Our Team

James Brown graduated from Boise State University with a degree in Business Management and has owned and operated his own business for 20+ years. Additionally, James works as Director of Business Development at Avalaunch Media. James provides seasoned experience with a team of highly respected individuals. It is his goal to build an organization that will help solve the world’s water problems, one bucket at a time.

James and the founder of Water 4 Life Ministries, Rudy Shaffer, met in 2010. The two men initially discussed building a business relationship, but Rudy instead retired early with the goal to dedicate his life to providing children world-wide safe drinking water.

James quickly joined Rudy in this cause. From 2010 to 2017, they broadened relationships with filters suppliers, built a donor network, shipped thousands of filters all over the world and created a voice for so many who were not being heard.

In 2017, James founded the separate 501(c)(3) organization, Water For Life Charity, in order to connect with a greater demographic. James and Rudy run each organization independently but collectively strategize humanitarian outreach.

James grew up in Idaho and lives in the Utah mountains with his wife, author Lindsey Leavitt, and blended family. He mountain bikes, skis, fishes, and does any/every indoor or outdoor activity with his six kids.

His service mantra is based on a quote from Martin Luther King, Jr.: “Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or the darkness of destructive selfishness. This is the judgment. Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, what are you doing for others?”

Carlos Iglesias joined Water For Life Charity as a board member and volunteer in the spring of 2018. Already a world traveler serving in remote countries for years prior, the WFLC team met Carlos when providing his group with needed filters for a humanitarian trip to Mali, Africa. Carlos has organized, funded and traveled on over 10 trips to Guatemala, Mali Africa and Mexico in the past 10 years.

Drawn to his passion for serving others made him a natural fit for the organization. What a great addition to have his energy and love of fellow humans as ongoing inspiration. Carlos was quick to accept an invitation to join the board and the International Outreach team.

In his own words:

“What an amazing experience it has been to bring clean water to villages and communities throughout the world knowing that clean water saves lives. I love life and look forward to living every day with joy, happiness and sunshine in my soul.

Through my childhood experiences I have learned the greatest gift that God can grant humanity is that of pure love and joy through serving others. One of my favorite quotes is: ‘There’s nothing stronger than the heart of a volunteer’ I look forward to serving alongside you and helping you in any way as your desire grows inside you to serve and donate. I challenge you to find uncomfortable ways to serve others and find the courage to look outside your life as you serve others! Let’s Go!”

With boundless energy, Carlos also likes to play! He is a successful Ironman triathlete and loves running with friends. He is a skilled basketball player who can show young guys a thing or two on the court. When is not traveling the world in developing countries he is at home with his sweet wife of 29 years, two sons and one grandson playing board games and cards.

As with all WFLC volunteers, Carlos works full-time in his professional career. For over 10 years now he has worked as the General manager of Ken Garff Volkswagen in Orem, Utah. In addition to his inspiration to donate his time and personal funds to serving others, Carlos brings a vast amount of professional knowledge and a wide-ranging network of resources to the team. His creativity at problem solving and “God will help us get things done” attitude are an equation for helping a lot of people out of difficult circumstances.

Dr Jumaan has over 30 years of public health experience nationally and internationally with a focus on Yemen in the last ten years. Dr Jumaan is the founder and president of Yemen Relief and Reconstruction Foundation, a nonprofit charity organization that provides relief services throughout Yemen. She visits Yemen regularly and is currently the Principal Investigator on two projects, “Assessing Cholera Interventions in Yemen and providing an innovative intervention” funded by Wellcome Trust and a “Water Aid and Renewable Power System (WARP)” funded by Grand Challenge Canada.

Since 2010, Dr Jumaan has been working on multiple projects in Yemen funded by US Government as an independent consultant. Starting in June 2010, Aisha was a consultant for CDC FETP program supporting FETP programs in the Middle East. She helped establish the Yemen program in collaboration with CDC, WHO and the Ministry of Public Health and Population. Since April 2013 Aisha has been managing projects funded by USDOS. She manages and coordinates Health projects, including the Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP) and works closely with the Ministry of Public Health and Population, all public Health and Veterinary laboratories and public universities focusing on strengthening labs, surveillance and human resources capabilities. Throughout the years, Aisha has established a strong working relationship with national and international institutions in Yemen and developed a wide Network of professional contacts.

Dr Jumaan worked in public health at the national and international level. Between 2008 and 2010, she served as the project director of the HPV vaccine project, the 4th largest project at PATH with about 50 staff members. She directed the introduction of the vaccine in multiple sites in four countries in three continents: Vietnam, India, Peru, and Uganda. She was responsible for effective communication with the donor, partners that included WHO, ICO, Harvard University, GAVI and IARC, and technical advisory group representing nationally and internationally recognized HPV experts. Nationally, Dr Jumaan served as a Senior Epidemiologist for over 10 years in several divisions at CDC, including Cancer, Immunizations, Nutrition and Environmental Health. She was the primary investigator on several research projects and provided epidemiological and statistical technical expertise. As an Assistant Professor at both Emory University School of Public Health in the Epidemiology Department and at Sana’s University in Yemen under the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Aisha developed and taught intermediate epidemiology to graduate students as well as epidemiology and biostatistics to medical students.

While in her home country, Yemen, Dr Jumaan served as a National Program Officer for the United Nations Population Fund and as a Health Program Officer for the United Nations Development Fund, supervising several major programs in collaboration with local government institutions. She developed and implemented training programs for US Peace Corps Primary Health Care Volunteers in Yemen and evaluated training programs for Primary Healthcare Workers for the Dutch Volunteer Organization SNV.

