Rotarians support The Water School
Local Rotarians continue to support a cause that provides African families with clean water.
And they're encouraging local folks to get onboard as well with The Water School.
Two years ago, Bob Dell of The Water School based in Ontario, spoke to the Red Deer Downtown Rotary Club weekly lunch meeting. He was back in the City this week, providing additional training for those interested in spearheading clean water projects around the world.
The technique Dell discusses is simple. Families place plastic bottles of water in the sunlight and virtually all the germs and parasites are wiped out. Water that once would have brought sickness, misery and death can through this process give life and vitality.
Dell, president of The Water School, has invested 40 years of his working career to practical applications in the water industry. He later volunteered his experience to research in helping solve the water crisis in Africa, which in turn, has given birth to The Water School.
Red Deer's Glenn and Wendy Moore recently returned from Uganda and Kenya, and are thrilled with how news of the Solar Disinfection (SODIS) project has spread. Families are teaching families about the water cleaning process, and it's making a world of difference.
“Having just returned and having seen the benefits, it's pretty exciting,” said Glenn, adding that both CrossRoads Church and the Rotary Club have donated substantially to the project.
“The momentum that's being created as a result of that globally is looking really strong.”
The project started small back in 2004 with just 24 families. Within two to three months of adopting the process of setting water out in the sun, levels of sickness plunged and the kids were back in school. More than 100,000 people now benefit from the practice.
“As one family uses it and realizes the benefits, they tell others and it kind of mushrooms.”
It's certainly desperately needed – the World Health Organization reports that each year, about 2.5 million children die due to lack of access to clean water.
Not surprisingly, members of the Red Deer Downtown Rotary Club wanted to lend their support. Funding has flowed to the project over the last few years.
Gifts of $50 help to get families in poor communities on the path to clean water.
For more information about the project or about how to help out, call Glenn Moore at 403-347-9590 or 403-346-6655. You can also visit www.TheWaterSchool.org.
More to come in the Oct. 21 print edition of the Red Deer Express.
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