Trip to Tanzania was eye-opening for 49ers offensive lineman Ben Garland

Losing the Super Bowl was heartbreaking for the San Francisco 49ers and their fans, but one player turned that sadness into a trip to help the people of Tanzania in February before the coronavirus pandemic hit.

49ers offensive lineman Ben Garland worked with the Waterboys, the key initiative of the Chris Long Foundation, to help bring clean water to communities in need in Tanzania. Garland, water advocates and military veterans raised more than $205,000 to install two clean water wells in the country because more than half of the nation's 57 million people does not have access to clean water.

The 32-year-old kept a journal of all of his experiences on the trip, and ESPN's Nick Wagoner helped him tell his story on the platform. 

During the first four days, Garland spent time in the Serengeti safari and Ngorongoro Crater where he immersed himself in the surrounding nature of the country. The next day, he traveled to a school for a well ceremony to celebrate it finally being installed, and Garland detailed the upsetting moments he saw along the way:

"On our way to the school, we spotted a few women digging in a dry riverbed. We stopped to talk to them and learned they got up at 5 a.m. and walked 5 kilometers to this spot. The women dug large holes, by hand, that were about 4 feet deep," Garland wrote. "They were covered in bugs, which were also trying to get at the same small puddles of dirty water they had unearthed. The women then took a bowl and did their best to siphon the cleanest water to pour into their bucket. They told us they did this every day, and they didn't always find water when they dug.

"The entire scenario was heartbreaking. It really put things into perspective for me. After losing the Super Bowl, I grieved. It hurt so bad. It was like having my dreams ripped away. But seeing the hardships these women go through on a day-to-day basis really made me appreciate what I have and made me grateful for all the wonderful things I take for granted."

After visiting the first school, Garland visited another one called the Elerai School, where he met many of the students and participated in classes and playing games. Following that, he began his journey to the Kilimanjaro summit.

Garland detailed his grueling trip hiking Kilimanjaro, but noted he "found his limit" by doing so and that it certainly was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. After the trip, Garland signed an extension with the 49ers, and the Waterboys foundation has been able to provide clean water to more than 360,000 people. 

Garland spent his first season with the 49ers in 2019, and was a member of the Atlanta Falcons from 2016 to '18 and the Denver Broncos from 2012 to '14.