by Paul Clancy
Water!
At long last, the well we sponsored for the little community of Yayou in the remote central plateau of Haiti has surrendered the first buckets of water. And we were there. Three members of Christ & St. Luke’s Church, Paul Clancy, David Durica and Norris McClain , witnessed a joyful inauguration ceremony last week that included singing and dancing by village youth and a solemn passing of the well’s key to members of a newly formed water committee.
Then villagers trooped down the lane to the new well, and while they waited and watched, the pump handle flew and, from deep within the rocky soil, gushed forth cool and clear water. It was incredibly satisfying to see those beautiful people cheering for what they have long deserved, life-sustaining clean water.
Last year, led by Caring for Creation, we began a long fund-raising journey. With help from church youth who took a water-only pledge and played their hearts out on violins and cellos; from parishioners who took part in a plant and herb sale; who bought renewable grocery bags and water bottles; who bid and won passage on Jake Tobin’s sunset cruises; who donated long-loved items to a Recycled Treasures yard sale, and simply contributed to a great cause, we raised $15,000, the cost of planning and digging the well.
We who have such easy access to healthy water were humbled by the gratitude that was shown us and, with your help, would like to see if we can do the same thing for another community seeking a well. Caring for Creation is planning a “Wine for Water” evening on October 24 to kick off this new project. We’ll show a video we took during the ceremony at Yayou and, yes, we’ll accept contributions to help keep the water flowing.
