Big Spring Water Supply Dedication

Monday morning was the official dedication and opening of the Chesterfied water supply system. Chesterfield is actually across the river from Castleton and is accessible only by a makeshift footbridge. I arrived in Castleton on Sunday night to find that footbridge washed out. Then the food for the next day arrived and we had to carry it across the river. So we began. Then it started to rain. Then it started getting dark. Fortunately all the food made it across without getting dunked or saturated. I did get saturated but at least not dunked. The next day the soon-to-be new PCVs from the wat-san sector arrived and successfully navigated the river. Of course we Chacos people had the easiest time of it. :) The ceremony started late (of course) but wrapped up early (amazingly). We did a little tour of the system. It contains 2 standpipes (one is pictured on the left), one storage tank, one entombment, and a little over a mile of pipe. Elizabeth talked about the amount of work and cooperation that had gone into it, and I gave a brief design overview. After we came back down the hillside, we were treated to a wonderful meal of curry chicken, rice and peas, boiled bananas, and boiled dumplings. Pictures from the day can be found at http://community.webshots.com/album/553395934jxyEvv (this is a different webshots account).

The trainees seemed to enjoy seeing the project, and various community members expressed gratitude for the system, which alleviates the difficulty of climbing a steep slope to get water from the spring. I didn't really feel like I had done that much. SPA grants had funded it, and Elizabeth had rallied the community through some difficult times to get the work done. In the end though, I realized it was the result of everyone's effort, and I am glad that I was a small part of that. They say more often than not we PCVs don't see or appreciate the impact that we have during our service. Now I have gotten to see a project that I worked on get completed, and for that I am most grateful.

The new group swears in this weekend. I'm going to Kingston with Jenny to see the ceremony and celebrate their milestone. Wow, I can't believe it's been a year since I first became a PCV.

Peace from MoBay,
Drew