Aisha holds a PhD in Epidemiology from the University of North Carolina, an MPH in Epidemiology from Emory University, and a BA in Biology from Mills College.

At the age of 23, Rudy was Founder and President of his first of three electronic service companies in the San Diego area. After 30 years in the electronics industry and helping to raise six wonderful children, he went on his first mission trip to Tijuana, Mexico. This last Christmas 2010, Rudy discovered something profound, which he will spend the rest of his life to help change.

Rudy Story

I decided Christmas 2010, to spend the rest of my life, doing whatever I have to do, to help save children and lives in the world, through clean, safe drinking water solutions.

I believe that God first planted the seed in my heart for our ministry over seven years ago, when I went on my first mission trip with Spectrum Ministries across the border into Tijuana, Mexico. Spectrum Ministries goes into the poorest areas of Tijuana to bathe little children and provide food, blankets and clothes to the families. Approximately 100 or more little girls and 100 little boys are waiting in line for the Spectrum vans to show up in their area once a month. It’s usually the only bath these little ones get for the next 30 days.

My daughters Taysia and Kysha usually accompanied me to help bathe the little girls and I always enjoyed washing the feet of the little boys, so I could tickle their feet, in order to see them smile and laugh. Most had no shoes and if they did, when they took their shoes off, their socks and feet were caked with dirt from the rain and mud.

IMGP2101For me, these trips started putting faces on the more then one billion living in extreme poverty in the world. Children, the smallest, weakest members of our human family, often pay the highest price for our fallen world.

My children and I now sponsor four children in third world countries, two through Compassion International and two through World Vision. These are wonderful organizations who give children hope for their lives. Each child we sponsor has touched our lives deeply. I’ve also been blessed over the past year to be a mentor for a 12 year old foster boy here in San Diego, his name is Kirk.

Water…every 20 seconds a child dies in the world from drinking unsafe water- hold that thought for a moment, count off 20 seconds, a child just died.

How can we each not take action right now, to do something about this horrific statistic once we know it exists? For me, I accidentally discovered this unbelievable death rate affecting the forgotten children in the world while researching on the internet over these past Christmas holidays and I knew immediately that I had to do something.

And that something for me is Water For Life Charity. Our mission is to help change this horrendous fact affecting helpless children in the world, by doing whatever we can to provide safe drinking water to every child, woman and man on Earth, who as you are reading this, has no choice but to drink contaminated water to try to survive.

We all have a profound obligation to care for the children and the poor in the world. I encourage you and challenge you, now that you also know that a child dies in the world every 20 seconds from drinking unsafe water, to turn your good, loving intentions into a plan of action. Empower yourself right now to be part of changing the world and the future for humanity- forever!

I would love to meet with you or talk with you on the phone about our ministry and how you can join us….please call me at 858-215-0801 Rudy

I sincerely believe that giving is the ability to use one’s position of influence and relative wealth to affect lives for the better.

Lindsey Leavitt is the author of 15 books for teens and kids, including recent titles WILLIS WILBUR WOWS THE WORLD and the COMMANDER IN CHEESE series. She holds an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She is married to Water for Life President, James Brown. Together they live in the awesome mountains of Utah with their awesome family, where they do awesome things (including supporting this awesome organization) because they’re just awesome like that.

Visit her online at www.lindseyleavitt.com

Laura graduated from Salt Lake Community College with a degree in Business Marketing. She is originally from Colombia, loves diversity, likes to learn new cultures, languages, and that is why she moved to the states at 18, decided to have a new adventure and have a better education and lifestyle. One of her greatest passions is serving people, loving them, and learning from them.

“When I started working with Water For Life Charity, everything changed for me. I saw the difference our work makes in the lives of others, and it changed how I approach my work. Seeing the impact of my work is a strong motivator and encourages me to continue on this path.”

Clifford Yantz is very happy to be part of Water For Life Charity. He has performed hydrogeological investigations at over 100 sites as well as specializes in the review and interpretation of hydrogeological data to determine groundwater flow characteristics. He has designed and helped with over three dozen groundwater extraction systems. He installed hundreds of wells and used groundwater flow models to evaluate hydrogeological resources and design groundwater extraction systems. Clifford is excited to go to Kenya again and begin drilling wells for WFL.

Alexandrine Harig joined the Water For Life Charity effort in 2017 as a 5thgrader with her first $50 donation which she raised selling hand painted cards. Since that first donation, she has raised over $7000, providing filters which can supply over 280 million gallons of clean water.

She is the recipient of Water For Life Charity’s 2019 Youth Humanitarian Award, and has contributed her paintings for the 2019 gala to fund 100 water filters for the Guatemala Baby Rescue and the 2020 virtual gala which was a part of a successful team and effort to raise funds for two $8000 wells that were installed in two villages in Kenya, Africa in the spring of 2021.

In fall of 2021, Alexandrine begins her high school career at Culver Academies in Indiana. Alexandrine is drawn to the WFLC team’s compassion and commitment to help people around the world gain access to life’s basic and simple need for clean water.

Rob has been designing brands, websites and software for over 25 years. He’s been the creative director for large and small companies. Rob lives in the Utah mountains with his wife Anna and his three kids. He loves mountain biking, building things and collecting hobbies. He is obsessed with making things that are both beautiful and functional.