Global Aid Network, Canada

Breaking New Ground

felices — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 19:58:54 +0000

Water strategy spreads into Thailand

Like many countries in Asia, increasing population, and economic, agricultural and industrial expansion in Thailand are the major causes of the deterioration of water quality in various water sources. High loading of pollutants from human activities beyond the water-resource-carrying capacity has contributed to degradation of water quality throughout the country.1

As a result, most Thai people are at a health risk due to the poor quality of drinking water. Approximately 43 million are drinking contaminated water. This, along with poor sanitation and insufficient hygiene, contributes to the spread of serious diseases such as helminthes, diarrhea, dysentery and typhoid.

The northeastern part of the country, which occupies one-third of the country’s total land area, is the most populous and lowest income region. Although Thailand is considered to be economically relatively advanced among developing countries, rural people are still poor, earning between $3 to $5 a day working in the fields (when there is work). Sources say that there is about a six-fold difference in average per capita income between the citizens of Bangkok and the rural areas.2

Since this northeastern area is considered mostly rural, most people don’t have resources to purchase bottled water at $0.25 for approximately 15 liters.

Due to this need, in November 2011, GAiN drilled their first water well in the village of Nong Kung, which is in the northeastern part of Thailand.

As a result, 5,000 people from across four villages now have access to disease-free water. The well is 48 meters deep, with a six-meter tower and two 2,500 liter water tanks.

At the end of November, Dennis Fierbach, Director of Water Strategies, and Bill Blaney, CEO & Executive Director of GAiN Canada, attended the well dedication.

The head chief overseeing the four villages gave a speech at the opening ceremony in which he shared how thankful he was for the well. He said that though he was a Buddhist, he saw that Christians loved to help people.

Wenei, a staff member from GAiN’s local partner, expressed how this water well was a great bridge for him to connect more deeply to the community.

Local ground water authorities in Karisin welcomed GAiN with open arms. The official in charge gave GAiN a long list of villages that they could assess as potential drilling sites.

For now, GAiN has committed to drill ten wells over the next six months. People will not only receive fresh, clean water and better health – but experience the love of God, in both word and deed.

“The strategy will be different than in Africa but there is no doubt that there is a real need that we can help meet,” comments Dennis.

1www.wepa-db.net
2www.unesco.org

The Drastic Difference

felices — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 17:39:54 +0000

An end in sight for an unnecessary situation in Tanzania

“The stark contrast between life with clean water and the struggle for existence without it stood out the most to me,” shares Rebecca Hey, GAiN’s Senior Grants Administrator, from her first trip to the Lindi District in Tanzania.

In July 2011, Rebecca, Dennis Fierbach, the Director of Water Strategies, and Jennifer Mullan, GAiN’s Marketing and Communications Manager, visited the Water for Life Initiative project in Tanzania. Over five days, twenty eight villages were visited in order to monitor the progress of the project as well as capture video footage.
In village after village, reports were given about the tremendous impact the project was making. Elderly women, who once had to rely on family members to walk long distances to fetch water for them, could now collect water from a well located right inside their village. Young children that previously experienced stomach illnesses on a regular basis were healthy and full of life. Students that used to miss hours of school a day for a single bucket of water, now attend all their classes.

But among the stories of hope, were moments of heartbreak. In the village of Tandika Nachunyu, GAiN’s well was situated near three open shallow wells. Each of these shallow wells only held a small amount of surface water, nonetheless dozens of women were busy drawing water. As the team talked to these women it became evident that GAiN’s well was not enough to provide clean water for this community of over 15,000.

One woman explained that in the height of the dry season women would sometimes fight over the little bit of water available. To avoid this, she wakes up at 2 a.m. to make sure her bucket gets a place in line for water. She lifted her leg to reveal a large wound on her calf; a result of falling as she tried to make her way to the well in the dark.

“Please, I want to impress upon you how much we need water” another woman exclaimed with fervency. “The line up for the (GAiN) well is long so all we can do is fish the garbage out of the open wells and continue to use them.” She went on, explaining that shoes, drowned animals and even feminine hygiene products had been found in the open wells. Her children that drink this dirty water often suffered from diarrhea and other waterborne diseases. Her moving plea was heard and Dennis assured her that GAiN would do what it could to help.

Less than 48 hours later, the team visited Tandika, a village with a similar name but with dramatically different circumstances. The atmosphere was bursting with anxious anticipation. Approximately 300 villagers crowded around to watch the GAiN crew complete the last few steps of the well installation process. Everyone held their breath as a village elder tried the well pump for the first time. As the water began to flow, the villagers erupted into loud cheers, claps and laughter. Amid the celebration, Rebecca watched as women with buckets in every imaginable color began pressing their way through to the front of the crowd. Their urgency brought Rebecca’s mind back to the women of Tandika Nachunyu and the image of GAiN’s deep water well situated only meters away from a shallow hand dug well. One well is a depiction of hope; the other disease and despair. For Rebecca, the disparity is a sharp reminder of how many in the Lindi region still lack access to clean water.

A Chance To Love On Others

felices — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 20:07:01 +0000

LIFE Team cares for Indian residents at Mukti

Global Aid Network (GAiN) sent their first LIFE Team to Mukti Mission in India.

Tony Vanderwal, retired dairy farmer, spending time with the children during their play time

Mukti is a “Christ-centered home where destitute women and children irrespective of their background are accepted, cared for, transformed, and empowered to be salt and light in the society.”

As the team of ten, which consisted of a nursing student, a farmer, four counsellors, a few helpers and GAiN staff, settled in it was evident that God has provided for this ministry in many ways in the last 100 years.

The main Mukti base where the team worked and lived for the two weeks is a community consisting of a church as well as both English and Marathi schools up to the 10th grade, staff and volunteer housing, a home for the blind (these ladies are completely self sufficient and they even cook for themselves), a home and school for the women and children with special needs, a hospital and nursery, a huge kitchen that works nonstop, a dairy and agricultural project as well as housing for the hundreds of women and children residents.

As the team toured around, Mukti’s staff continually repeated “every soul is important to God.”

“You could see this simple statement put into practice wherever we were,” comments Schacter. “The way the women and children were cared for, the servant hearts of the staff, the setup of the base…it was everywhere.”

The team focused on a variety of tasks from painting two of the older homes that needed a overhaul, visiting and helping at the special school, visiting the nursery, having a standing play date every evening with the kids to play soccer before dinner and a nightly visit to the flower families, which are groups of about 15-20 girls who live together and have house parents or a house mother and guardian.

The ladies on the team also spent time with the elderly and women’s residents, getting to share with them and spend some time washing their feet and pampering them. For many of these woman, this was the first time they had ever received a manicure or a pedicure. It was a special time for these women.

During the day, the retired dairy farmer spent time at the dairy and agricultural farms, working and talking with the management on ways to make the farms more efficient and productive.

The mini-team of counsellors undertook the important task of both providing training in much needed topics (like parenting, attachment, communication, addressing trauma) as well as counselling many of the women and staff. Each of the children and many of the women come from very difficult and often traumatic backgrounds. This makes it very overwhelming for the teachers at the school as well as the house parents who are caring for the children. “At Mukti there is a huge need for women and children to know their value and be healed from the impact of societal, familial injustice and abuse,” shares Faith Wilkes, clinical counsellor and LIFE Team member. “Volunteers were given a rich sample of the beauty and need of women and children in India.”

The trip was extremely positive for the team members as they were able to spend time loving on each person they encountered.