We Met Our Match Campaign Goal, Thanks to all of YOU!
Dear *|Fname|*,
Our March Match campaign has come to an end, and I am ecstatic to announce that we surpassed our goal, again! I’m both humbled and completely blown away by the response from our vast network of supporters. Sincerely, thank you all for coming out to support this important campaign and a very special thanks as well to Bob and Peggy Krist and Chip and Lucy Swab, our campaign sponsors, who doubled all donations made this month, helping us raise more than $20,000 in total for the fight against water scarcity and contamination in our region of Mexico and beyond. I think it’s important to take a few moments to highlight what this means to all of our community partners and the ways in which we, together, are making a difference in the lives of thousands in our watershed, creating a healthier and stronger community.
|
|
Together We’re Becoming Stronger
|
|
|
As I write this, we are currently working with 36 different communities to implement our water technologies in different ways throughout our region. Some have recently finished building rainwater systems and are waiting for the first rains to fall. Others, like a group of women in Salitrillo – a rural community located close to the Presa Allende, lacking adequate access to safe drinking water – started organizing themselves and are now actively working with us to build a total of 38 rainwater harvesting systems with our new partners Rotoplas and Planet BuyBack.
|
|
|
|
Photo: Saúl, Community Projects Coordinator at Caminos, and a group of women from the community of Salitrillo, unloading a cistern donated by PlanetBuyBack.
|
|
|
Similarly, in the community of Los Ricos, located close to Atotonilco, we are breaking ground on the first 15 rainwater systems, badly needed in the community that, despite being so close to the Laja River, has very little water access and suffers from excessive health-threatening levels of arsenic and fluoride in the water they do have. We are partnering with the Alstom Foundation for this first round of rainwater systems; however, more families are signing up as the need continues to grow; now, thanks to the success of this match campaign, we will be able to to respond to the expanded need!
|
|
|
Photo: a group of women from Los Ricos giving a workshop about water issues to their fellow community members.
|
|
|
But that’s only part of the story in Los Ricos. Over the past year, the community has been participating as the host of the first field installation of our Groundwater Treatment System (GTS) – a community-scale treatment plant to remove arsenic and fluoride from contaminated water. The volunteer group of mothers, together with our volunteer engineers and in-house Tech Team, recently participated in a series of workshops and technical trainings in order to begin transferring this technology into the hands of the women who will now run it. The women of Los Ricos are now in control of their water and the health of their children.
|
|
|
Photo: Matthieu, Research and Development Coordinator at Caminos, at a capacity training in the community of Los Ricos with the women in charge of managing the GTS.
|
|
|
Moving further up our watershed to San Diego de la Unión – a municipality north of San Miguel de Allende – the mayor is launching a three-year initiative to build hundreds, if not thousands, of rainwater harvesting systems, in collaboration with Caminos de Agua, all across the municipality. Thanks to the on-going support from you, our individual donors, we are able to respond and provide much of the coordination, community outreach, educational programing, and system materials that will expand the reach of this program and assure that it is a long-term success – providing sustainable clean water access in systems that are continuously used by thousands who most need it.
|
|
|
Photo: Caminos, SECOPA, Rotoplas, and the Mayor of San Diego de la Union developing a large-scale rainwater harvesting program.
|
|
|
In three municipalities further north, we continue working with grassroots partners CUVAPAS, SECOPA, and the San Cayetano Community Center on our on-going workshop series, known as ‘Water Learning Communities.’ More than 60 community leaders gather from across the watershed every three months to deepen their experiences regarding the water crisis and build a new generation of community organizers. These workshops are led and designed in partnership with INANA, A.C., one of our most important collaborators and experts in the “Narrative Practices” community organization model, which is utilized in these workshops. These sessions are deeply important in helping build needed capacity, awareness, and community.
|
|
|
Photos: (Top) Saúl, Community Projects Coordinator at Caminos, leading a group dynamic with some community members at Pozo Ademado. (Bottom) Carmen, leader of SECOPA, also leads a group dynamic with some community members at the SECOPA premises.
|
|
|
Our Urban Water Initiative has been making rounds in San Miguel de Allende. We are now giving workshops for both the Mexican and English-speaking public. This effort was launched in order to raise awareness of local water conditions and help people mitigate the worst effects of our water crisis. Our water is increasingly contaminated with excessive levels of arsenic and fluoride, and the urban settings are not spared. For this reason, we are now working to reach the different neighborhoods throughout our growing city and educate as many people as we can about the situation we’re living in. The culmination of this first phase of the initiative came just last week as we celebrated World Water Day by offering a series of six 2-hour workshops, offered in both English and Spanish, which took dozens of participants through our offices to learn up-close and personal about the water crisis, what we can do, the work of Caminos de Agua, and the solutions available.
|
|
|
Photos: (Top) Casilda, Social Outreach Director, and Ana, Community Organizer from Caminos de Agua, giving a workshop together with the non-profit FAI. (Middle) A group of supporters at Muriel Logan's house learning about water alternatives. (Bottom) Bruce Janklow, president of the board, and Dylan Terrell, executive director of Caminos, answer questions after a talk with some Caminos' supporters.
|
|
|
This is Just a Fraction of All We Do Together…and We’re About to Do a Lot More
We’ve said it before, but it’s more true today than ever - if it weren’t for you and your continuous support, we wouldn’t be able to do a fraction of the critically needed work we do. We cannot overemphasize how grateful we are for your generosity. It allows us to design, coordinate, and operate our different programs and projects that are making a difference in the health and welfare of real people, every day. Because of that support, we are on track to make twice the impact that we did last year (by the way a record year) – expanding clean water access to so many more people. So, I want to sincerely thank you, *|fname|*, personally for your support and helping us Do Twice the Good.
|
|
|
Sincerely,
Dylan Terrell
Executive Director
|
|
|
Copyright © 2022 Caminos de Agua, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because of your interest in Caminos de Agua.
Our mailing address is:
Caminos de Agua
José María Correa 23A
Colonia Santa Cecilia
San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato 37727
Mexico
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
