The mango seeds Portuguese traders spread across the African continent in the 1600s continue to feed hungry stomachs, shelter peace negotiations, and provide shade for eager minds longing to learn.

When the WiB crew saw children sitting on the ground, under the mango tree in Bori Village, being taught by kind-hearted soldiers without so much as a piece of chalk, they started asking questions. These were returnees and IDPs, moms, and children, all looking to make a new start under the safety of SPLA soldiers.

For WiB reporter Joeseph, this entire experience brought back scenes from his own childhood. An orphan and the product of the kindness of others, Joeseph is passionate about education and desperately wants more for the first generation born in South Sudan. So he encouraged the team to follow up with some simple school supplies after the well was repaired.

Officially, the well repair at Bori was water project number 947. But to Joeseph, our well technicians, and supporters like you, the water point at Bori is more than just a number. It’s the well that hydrates a group of children, sitting under a mango tree, now better equipped to learn with simple tools and life-giving water.

Joseph is right, they are the next generation of leaders, and we must do ALL we can to give them ALL they need to lead well. Clean water is the first and best tool we can provide for them.

Water is STILL Basic.

For the children of Bori, thank you.

Steve

The Crew!

I was exhausted. We had $406,000 in a bank account, and I had traveled for 38 hours to see if this local team could actually make it happen. Could this really be a local solution to a local problem?

I walked into Bishop Taban's office to a room full of energy and people. I was shocked.

In that room was over 100 years of local water drilling experience. They were there to lend their backs, their cooking skills, their experiences, their everything.

Within a year, a new well was drilled and pumping out clean water. One Hundred wells later, they moved five days north to the Darfur border, and through intense heat, slim food options, and even being arrested, they drilled 100 more wells. The need at home was great, but the need north even greater.

Now with more than 1,000 water projects serving 1,500,000 people, that same crew is as grateful and determined as they were on that day in Bishop's office.

Since our very humble beginnings, this work has always been a local vision to solve a local problem. Our all-South Sudanese team has never lost hope, never given up, never stopped drilling.

Success has always been about resourcing them. Let's make sure they have everything they need to provide basic water to the next 1,500,000 of their fellow South Sudanese.

Water is STILL basic.

Steve for the Crew