Ed Scharlau, a founder of Water to Thrive, will speak about the need for fresh water in Africa at Wartburg College Thursday, Oct. 10.

Scharlau, a 1961 Wartburg graduate and retired 3M executive, will discuss his group’s effort to create more wells in Ethiopia from 11:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., in McCoy West in the Saemann Student Center. Wartburg students Aman Gebremariam, a senior from Ghana, and Sibusiso Kunene, a senior from Swaziland, also will share their experiences from this summer in Ethiopia.

A reception is scheduled from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

The nonprofit Water to Thrive has built more than 300 water projects in Ethiopia, Sierra Leone, Tanzania and Uganda, assisting more than 150,000 people.

An estimated 65 million of the 84 million Ethiopians have no access to clean water. Ethiopian women walk miles each day to carry 40-50 pounds of water back to their homes.

Gebremariam and Kunene received a $10,000 Davis Project for Peace grant to build three 26-meter-deep wells in the Ethiopian village of Dansa this summer. They also worked with villagers to reduce the rates of deadly waterborne diseases like dysentery.

When Scharlau learned that the Davis grant and fundraising efforts were not enough to cover the cost of the three wells, he donated the additional funds to ensure the men could finish three wells.

The Wartburg College community has raised more than $28,600 for Water to Thrive. To donate on behalf of Wartburg, visit www. Watertothrive.org, click Get Involved, then Browse Campaigns, and search for Wartburg Wells.