Greensboro, N.C. — Greensboro natives and Lagersdale High School graduates are making a worldwide impact by providing clean, sustainable water to those in need.
Now, his focus has shifted to helping the Ukrainian people.
Doc Hendley, founder of the nonprofit Wine to Water, told Fox8 that the work he and his team have done over the past two decades shows that anyone can be a part of solving worldly problems.
The concept of turning wine into water came to Hendley in the middle of the night in 2003.
“I had the phrase ‘wine turns water’ and it was in my head and I couldn’t get rid of it. It was like a broken record,” Hendry said. “I didn’t even know there was a global water crisis until that night. That night, I couldn’t sleep and started researching water.”
His research led him to the facts. Thousands of people around the world lack access to clean, sustainable water.
“I’ve learned that women and children around the world walk 4-5 hours every morning to get water, and the water isn’t as clean as we have to drink it. This actually makes them sick,” Hendry explained.
Six months later, Hendry, then a bartender and student at North Carolina State University, moved to Sudan, Africa, to start his nonprofit.
Wine to Water installed wells and taught locals how to build and repair wells.
Since then, Hendry and his team of about 60 people have traveled to about 48 countries to provide millions of gallons of drinking water to those in need.
Now, amid the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, Wine to Water is doing what it does best. Route small water filters into the country for use by victims of war.
“This filter can help as many as 100 people get clean water in a day,” Hendry said.
Filters are easy to use.
“They can take this filter … put it in their pocket, and if there’s an empty plastic bottle somewhere on the side of the road, or a trash can, they can take it and fill it up with dirty water like this. Turn it, squeeze it, and you’ll get 99.999 percent clean water from the other end,” explains Hendley.
He wants people who live with small ideas and big ideas to understand that they too can make a difference.
“I just wanted to encourage everyone here, whether you’re a bartender, or a stay-at-home mom, whether you’re a school teacher, or the CEO of a big company, it doesn’t matter. We all have the power to change the world,” Hendry said. .
Local businesses in the Triad and beyond are helping sponsor filters to Ukraine.
You can even host company-sponsored events where you can create filters as a team.
For more information on how to help Wine to Water accomplish its mission, visit winetowater.org
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