First Christian Church of Edmund, Oklahoma works with Water4 and the CDCC
First Christian Church of Edmund, Oklahoma works with Water4 and the CDCC
First Christian Church
Edmund, Oklahoma
A dedicated core group of people from First Christian Church, Edmond (FCC Edmond), Oklahoma, were inspired by the work of the non-profit organization Water4. Water4 has developed an innovative way of drilling wells manually across the globe that uses locally-sourced materials and produces wells that are easy to maintain and repair. Water4 provides the initial drilling equipment and then they train a team of local people to drill and erect wells. All of the drilling equipment remains for the locally-trained team to continue drilling and installing wells.
Water4 has had great success in a number of places in Africa and around the world. A mission group from First Christian Church Edmond wondered if Global Ministries might be interested in pursuing working with Water4. A representative from Water4 attended the 2013 General Assembly in Orlando, Florida, and met with a number of Global Ministries international partners, including representatives from the Disciples of Christ Community in the Congo (CDCC), who were particularly interested in the possibilities. The CDCC sent a member of the CDCC project development office to participate in a Water4 training session on the other side of Congo close to Lubumbashi in October 2013. He and the CDCC as a whole were impressed with the possibilities this project offers for the Disciples Community in the Equator Province where access to safe, clean drinking water is a critical need.
The passion and excitement of the folks at FCC Edmond to accompany and support this process continued to grow and they organized themselves into Disciples4Water. A group of 10 people from FCC Edmond will accompany trainers from Water4 to Congo for three weeks in October 2014 to train a team of Congolese in the well-building. Following the training the CCDC team will be left with the drilling equipment and pumps to continue with the drilling of an additional 20 wells initially. They will be able to access all the remaining needed equipment locally, and the wells will be able to be maintained and repaired locally. The drilling equipment which will be brought to Congo will fit into 5 duffel bags, and thus will be able to be transported by canoe to remote areas easily.
At the conclusion of the training, the CDCC will be enabled to facilitate access to low-cost, safe, clean driving water in communities throughout the Equator Province. The average cost estimate of each well is $1,000, and aside from the drilling equipment the only additional part which will initially come from outside is the pump which is small and lightweight and only costs about $80 each.
Disciples4Water is committed to continuing their involvement with this ministry with their support and accompaniment, and Global Ministries deeply appreciates their initiative in this emerging partnership between the CDCC, Disciples4Water, Global Ministries and Water4.