One Hundred Twenty-Eight Thousand, Seven Hundred and Fifty Feet
That's more than 24 miles! Why is that significant?
Our Pat Drill rigs arrived in two containers, shiny and new, ready to take on the tough climate, hard rock and sticky mud of the Sudanese soil.
Since that first training well was completed on July 28, 2008, those two rigs have each hammered 6” round holes more than 12 miles into the ground.
That's more than 24 miles altogether!
As we approach our 10 year anniversary, we’re not just celebrating the first borehole we drilled in July 2008. We’re celebrating the tenaciousness of the people of South Sudan. People like Baraka.
I don’t remember when I first met Baraka; it feels like he has always been there with that big smile on his face, working from sun-up till long after sundown.
“We lost our second child,” he will tell you matter-of-factly while introducing his 8 children. Only later, while sitting under the mango tree for tea, would you find out that his child died in his arms, sick with malaria; an easy fix if only there had been money and medicine in those days.
Baraka has been working on the Water is Basic drilling crew since he helped unload the rigs when they first arrived from Thailand. A driver, problem solver and endlessly positive influence, Baraka is the kind of man that makes every team better.
Baraka never had a chance to attend school, but he is sharp as a whip and industrious. He bought a car that he rents out, built several small houses with his own hands and rents those out as well. Not one of his 8 children has missed a day of school from lack of school fees.
Crucial to his life and theirs is the regular paycheck he has received for 10 years for drilling and repairing water wells. It turns out drilling wells has an impact far beyond just water.
But 10 years of drilling boreholes and restoring wells has taken a toll on our equipment. Our compressors are both dead, and our rigs need complete overhauls.
As we gear up for another decade of service, we invite you to invest in the lives of people like Baraka and his family by contributing to our #Quench Campaign.
All money raised through #Quench will go toward refurbishing and purchasing equipment needed to continue drilling boreholes and restoring wells.
We have given water to more than 1,000,000 over the last 10 years, and we want to give it to another 1,000,000 people.
Will you help Baraka continue quenching the thirst of people in South Sudan so they can rebuild their lives and rewrite their futures?
If we raise $130,000 by July 28, 2018, we can not only continue to repair one well a day, but we can get back to drilling new boreholes again bringing clean water to hundreds of thousands of victims of war and conflict.
With your help, we know we can reach our goal. It’s that simple.
Please, help us #Quench the thirst of the people of South Sudan for another decade by making your donation today. Don’t wait, don’t worry about the size - together we can make this next decade a reality.
With gratitude,
Steve Roese
P.S. We couldn’t have impacted a million people over the last 10 years without the support of thousands of people just like you, giving what they can. Thank you for your commitment to Water is Basic and your compassion for the people of South Sudan. We look forward to another decade of service with you!
