Giving Back: From Ohio to Africa

A Plumber's Reason to Care About Water

Every day, our crews connect families to something most of us take for granted: water that comes out of a tap when you turn the handle. We install and repair the pipes, wells, water heaters and fixtures that make that possible. It is easy to forget that in many parts of the world, getting water means a long walk to an unprotected source.

Eric has put it plainly: "I make my money off of water. If I can't give water to people who don't have it, who am I?" That idea is why a plumbing company in East Canton is connected to a village thousands of miles away.

How It Started

In August 2013, Eric attended a Tony Robbins seminar and met Cindee Rood, a California woman who was working to bring water wells to villages in Malawi. She described the need and her hope of starting her own organization to drill more of them.

Eric made a donation on the spot. That gift helped launch Formidable Joy, combined with contributions from other donors who shared the vision.

The First Well: Mtambo, Malawi

Formidable Joy's first project was a well in the village of Mtambo, which serves a community of over 1,000 people. A plaque at the well lists the donors who made it possible, and Eric's name is first on the list.

A reliable well close to home changes daily life in a rural village. Families spend less time hauling water and have a safer source for drinking, cooking and washing.

• Charity: Formidable Joy
• Focus: drilling water wells in rural Malawi
• First well: Mtambo village, serving over 1,000 people
• K & K Plumbing's role: owner Eric Kashdan's donation helped start the organization

Why Giving Back Matters to Us

We are a local business. Our customers are neighbors in Stark County and the surrounding area, and that community is the reason we exist. Supporting a project like this is one way to use what the business has earned to help people who have far less.

Reflecting on the experience, Eric said, "It's a gift to be able to give back." We feel the same way. Knowing that a well in Mtambo carries a name from our company is a reminder of how much a single act of generosity can do.

How You Can Help

If this story speaks to you, you can support the work directly. Visit formidablejoy.org to learn more about the organization and make a donation of any size. Every contribution goes toward bringing safe water to people who need it.

Want the full story as it was reported? Read how a local plumber helped bring a well to an African village, or learn more about K & K Plumbing and the family business behind it.