Silver Bay gears up for World Vision's Global 6K for Water

Six kilometers is 3.73 miles, the average daily walk many women and children make for water, and Silver Bay is about to turn that global burden into a local course of its own. On Friday, May 9, residents will be able to walk, run or roll in World Vision’s Global 6K for Water, a North Shore fundraiser organized by Faith Rockford and Bekah Backman.

The Silver Bay event is meant to do more than draw a crowd. World Vision says every $50 registration helps provide lasting clean water for one person, while participants 18 and under can register for $25. The organization says the 6K format is built around the reality that 703 million people still lack basic drinking water access, and that nearly 4,000 people die each day from diseases tied to unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene.

World Vision says women and girls in sub-Saharan Africa spend a cumulative 250 million hours every day hauling water, a reminder that the time spent fetching water can keep children out of school and families trapped in a daily cycle of risk. Since 2011, the organization says it has helped establish lasting access to clean water for 34.4 million people, improved sanitation for 27.7 million and supported hygiene behavior change for 42.7 million. It also says it reaches one new person with clean water every 10 seconds.

For Silver Bay, the event already proved it could take root. Last year’s debut drew about 20 to 25 runners and walkers, a turnout Rockford said exceeded expectations and showed the idea resonated locally. Backman said one of the first goals was simply to attract enough participation to make the event worth repeating, and she hoped it would become an annual tradition.

The timing also was chosen with Lake County in mind. The local race comes one week before World Vision’s global 6K date on Saturday, May 16, 2026, and organizers scheduled the Silver Bay event for May 9 to avoid a conflict with the Beaver Bay Smelt Fry, which many participants attended after last year’s run.

That makes the Silver Bay 6K a practical North Shore option for families, church teams, school groups and neighbors who want a direct way to connect a short outing with measurable impact. In a community where local calendars matter, the race offers a visible link between a few miles on foot and clean water for people who still walk much farther every day just to drink.