs, as well as educating adults and children in improved hygiene and sanitation practices through the recruitment and training of volunteer community health workers.

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Rebecca Girma interviews a Mercy Corps beneficiary during the recent writing and photography workshop in Kitgum, Uganda. Photo: Thatcher Cook for Mercy Corps

My boss was right when she told me “Trust me, Rebecca, Mercy Corps is an organization you will enjoy working with.” It was true - I love every day of my life in Mercy Corps. I work as a project support officer in Mercy Corps Ethiopia’s head office and it has been two years and three months since I got employed.

In another non-governmental organization where I worked as an intern for six months - a place that almost started to feel like home – one day my boss came to me and told me that she wanted me to have an interview with Mercy Corps. She was sure that I would love it and I obeyed her as she was the boss, but I was not happy about it. But I went to the interview and Mercy Corps took me.

My job at Mercy Corps engages me in different programs like emergency, livelihood and peace building - I am so inspired every time when I get a chance to write a story, do an assessment, a survey and/or any kind of support that the program team may need. I’m looking forward to using already-developed systems, like the Mercy Corps Intranet and Blog, as well as new means of publicizing Mercy Corps’ deeds to the rest of the world.

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