Walk 4 Water Union County will host its fourth annual fundraiser to support the drilling of safe water boreholes for the villages of Naminyagwe Muyenga, and Agaruru B #3 in Uganda. The event will be at the Union County Farmers Market at Heritage Park in Maynardville on Saturday, May 16. The check-in time will be 9 a.m. The program will start at 10 a.m. and the walk will follow immediately after the program.

Maynardville residents Amber Hurst and Melanie Hurst travelled to Uganda last November on a mission trip with Hope 4 Kids International. Their itinerary included attending a well dedication ceremony in the remote village of Panyandere to celebrate the opening of one of the wells funded by Walk for Water Union County in 2025.

Walk 4 Water Union County raised more than $33,000 during its third annual fundraiser in June. All funds raised will go toward the drilling of safe water boreholes for the villages of Sihubira, Panyandere and Agaruru B #1 Cell in the African village of Uganda.

Walk 4 Water Union County’s fundraising goal was $22,500, but the community showed up in a big way and went above and beyond. The event has raised enough to fund the drilling and installation of three wells.

Walk 4 Water Union County’s third annual fundraiser is coming to the UC Farmers Market at Heritage Park on Saturday, June 7.

“We invite all Union County residents to come together to celebrate the blessed life we have here and to help spread the blessings to others suffering from extreme poverty and lack of access to clean, safe water in Uganda,” said Desiree Hensley, Walk 4 Water UC chair.

By Desiree Hensley

UNION COUNTY, Tenn. (March 26, 2025) – Walk 4 Water Union County is partnering with the Union County Farmers Market at Heritage Park for their third annual fundraiser this June.

Short term missionaries Mark and Desiree Hensley of Sharps Chapel, along with Melanie Hurst of Maynardville recently returned from an 18 day mission trip to Uganda. It was Melanie’s first mission trip. Melanie plans to go on more mission trips and return to Uganda in the future. The trio joined a Hope 4 Kids International team comprised of 26 individuals from churches across the U.S. While there, they had the privilege of celebrating the opening of a borehole in the remote village Buwasyeba in Manafwa District that was funded with donations raised by the Walk 4 Water Union County event of May 2024.

Submitted by Desiree Hensley
UNION COUNTY, Tenn. (May 23, 2023) – Irwin’s Chapel United Methodist Church raised more than $58,000 during its Walk 4 Water Union County fundraiser on May 21.
All funds raised will go toward the drilling of safe water boreholes for four villages in Uganda. Two additional villages will be identified and assigned to receive boreholes in the coming days.