Where Surfing Servants Gives
Guided by faith and strengthened through global partnerships, Surfing Servants brings clean water to communities around the world. Each place we serve is more than a destination, it’s a community we’re committed to walking alongside for the long term.
Please explore the countries we serve and the wonderful people we get to help. (Click on a country or Scroll Down to see all countries)
Countries Served
Filters Given to Families
People With Access to Clean Water
El Salvador
Each year, we travel to El Salvador, where we have provided more than 300 families in the La Libertad region with life-changing Sawyer Clean Water Filters. These filters remove 99.99999% of bacteria from drinking water and are designed to last up to 10 years.
We are proud to partner with La Red Church in the coastal town of El Tunco. Through this meaningful partnership, we have reached families, schools, and churches, while also training local government health officials on the proper use of Sawyer water filters.
La Red provides essential access, ongoing support, follow-up, and trusted local relationships that help ensure the long-term success of our clean water mission in El Salvador.
“We use the filters to benefit many families and as a way to eliminate illness such as diarrhea. I am grateful as a representative of public health for the unconditional support.”
– Jose Luis, El Salvador Public Health Official
“I wanted to reach out and share about how your partnership with La Red is changing lives down here in El Salvador.
Last week, La Red hosted a team from Daybreak Leadership College (from North County San Diego). Together, we were able to follow up on pediatric work from April by using the water filters. Last month, our pediatrician team flagged several families suffering from parasites due to unclean water. Along with providing anti-parasite medicine, the doctors “prescribed” a water filter to each family.
The Daybreak team went out into the community to deliver 21 water filters to those same families. Not only did we install the filters, but we also shared the Gospel with every single family that was flagged in April. Several people made the decision to follow Jesus because of this distribution
This experience with the filters and seeing the Gospel in action deeply impacted the students.”
– Pastor Josh Geisinger, La Red Church – El Salvador
Kenya
Since 2023, Surfing Servants has delivered more than 200 Sawyer bucket filters to communities in Africa. We work alongside Pastor Mike Sandberg and his team at API USA, who lead medical and mission trips several times each year to regions of Kenya, including Bondo, Siaya, and Turkana.
Many communities in these areas do not have access to running water and must collect water from streams or lakes that may contain harmful bacteria. Waterborne illnesses, including cholera, are common concerns. Sawyer water filters help provide safer drinking water by removing 99.99999% of bacteria, helping to reduce the risk of waterborne disease.
In addition to bacteria, these filters are designed to remove contaminants associated with illnesses such as botulism, typhoid, amoebic dysentery, streptococcus, salmonella, and giardia. They also remove 100% of microplastics, offering families a reliable source of cleaner water.
Mexico
Mexico lies just across the border from where we live, yet access to safe drinking water can be vastly different. In many areas, even piped water may be contaminated.
Surfing Servants has distributed hundreds of water filters throughout Mexico, including in Cabo San Lucas, Tijuana, Guaymas, Playa Brasil, Punta Mita, and San Juanito. We are grateful to work alongside dedicated partner organizations, including Calvary Chapel in Cabo San Lucas and Homes for Hope in Tijuana, to help ensure that families have access to cleaner, safer drinking water.
Dominican Republic
In 2023, we provided 150 clean water filters to five communities in the northern coastal region of Sosúa, Dominican Republic. These communities are supported by two incredible nonprofit organizations, Go Make a Difference (GoMAD) and Love Does.
Designed to last up to 10 years, these filters are helping provide 150 families with reliable access to cleaner, safer drinking water in the Dominican Republic.
Pakistan
Pakistan is especially close to our hearts. Since 2023, we have supported a church in Khanewal, Pakistan, through clean water filters and financial assistance. Founded in 2015 by Pastor Asif Khurshid, the church also supports an orphanage, a sewing school for young women, a rehabilitation program for individuals facing drug and alcohol addiction, and outreach to families working in the harsh brick kiln industry.
Like many developing regions, communities in Pakistan face serious challenges with access to safe drinking water. Through Sawyer Clean Water Filters, we are helping provide families with a more reliable source of cleaner water.
Pakistan is overwhelmingly Muslim, and Christian communities often face discrimination, poverty, and difficult working conditions. Many are employed in sewer cleaning or trapped in debt-based labor within brick kiln industries. In some cases, Christians also face violence and persecution, including attacks on churches and individuals.
Our goal is to stand beside Pastor Khurshid as he shares the love and kindness of Jesus with his community. In addition to providing water filters, we have contributed to the sewing school, helped families move out of brick kiln debt bondage, and supported the construction of a church building.
Uganda
In 2025, Surfing Servants began providing clean water filters to villages in the mountainous, coffee-producing Rwenzori region of Uganda. Through our partnership with Vista Bean Coffee, these communities are receiving access to clean water filters for the first time.
