In 2020 what began as an idea by a ten year old girl to fund wells in developing nations quickly turned into a reality. The Somerset Church of Christ partnered with Healing Hands International. They are a very established non profit organization that drills new wells in developing nations, providing Gospel teaching to the communities where the wells are placed. We committed to raising funds for one well a year but in 2023 we doubled the amount and funded two new wells! In addition to those two wells, we also funded all new parts for an existing well in Limonade, Haiti after the old parts failed. We continue our commitment to provide clean drinking water for communities that are desperate for water.
Vincant School Yard, Haiti
Our first well, completed in 2021, provides access to clean water for 150 souls. We decided to have our first well dug in northern Haiti since we have supported work in that area for many years. This was a much needed well that, in addition to supplying the school, also provides water for families in the village.
Mabikise, Zimbabwe
In November of 2020 we tragically lost our dear friend and deacon Bill Riggs to a heart attack. Bill was instrumental in getting our first well project up and running. Bill had a passion for supporting well projects in the past and was a world traveler, often giving of his time and money to help people in developing nations. In 2021 we funded a well in memory of Bill and in 2022 that well was completed.
Zimbabwe was hit especially hard with disease when the COVID pandemic plagued the world. The good people of Zimbabwe were losing their lives at a very fast rate because the water supplies they had were full of bacteria. We were ecstatic when we heard that the well in Zimbabwe was a clean, productive well. This well supplies more than 400 people with clean water every day!
Ziwungu Ngulube, Malawi
A few months after Bill Riggs died, another dear church member tragically lost his life due to compounding health issues. Hebrews 12:1 says that we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. It is referring to the saints who have gone before us. We are confident that death is not the final say and that our legacy on this earth can continue long after we depart this life. We were honored to have a well placed in memory of Michael Lech, which was completed in 2023.
The well in Malawi brings clean water to over 250 people each day. Prior to this, people had to walk up to a mile away to get water from a very polluted source. Now they have abundant, clean drinking water that can also be used for watering crops.
In addition to this well, we also funded a repair on another well in Limonade, Haiti. We visited Limonade in 2012 on a mission trip to Haiti and personally saw the well there that supplies water for hundreds of people. When it was repaired in 2023, all the parts were replaced with brand new parts, including the pump itself. The good people of Limonade have clean drinking water once again!
