Water Team: Don “Journey to the Center of the Earth” Wolfram and Cleaning the Well…(Contributed by Jen Price)

Hello, from the Padu Colony in Kalavia, Tamil Nadu India! The water team officially began our work! Yesterday we cleared brush, grass, and weeds from around the village well. This is much more difficult without the assistance of lawn mowers and weed eaters! However, this team is ready for anything, so with shovel trowels in hand, we cleared a 3-5 foot border around the well. Our plan is to clean the well, inside and out, hopefully teaching the community to take care of it after we are gone. While the well will not be completely clean by safe drinking water standards, we will then install Hydraid Biosand Water Filters in their homes to purify the water.

Without this well, the people have very little access to water. This contaminated well supplies water to the “untouchables,” the members of the lowest caste called the dalits. Because these people are in this caste, no one else will help them. The government only provides 2 buckets of water per family, once every 5 days. The water is turned on from a small pipe at 3am! The villagers wait anxiously, and call for everyone when the water starts pumping.

We had the opportunity to meet many of the villagers. While we heard many stories of struggles and pain, we also were blessed by the smiles and joy within the people. They were so excited to see us! We offered prayer and a promise to return!

The remaining water in the well was pumped out during the night by using a motor and tapping in to the local electricity supply. We returned today to discover that the well was much deeper than expected. But in true GCC “can do” spirit, a few locals and a water team member, Don Wolfram, were lowered into the well to remove trash and the settled slime and grime from the surface of the water. While Don was busy at the bottom of the well, the rest of us met more of the villagers. While we hope to improve their health through safe drinking water, we also hope to relay to them that they matter to us, and most importantly, they matter to God. I can’t imagine what it must feel like to have your entire country tell you that not only do you not matter, but that you are the lowest of the low, and that you do not even deserve the basic needs of life. We’re here to change that!

Our next steps will include installing the filters and providing health and hygiene education during a village meeting. Go team! We’ll keep you posted!