Water for Life (WFL) International is happy to announce the completion of 100 wells serving people in remote villages of northwest Guatemala. This milestone was passed at the end of the drilling season in April 2017. This means nearly 30,000 people are drinking water every day as a result of the efforts of this charity based in Spokane, Wash.
The well drilling began 14 years ago as a result of the donation of a drilling rig by a Mennonite family drilling company in Silverton, Ore. Through the blessings of God, the endeavor has grown into an organized charity with 501(c)(3) status in the United States and a nonprofit corporation in Guatemala with nongovernmental organization (NGO) status with the government in Guatemala.
Water for Life has a growing presence in the Peten region and works closely with the ministry of health in the region and the government hospital.
The ministry of health director says they can tell the child mortality rate is down in the area and the general health of the people is better as a result of the accessibility of clean water to drink.
The majority of wells are hand pumps because they are placed in regions where there is no power. Villagers are happy to have the safe water and will walk long distances to get to the pumps. The wells are always placed on public property, in churchyards or with landowners who commit to making the water freely available to the public. Water for Life employees in Guatemala maintain the wells and pumps year-round to keep the water available.
Providing water to improve life is a natural platform for delivery of the gospel. As the water is provided, the hearts of the people are open to the message of a loving God and Bible truths from the health teams of nursing or dental professionals providing free basic health care and literature in these villages. Eventually mission groups from organizations like Upper Columbia Conference build churches. So far, 14 churches have been built in the area near Water for Life headquarters, and hundreds of people have been baptized in the region.
In one village recently, an entire congregation of another Christian church became convinced of the truth of the Sabbath and began to worship on the Sabbath as a result of WFL evangelism efforts in the area.
Tim Rasmussen, Water for Life International president and chairman
