Tikkun O-Wells: Build Water Wells in Africa with Value Culture x Afrikicks

In February 2025, Value Culture Executive Director Adam Swig attended an NBA All Star Game charity event put on by former NBA player Festus Ezili. There, Adam connected with Oumarou Idrissa founder of non profit Afrikicks and his friend Niger Taekwondo Olympic Medal Champion Abdoul Razak Issoufou Alfaga.

Since 2014, widely recognized as an action-based nonprofit, Afrikicks hand-delivers and accompanies humanitarian aid and resources to their respective destinations. Afrikicks has served in 10 countries, across 2 continents, and 5 regions, delivering more than 1.6 million donations of food, clothes, educational, health, sports, and agricultural resources to rural, remote and poverty-stricken communities in West African, Sub-Saharan, Central African, North American, and Central American communities. Their philosophy is “Ubuntu” which is a belief in the universal bond of sharing and the principle of caring for each other’s well-being. It is our responsibility as humans to watch over and take care of each other.

Oumarou and Adam connected deeply on this, as Value Culture has a shared mission based on the Jewish Value of Tikkun Olam, repair the world. Plain and simple, do good without expecting anything in return. He shared many of Value Culture’s accomplishments and organizational goals and non profit struggles that aligned with Afrikicks.

Oumarou shared a recent story with Adam about his travels in Africa delivering shoes and other essential items. A mother approached him on one visit and said thank you for the shoes for my child, but we really need water, we have to walk miles and miles for water. At that moment Oumarou knew there was a greater gift he could give these struggling people with no access to water in their villages and towns. He began raising support to build wells.

Upon hearing this Adam said to Oumarou, “I want to build a tikkun o-well with you.” It only took Adam one phone call to a new friend of Value Culture who wanted to make an immediate impact. They matched funds with Value Culture to build the first well. Pictured above is the well built in June 2025 in the rural outskirts of Niamey, Niger, West Africa.

Let’s build more Tikkun O-Wells together for those in need, today!