Thursday, May 27, 2021

Shining Light Around the Globe

Did you know that nearly 1 billion people live without electricity? That means more people live in darkness today than when the first light bulb was invented, according to Watts of Love – a global nonprofit focused on distributing solar lighting and solar technologies to people living without access to light or reliable energy.

After working in Human Resources for nearly 15 years, Lewis University alumna Christie (Dunne) Owens ’10 was called to change the world, one light at a time.

Christie graduated from Lewis with a bachelor’s degree in Human Resource Management and served in various roles throughout the beginning of her career. Most recently, she worked as the first-ever HR manager for a startup company that provided digital gaming to restaurants and bars. Helping the company grow from 30 to 300 employees, as well as building out a full portfolio of benefits for them, she enjoyed her work – but something was always missing.

After a few years, Christie got sick and was out of work for 6 months. It was during that time that she took a step back to reflect and turned to God for guidance on her next step.

“I attended a mission trip to Bolivia in high school and fell in love with the idea of serving as a missionary. God put that desire on my heart many years ago, but I never pursued it. A few years back, I heard a missionary talk about a mission trip to Uganda and it rekindled that desire. After that, I prayed a lot and ultimately knew that me getting sick was a sign from God that I needed to make a life change. It was a huge risk to leave my steady job and shift into the non-profit world, but I truly felt this was my calling.”

In 2016, Christie took a leap of faith and became a special part of the team at Watts of Love based in Downer’s Grove.  

Christie currently serves as the Director of Operations, a position in which she manages logistics for short-term domestic and overseas missions in Guatemala, Haiti, Kenya, Philippines and many other countries.

The team at Watts of Love works tirelessly to provide light to communities around the globe, many of which still use kerosene or cannot afford, or do not have access to, electricity.

But light is not the only thing they aim to provide; they also give these people hope for their future. Christie and the team teach people living in these communities how to break the poverty cycle and pursue their own dreams to live a meaningful life and provide for their families.

Take Ruth for example; after her daughter passed away from HIV, Ruth was left to raise 10 grandchildren in a small thatch in Uganda. Last year, she received a Watts of Love solar light, and with her savings from this new source of energy, she was able to buy two chickens which eventually gave her 10 chicks, as well as eggs to sell. With that money, she then purchased a pig which gave her several piglets. She was able to raise the piglets and eventually trade them for a cow. She sold that cow and was not only able to send her kids to school, but also buy a tin roof for her house.

“I had nothing before this light. I saved my money from not buying candles and now all of this has possible,” says Ruth.

Christie is proud to be part of a team that intentionally seeks out under sourced, marginalized, or misrepresented communities that truly need their help. After all, this type of mission felt very familiar to Christie after having attended Lewis.

“I think Watts of Love and Lewis University have many shared values. Although we are a secular organization, we believe in treating everyone with dignity and respect and providing a safe, inclusive environment for those we serve.”

Lewis helped build a foundation on which Christie has built her career and found her true calling. She even recalls a Foundation in Christianity class she took as a student and how it has left a lasting impact on her over the years.

“The professor gave us an assignment to visit a religious service that was not our own. I ended up going to an Ethiopian Jewish temple in the South Side of Chicago. That class taught me how to open my eyes to the world around us and step out of my comfort zone, which is so critical in the work I do now.”

Having been with the company about five years now, Christie loves going to work every morning and is confident that this is exactly where God wants her to be.


To learn more about Watts of Love and the work they do, please visit wattsoflove.org. 

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