Haiti Clean Water

 

 

 

When Past President David Arndt was Club President in 2004-2005, he was introduced to a clean water program called Haiti Outreach. He was called to action and brought the idea of partnering with Haiti Outreach to our club.  Haiti Outreach was started in 1997 by a group of volunteers in Minnesota and a young man from New York state who moved to Haiti eight years earlier, when he was 23 years old, and stayed to make a difference. Beginning with just one half-time employee in Haiti, Haiti Outreach now has 46 employees, 44 of which live there. Since then, they have raised over $12 million to work with the people of Haiti to create sustainable projects that improve their lives.

 

The first year the Janesville Noon Rotary Club partnered with Haiti Outreach, we "passed the hat" and raised enough to drill a well in Haiti.  David Arndt and fellow Rotarian Bob Kimball, along with Rotarians from Minnesota and the Haiti Outreach crew, went to Haiti to help build this well.  Since then, David Arndt and several other Janesville Noon Rotarians have made several trips back to Haiti and have raised money to build a number of wells.  Rotarians continue to support this great cause and try to make a trip to Haiti every two or three years.  The last trip was in 2019. 

 

On our most recent trip, we saw first hand how Haiti Outreach has developed a sustainable model that teaches communities to pay for and maintain their own wells, creating ownership and Clean Water for Life. With ownership comes responsibility and respect for the well that is drilled for them.  The process to get a well installed is a lengthy process that works to educate the people on the importance of clean safe water and it all starts with sanitation.  While conditions are still third world, Haiti Outreach and those that partner with them like Janesville Noon Rotary are making a difference in people's lives, one well at a time. The opportunity and experience to go to Haiti and experience this first hand is truly eye opening and a life changer.