The Water Box was designed in response to the water crisis in Flint, Michigan. In 2014 the municipal water system was contaminated with lead and Flint’s residents were forced to rely on donations of bottled water for drinking, cooking and hygiene. Bringing in and distributing millions of bottles of water became a heavy burden for the city and community organizations. By 2019 most of the country had forgotten about Flint and donations of water began to dry up. 501CTHREE partnered with First Trinity Missionary Baptist Church to develop an alternative way for the church and other community organizations to get water to Flint’s residents - one without the high cost, heavy logistics, and plastic waste of relying on single-use water bottles.