Our Story
Eleven years of showing up, and staying
What started as one doctor's frustration with preventable suffering has grown into a global program spanning six focus areas.
How It Started
A doctor who kept asking “why isn't this fixed yet?”
In 2015, after ten years practicing public health medicine across East Africa, Dr. Naomi Blackwood had treated hundreds of cases of illness that a single clean water source could have prevented entirely. She founded the Mercy & Grace Foundation with a simple, stubborn belief: the biggest barriers to health, education, and opportunity are usually solvable, they just need consistent, accountable investment.
Eleven years later, that belief has become six coordinated programs spanning eleven countries, built alongside local leaders who know their communities far better than we ever could from the outside.
What Guides Us
Our core values
Dignity First
We design every program with, not for, the communities we serve.
Radical Transparency
Every dollar is tracked and published. No exceptions, no vague reporting.
Long-Term Thinking
We measure success five years after we leave, not five days after we arrive.
Evidence Over Instinct
We change our approach the moment the data tells us to, even mid-program.
Our Journey
Eleven years, six milestones
Our Impact So Far
Numbers that represent real people
8,000+
Lives Impacted
14
Wells & Water Systems
11
Countries Served
100+
Active Volunteers