Blanca lives in a small village in Nicaragua and, unlike most of us, her number one concern is clean water. Her village in Nicaragua is nowhere near a water treatment plant, water services and indoor plumbing. The only stable source of drinking water comes from a small river miles away from her home, a river that is used by countless villages upstream to bathe and wash their laundry. Famers at different points along the way allow their livestock to drink and defecate in the stream while others drive their vehicles through it on the way to the market. By the time it reaches Blanca, it is not only dangerous to drink, there is a good chance that it will contain pathogens and chemicals lethal to her
children.
Esperança set out to change this and bring hope last spring. We provided her and 12 other families with the opportunity to build a well that would supply every family with fresh, clean water for the next 20+ years!
When Blanca was presented with the plans for the well she jumped at the chance to help and assisted us in organizing support from the other families. Every day she would walk down the road to the well building site and bring her excitement with her to the work area! The men did most of the digging, but she and the other women and children were hard at work making the clay bricks that would support the well’s structure for decades.
A few short months later, Blanca’s village had sufficient clean water for every family member and some left over for their gardens! I’m happy to report that Blanca even took advantage of the extra water to turn a hobby she had into a small business – selling colorful flowers and succulents to her neighbors. Now she not only has peace of mind knowing that the water she gives her family is safe, she also has an additional source of income!