Fight childhood disease with safe drinking water

Hi Agua Pura Supporters!
I’m sorry, I sometimes get so involved with our projects and plans for future trips that I forget to share the news with our supporters - you - who make all our work possible.  Because I’m grateful to each one of you, It’s important to me to keep you up to date on how your donations are being used.  We’re proud of our work and you should be too.

We’re leaving on October 9 for Honduras to continue our program of training health workers and others in our methods of water testing and water purification.  last year you remember that we started safe water programs in several mountain communities in North Western Honduras. We distributed hundreds of Water Pasteurization Indicators (WAPI’s), trained over 20 water system managers in accurate testing methods, and started hand washing programs in schools wherever we went.  The program was a great success so now we’re headed back to continue the work!

This time we will be working with the operators of small community pharmacies called “botiquines”.  They may only consist of a shelf in someones home, stocked with very simple supplies,  but these pharmacies are often all the community has. We’ll be training the operators of the pharmacies, “botiquineros”, in water testing and water purification techniques and providing them with supplies.  Now they will become an even more important part of the communities health system.

Our goal is to reduce or eliminate dangerous childhood diarrhea by providing clean water and basic sanitation to families.  The botiquineros will be on the front line of that effort.  A nurse on our staff will be training them in simple diagnosis and treatment of acute newborn dehydration due to diarrhea, so that they spot the problem early and get correct help for the child.  Our nurse will also train them in the other major childhood killer, infant respiratory infections (pneumonia).
I’m excited about our upcoming project, it will be our biggest yet.  Your support is what makes these trips possible. You have already helped a lot, but if you want to make a special donation to help offset the costs of this trip I will really appreciate it.  I think you can make a comment about the purpose of your donation on our Global Giving page or you can write to me at tom@aguapuraparaelpueblo.org , and depending on internet access I’ll try to reply from Honduras.

Thanks,

Tom Carter

Links:

• Check out our website for the latest info.

For several years Agua Pura Para El Pueblo has worked with students from several Central American and Caribbean countries in a program at a local community college.  These students won scholarships to the US to  study Environmental Technology with the focus on technologies and ideas that can help their communities when they return home.  Agua Pura has been proud to help by teaching various methods of water purification and sanitation and providing supplies and support.
Each student develops a project that he or she feels will help improve the lives and health of the people of their communities. Over the two years of their program they have worked on and developed their ideas and plans for implementation when they return. Their projects include sanitation, recycling, reforestation, composting, water conservation and many other important ideas.   Their projects must meet rigorous requirements of planning, funding, monitoring and evaluation before they are approved.
 I’d like you to meet two of our recent graduates.
 Victoria comes from a small community in the southern Mexican State of Chiapas.  She is one of the first from her village to graduate from high school and the first to go on to college. She speaks Spanish and the local Mayan language and now English as well.  After two years of study in the US she now returns to her community to face difficult problems.   Her community lacks a secure, year round water supply, and so growing adequate healthy food is a problem. Purchased food supplies are expensive and of poor quality.  Poverty levels are high and one third of the children under 5 years of age are malnourished and underweight.

Vicki’s project is based on skills she learned in her Environmental Technology studies.  She plans to start a series of community gardens using modern techniques such as water recycling, composting and drip irrigation to improve the yield of the gardens.  The families will be growing healthy food for themselves to eat and also to sell in the market.  Also she is planning to start a recycling program for plastic bottles and plastic bags to increase community pride.  The money received from recycling will help pay for other improvements.
Even in a community of 100 families this will be a big project and will require outside support and help.  Agua Pura is committed to helping Vicki with resources and training and will be working with her to make her project a success.    You can see her attached poster to read more about her plans and support her directly.

Another of our graduating students is Ana, from Esteli, Nicaragua.  Again, because of her scholarship and dedication to her community she was selected to study Environmental Technology here in the United States. She was also a US nationwide finalist in the Clinton Global Initiative in Washington DC.
Esteli, Nicaragua is the third largest city in Nicaragua, but sanitation, garbage and recycling are problems there.  As a result many of the local water supplies are contaminated and choked with debris. These stagnant waters are breeding grounds for mosquitos carrying dengue, malaria and other diseases.  Ana comes from a small community of 30 families on the outskirts of the city.  
 Ana’s plan is to begin cleaning up her community by focusing on recycling reusable plastic bottles and other things that now contaminate the local environment.  By providing collection bins and organizing recycling she plans to raise money to help clean up the local water sources and reduce pollution.  Draining stagnant water will reduce the mosqitos that carry dengue and malaria.  Also, Agua Pura has trained Ana in water testing and water purification  and she will begin to monitor her local water supplies and to help reduce diarrheal disease in her community.  Again, Agua Pura is committed to supporting Ana in her work with resources and training.  You can read more about Ana’s project on her attached poster.
Your continued support of Agua Pura funds programs and projects like those of Ana and Vicki.  You always know that 100% of the money we receive goes to the families and communities we serve.
Thank you so much.
Tom Carter

If you wish to contact these students directly write to me at tom@aguapuraparaelpueblo.org

• ESTELI NICARAGUA RECYCLING PROJECT (PDF)
  
• COMMUNITY GARDEN PROJECT (PDF)