Update
by MaryO on 2011/12/22 6:43 AM

Hello,

Thank you for all your efforts.  We are having the water tanks built currently and our hope was to have all the water tanks by Christmas.

I will be visiting each home in January and I will have more to share then.

Many children are helped by your efforts.  Especially girls, it is the girls that walk sometimes 2 &1/2 miles to the government sponsored water hole then they carry it on their heads in a ten gallon pail.

Our roads are mad of mud, main way of traveling is by what you wouldcall a dirt bike. Some people do have cars or trucks but very few. Sometimes the gas runs out at the stations, I think that happened at least once when you visited almost 2 years ago.

The water that is sponsored by the government comes from Lake Victoria.  The pipes were put in over 30 years ago and sometimes the water hole is closed because of problems with the pipeline.

We use water for making food, gardening, cleansing and feeding our animals chickens especially. 10 gallons does not go very far and so the young child might have to make two trips in one day.

The water tanks that people are sponsoring through your organization are to collect water off of our Tin roofs during the rain season.  I can not begin to tell you how much the gift of these water tanks mean to our community.  You all have made these grandmothers from St Monica have notice in the community.  They were shunned because they refused to follow cultural practice and remain as “inherieted” like property when their husbands died.  They stood up to the chief and said ,”no” some were beaten. They came together and formed a womens circle called St.Monica.  (I too am a grandmother who like many of these grandmothers are raising orphans we have over 70 orphans 30 grandchildren in circle). I joined the group too and helped them organize.

Each time we meet each grandmother contributes something to the collection pot and as a group we decide where that money is best needed.  It would have taken us years and years to come up with the money for these water tanks.  Because of your efforts we at Christmas will have water to drink. (Yes of course it has to be boiled).