Wine to Water

October 24, 2011
When Hendley learned about the world water crisis and that “unclean water kills a child every twenty seconds” he was just a bartender in a small town in North Carolina who spent most of his time drinking and playing music in bars or riding his Harley. In an effort to raise money for clean-water projects, he did what he knew best and threw fund-raising parties, which led to his founding the nonprofit Wine to Water. Hendley, who was named a CNN Hero in 2010, made sure his organization’s funds directly benefited those in need, and he became an aid worker in Darfur, Sudan. Whether he is describing being shot at by the janjaweed militia; the dedication of his who co-workers who pray five times a day; how to dig a grave in the desert; or children’s excitement when a well starts pumping out water, he illuminates the facts of the crises in a very human way. Hendley’s humanitarian work in Africa (and Haiti, where he headed after the 2010 earthquake) is inspiring, especially considering how many lives he has influenced despite how little he knew about water problems before he started. At the core, however, is the story of Hendley himself: a coming-of-age tale about a young man who as a teen rebelled against his “preacher man” dad to become “the life of the party” only to figure out that he “didn’t have to be a perfect do-gooder to actually do some good in this world.”

November 1, 2011
The founder of the nonprofit organization Wine to Water gives a highly personal account of how he came to that mission and of the work that it is doing today. The organization, which raises awareness of the need for clean water around the world and helps to provide that water to people in need, began as an idea in the head of a young man with a talent for connecting with people and a growing awareness of the world's water problems. A biker, bartender and amateur musician with no apparent goal in life, Hendley organized a wine tasting as a fundraiser for clean-water projects and shortly thereafter found himself in contact with Samaritan's Purse, an international charitable organization. That meeting led to a job in Darfur, where he built up a team that delivered water and repaired wells in villages devastated by the genocidal attacks. The author's down-to-earth accounts of his time there in 2004 and 2005 are interspersed with on-the-spot e-mail updates to friends, family and supervisors. His frustrations and the psychological impact of his observations and harrowing experiences are clear. On his return to the United States, Hendley married and took a mundane office job but never stopped trying to get Wine to Water up and running. With a colleague from his Darfur year, he succeeded, and through their grassroots network they began to spread their wings, undertaking water projects around the world. Although he describes several projects in India and Africa, he gives greatest attention to his work in post-earthquake Haiti, where he put to good use his knowledge of how to cut through red tape and get things done. Hendley's well-told story—at times a bit aw-shucks, down-homey in tone—demonstrates how one person can impact the lives of many. Though not written specifically for teenage boys, it would make a great gift for a too-cool-for-school kid.

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

August 1, 2011

In 2004, small-town bartender Hendley held several wine tastings to raise funds for clean-water projects--and ended up bringing the proceeds directly to Darfur, where he saw how Janjaweed terrorists effected genocide by shooting up or contaminating water sources. Without enough money to build new wells, he launched a program to help people in places like Darfur, Cambodia, and Haiti repair and maintain their water-containment systems. It's always good to hear about one individual making a difference, and the example of Darfur--not to mention the quiet urgency of the freshwater crisis, still underaddressed--makes this an especially affecting choice. Lots of in-house excitement, too.

Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.