Nicaraguans benefit from Rotary projects The La Palma Water Project costing $65,000 provides clean water to the small village in north central Nicaragua which has a deep well, but does not have a distribution system.
Victor-Farmington Rotary Club (New York, US – D 7120) recently commenced another international project.
The La Palma Water Project will involve a $65,000 effort to provide clean water to the small village of La Palma in north central Nicaragua.
The village has a deep well, but does not have a distribution system.
The Rotary project will supply a pump and chlorinator, tank and distribution piping to run water to homes in the village.
La Palma is a village of approximately 700 people, with two schools and a large health outpost.
Villagers will dig trenches and lay distribution piping to their homes.
A community group will manage and maintain the well and equipment. Each home will receive a spigot outside its front door.
Karen Parkhurst, secretary of Victor-Farmington Rotary, previously initiated several similar projects in Nicaragua.
The club endorsed the idea of going forward with the project. The Rotary Club of Esteli, Nicaragua, will act as a partner to monitor on-site progress.
The club commenced a fundraising project in support of the project that secured financial support from District 7120 Rotary clubs.
Victor-Farmington Rotary secured a corporate donor, and will utilise Rotary District 7120 designated funding and a Rotary Foundation grant to help finance the project.
In recent years, Victor-Farmington Rotary initiated projects in Nicaragua that provided solar ovens to the village of El Sauce, solar electric panels to the village of Ocotal and a water distribution system to the village of Salales.
These projects are representative of the direct impact a local Rotary club can have on impoverished people in distant locations.
Victor-Farmington Rotary developed international contacts throughout the Rotary world, many through participation in the District 7120 Milt Matthews Governor-elect Hospitality programme.
The club annually hosts incoming governors from around the world to spend a week in the local community learning about life in the US and educating Rotarians on issues of concern to them.
In January 2018, Victor-Farmington Rotary will host incoming Rotary governors from India and England.
Contacts developed through the programme resulted in a recent Rotary project in El Paraiso, Paraguay, that provided a modern farm tractor to indigenous farmers.
The club worked with the Rotary Club of Asuncion, Paraguay, and a Rotary club in Munich assisted by funding provided through Rotary Foundation.
In the La Palma project, the club secured financial support from the Rotary clubs of Asuncion, Paraguay; Posadas Norte, Argentina; Posada Oeste, Argentina; Formosa, Paraguay; and Encarnacion, Paraguay, all directly connected to the club’s involvement in the District 7120 Rotary Milt Matthews Governor-elect.
The combination of community service projects, both locally and internationally, are in furtherance of the club’s commitment to the Rotary motto of “Service Above Self.”
Source: Daily Messenger
