Tuesday dawned bright and cool in Fort Portal, Uganda. The team seemed to have adjusted to the time zone change with everyone getting a reasonable number of hours of sleep. After a hearty Ugandan breakfast, Aloysius arrived to bring the team to Buheesi. The first stop was a proposed site for a third Well Spring of Blessings . This is a reminder that the Well Spring of Blessings continues to be committed to supporting Buhessi in a variety of ways. Future projects are still under consideration for the coming years. In collaboration with the village leaders, it seems like it is time to commit to the building of the new well!
The site for the future well is in a different region of the village from the other two wells. The team drove off the main dirt road onto a small path. They parked the car and took off down a series of paths to get to the proposed well location. They met many villagers along the way, including a man that was carrying his lunch on his head!
The alternative source of water was a seasonal stream that flowed from the Rwenzori Mountains. The stream flows and dries up dependent on the amount of rainfall in the region. When the stream is not present the villagers have a long distance to walk to collect water from other sources. Even if the stream is present the water does not appear to be safe to drink. At the site of this future well there were many villagers who had come bearing their large jugs to draw water from the nearby stream. However, a dead snail in the water and our guide’s acknowledgement that frogs, snails and other wildlife regularly were found dead in the water, were an indication of the water’s poor quality. There was also a stench in the air from the water. It was difficult to imagine using this unreliable water source as a water source for our families. Output from the nearby livestock did not help matters any.
The proposed site was nice an flat and the path to the site was flat as well. This will ease the movement of drilling equipment to the worksite.
The nearby villagers quickly congregated when the team arrived and they were all very excited to hear about the promise of a future well close to their homes. They wanted to know when it would be installed, and they were very grateful that we wanted to help improve the very basics of life. As the team returned to their vehicle to continue on to the school there was a strong determination to bring the well on-line as quickly as possible.
wellspringofblessings.com 