By Caedman Welch, LBHS senior and member of the school’s “Walking for Water” club
Meet Susan Hough. The 13-year resident of Laguna Beach not only mentors many LBHS students but also inspires private therapy clients near and far.
Hough also founded the non-profit Wisdom Springs organization that sponsors the annual “Walking for Water” event in town and in Leesburg, Virginia. This year’s local walk will take place on April 21 from noon to 3 p.m. on the football field at Laguna Beach High School.
Make no mistake about it. Susan Hough may be small in stature at 5’4″, but she is a huge supporter of today’s teens.
“I found my place in the world after working with my first group of high school students more than twenty years ago,” she said. “That’s when the idea of drilling freshwater wells for villagers in West Africa and India was launched. To date, the money ‘my kids’ have raised over the years has paid for more than twenty wells.”
The impact of those wells is tremendous. Instead of women and children walking miles each day for a bucket of water, they can now draw fresh water from a well that is only a minute or two from their homes.
Hough said she has seen first-hand the difference a freshwater well makes in peoples’ lives. “Thanks to the hard work of hundreds of high school students over the years, my guess is ‘Walking for Water’ has been responsible for changing the lives of more than half a million villagers. That’s a record of achievement my teens can celebrate for a lifetime.”
Organizers of the April 21 walk are encouraging people of all ages to come out and support the efforts of Laguna’s high school students. There will be games for youngsters to play as well as clothing, art and other collectibles for sale.
“I’m so proud of these students. Their hard work truly is making an impact on people in Africa and India. Come to the April 21 walk and meet the teens who truly are making a difference in the world,” Hough said.
To learn more about this year’s event, visit wisdomspring.org.
