Hands-free Handwash Stations for the Navajo Nation

Please help us to provide the tools necessary for the 30-40% of the 175,000 Navajo Nation residents who do not currently have indoor plumbing in their homes.  The Navajo Nation land base is roughly the size of West Virginia, with approximately 13 stores to purchase essential household items, and approximately 12 health care facilities that are not equipped with intensive care units.  Since the pandemic started, there have been a variety of efforts to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19 including mandated mask wearing, social distancing, week day curfews from 8 pm to 5 am, 57-hour weekend curfews, food and water distributions, and sheltering in place.  Most of these measures were influenced by the CDC recommendations, but there is one recommendation that all residents cannot adhere to, 20 seconds of frequent hand washing.

The Navajo Nation currently lacks the infrastructure to supply indoor plumbing to each home.  Which makes the current CDC guidelines of 20 seconds of frequent hand washing an obstacle.  Hand washing helps to stop the spread of an estimated 80% of infectious diseases. Our mission is to help supply these homes with the tools necessary to help put water into action and achieve a hands-free method of hand washing.  Our primary focus is to supply families with a foot pump powered, plastic light weight portable free standing hand wash station, a 5 gallon bucket to catch the gray water, a bottle of liquid hand soap, a reusable cotton blend hand towel, a roll of paper towels, a roll of toilet paper, a pre-filled refillable jug of water, a cleaning product to sanitize the station, and a pack of drinking water. Each of these items was carefully thought out to help support the people who are in a rural setting with the items needed to wash their hands during a pandemic, when household items are limited in supply.

             Each of the complete sets costs $150 and includes all of the items listed above.  The benefits of this specific set are:

·      The hand wash station does not need electricity or in-home plumping to create water flow, it is powered with a foot pump

·      The hand wash station is a complete unit, and does not need to be set up on a table or need extra counter space in the home

·      The hand wash station is made of plastic so it can be cleaned with a bathroom cleaning product, which is important to help stop the spread of germs

·      The foot pump allows for a steady stream of water to flow for hands-free hand washing

·      All the supplies provided allow for immediate set up and use

·      The station is portable so it can be taken anywhere and everywhere without extra elements

·      When it is time to refill the water, the base of the station can be filled, and so can the 5-gallon jug of water, for a total of 10 gallons of water  

·      Our team assembles the hand wash stations so there is very little to do once the station arrives at the home

·      The hand wash station has a profile like a pedestal sink and is pleasing to the eye

·      There are wheels on the bottom and a handle at the base that allow for easy maneuvering from one location to another, without the requirement for heavy lifting to raise the water above the waist

·      There is a moveable arm where the cotton blend hand towel can rest and air dry

·      There is a built-in reservoir and pump for liquid hand soap and also a niche for a bar of soap

·      At the base of the basin, there is a drain with a mesh covering to prevent things from falling into the tube that leads to the gray water bucket

·      The white tube that leads from the drain to the gray water bucket, has an accordion design to make the length adjustable


Please help us by either making a donation, there isn't a donation too small, or by sharing this GoFundMe.  All actions amount to something big and a positive impact, thank you for your time and in advance for your help.