Water splashes into a bucket, carried by young hands that should be holding pencils instead. This daily reality for girls near Lake Victoria, Kenya, sparked a mission that would transform thousands of lives.

For over half a century, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet have expanded their mission through Associates, Consociates, Ohana, and Familia—committed women and men who, while not taking religious vows, embrace the Congregation’s charism of loving God through service to the “Dear Neighbor.” It was this extended family that would bring hope to communities desperate for clean water and education.

The journey began in 2013 whenConsociates Anita Duckor and Anne Hannahan followed Sisters Rosita Aranita and Irene O’Neill to Kenya. Sister Rosita had previously visited with a group intending to dig wells around Lake Victoria. When alkaline soil made this impossible, most of the group redirected their efforts elsewhere.

But Sister Rosita couldn’t forget the girls she’d seen, trudging daily to collect polluted water that sickened their families and livestock. These same daily water journeys kept countless young women from attending school. Moved by their plight, Sister Irene volunteered to accompany Rosita on a return trip, with Anita and Anne eagerly joining the mission.

Fate intervened when Sister Rosita fell ill and couldn’t travel. Undeterred, the remaining trio—Irene, Anita, and Anne—pressed forward into unfamiliar territory. Their compass was Mary Lieta, a respected local educator and St. Paul Consociate, who connected them with tribal leaders to understand the community’s most pressing needs.

What they discovered was heartbreaking yet fixable: dilapidated school buildings without proper sanitation facilities forced girls to miss classes during menstruation, while contaminated water sources continued claiming health and opportunities. In that moment of clarity, Anne and Anita committed themselves to action through Mary’s local leadership.

“We named it Growing Community Roots because relationships matter,” explains Anita about the nonprofit they established to fund clean water and school improvements.

The results after a decade are nothing short of remarkable. By 2024—the 10th anniversary of Growing Community Roots—nearly half a million dollars in donations have transformed 16 schools with upgraded sanitation facilities and provided safe water to entire school neighborhoods. These projects extend beyond immediate needs, incorporating gardens to address food insecurity and tree-planting initiatives to restore the local environment.

The impact reaches far beyond infrastructure: 16,000 girls, 11,000 boys, and 44,000 community members now have pathways to healthier, more promising futures.

“Lifting females out of poverty is one of the long-range benefits of our work,” Anita reflects. “Staying in school offers girls new opportunities, including higher education.”

Perhaps most beautifully, the mission has come full circle. Mary Lieta—Sister Rosita’s first connection—along with nine other local men and women have become Consociates themselves, ensuring the congregation’s charism thrives in communities once unknown to them.

The congregation continues supporting Growing Community Roots through Board membership including Sisters Mary Lou Dolan (Albany), Mary Lou Basler (St. Louis), Linda Neil (Albany), Angela Faustina (Los Angeles), Therese Sherlock (St. Paul), and Consociates Jill Garcia (St. Paul) and Mary Guditis (Albany).

What began with one sister’s compassionate gaze has blossomed into transformation for thousands—proving that when we truly see our “Dear Neighbor,” even across oceans, extraordinary change becomes possible.

Go to growingcommunityroots.org to learn more about the Kenyan projects.