Vista Bean Coffee, based in Oceanside, California, supports the people of Rwenzori by purchasing locally produced coffee and providing ongoing social, medical, and philanthropic support. We are proud to partner with them to help families access safer drinking water and reduce the risk of waterborne illness from contaminated water sources.
In another area of Uganda, we have also provided clean water relief to several refugee settlements, including Nakivale, Rwamwanja, Kyaka II, and Kyangwali. These settlements serve as long-term homes for refugees, particularly families from the Democratic Republic of Congo who have fled conflict and instability.
Burkina Faso & Rwanda
In 2024, Surfing Servants partnered with Amor Europe to support its Kingdom Commerce Project in Burkina Faso and Rwanda. Together, we share a long-term vision of delivering tens of thousands of clean water filters over the next 10 years.
To date, 249 filters have been distributed to communities in the Bobo-Dioulasso area of Burkina Faso and Rwanda’s Muhanga District, bringing life-changing access to cleaner, safer water for local families. Reports from these communities indicate an 84% improvement in water-related sicknesses and symptoms, demonstrating the significant impact of effective water filtration.
This is a decade-long commitment, and we are proud to continue supporting Amor Europe as we work to improve the health, well-being, and future of as many families as possible.
“I wanted to share a heartfelt gratitude and update on how Surfing Servants generous donation and support is making a lasting difference and to personally thank you for your incredible partnership..It is helping families in Rwanda and Burkina Faso break free from water poverty.”
– Phil Savage, Clean Water Lead – Amor Europe
Columbia and Guatemala
For many years, we have partnered with Los Angeles-based pastors Zach Straster and Daniel Ortega, who share the message of hope in communities around the world. We first met them during their travels to Pakistan, where they introduced Sawyer Clean Water Filters to families in need.
After witnessing the life-changing impact of access to cleaner, safer water, they have continued bringing filters to communities in other countries—including a community in Guatemala built over a landfill and an underserved community in Colombia.
These vital partnerships help us bring clean water to families who need it most.
Lahaina, Maui - Disaster Relief
When disaster strikes, access to clean water becomes urgent. Sawyer Clean Water Filters can provide an essential short-term solution when normal water systems are damaged or unavailable. Surfing Servants stands ready to help communities in these critical moments.
On August 8, 2023, a devastating wildfire swept through Lahaina, Maui, destroying homes, businesses, and much of the community. The fire also disrupted the power needed to operate local water treatment systems. As a result, officials issued a water safety advisory, and clean water became urgently needed in the weeks that followed.
Surfing Servants sent filters to help families remove bacteria from available water sources until services could be restored.
We are always looking for ways to respond quickly and bring practical help, hope, and clean water to people in need.
Panay Island, Philippines - Disaster Preparedness
The Philippines is hit by an average of 8–10 typhoons each year, bringing widespread destruction, flooding, and serious challenges to access to clean water.
In 2025, a volunteer firefighter on the island of Panay reached out to Surfing Servants for help preparing for the seasonal typhoon period, which typically runs from June through September. When typhoons strike, power outages can shut down local water treatment and sanitation systems, leaving families without reliable access to safe water.
By providing Sawyer Clean Water Filters to the local fire department, Surfing Servants is helping equip first responders to serve their community during disasters. These filters can provide cleaner, usable water when it is needed most.
Bangladesh, Satkhira
A local San Diego pastor, Peter Taylor, brought to our attention an orphanage in Satkhira, Bangladesh, with a critical need for clean water. The children were relying on water from an old, rusty well that was open and vulnerable to bacterial contamination. In this region, waterborne bacteria such as E. coli and cholera can pose serious health risks.
Contaminated water can cause stomach illnesses and diarrhea and, in severe cases, can be life-threatening for young children.
After speaking with Pastor Billo, who leads the orphanage, we determined that Sawyer Bucket Filters would be the best solution for their needs. These filters remove 99.99999% of bacteria from water, helping provide children with cleaner, safer drinking water while reducing illness and eliminating the high cost of bottled water.
Each Sawyer Bucket Filter can last up to 10 years and filter hundreds of thousands of gallons of water—creating a lasting, life-changing source of clean water for the orphanage.
Malawi, Africa
We are incredibly excited about our latest project in Malawi, Africa. Surfing Servants has partnered with the amazing nonprofit Open Roads Global to provide Sawyer Clean Water Filters to the village of Mulanje.
This community has endured three years of famine and faces significant challenges with access to clean water and healthcare. A recent medical assessment of the village identified clean, filtered drinking water as one of the most important needs—especially for children who are vulnerable to illness caused by contaminated water.
The filters will be placed in three community locations, including a local preschool serving 72 children.
Each Sawyer Water Filter can last up to 10 years and removes disease-causing bacteria, protozoa, and microplastics from daily drinking water. This is the beginning of an ongoing effort, with plans to provide additional filters to more villages in the future.
A heartfelt thank-you to Open Roads Global founders Sarah and Anson Overbay, who have faithfully created educational, health, and economic opportunities for people in Malawi for many years.
