Clean Water Transforms a Family’s Daily Struggle

In a small community in southern Mexico, every day begins with a challenge for Maribel and her children.  They must fetch water for the family to drink, cook and clean with.  It can take hours to collect, and there never seems to be enough.  “From the moment the sun rises until it sets, we rely on water constantly,” said Maribel.  

Maribel gets water from an open cistern or collection pit made of concrete. The water runs off the hill and fills it.  It is often quite dirty. And collecting water involves making many trips per day, carrying full buckets that weigh up to 40 pounds each. “I carry water to fill my container outside my house. It holds about 50 gallons.”          

When the rainy season hits, the water that fills the cistern turns murky, or even brown with mud and debris. “We wait at least a day for the sediment to settle, then pour it through some cloth.  If it still looks dirty, we boil it, cause if we don’t, some of us will surely get sick.  Sometimes the water looks clean, but there’s no way to know if it’s truly safe.”

“When we are thirsty, we have to drink the water,” added Montse, Maribel’s daughter. “Sometimes we get sick from drinking it.”  

Then, thanks to YOU, Operation Blessing set up a water system, built bathrooms, and added a community storage tank with chlorination to kill bacteria.  We also ran pipes to a tank in everyone’s yard. Maribel says they now have a clean, reliable source of water every time they turn on the faucet.  “I can see the difference in my children! This clean water is changing things,” said the grateful mom.     

“Now that we have clean water, I feel much happier,” added Montse. “Thank you, Operation Blessing for helping us!”  

“There has been a very positive change in our daily lives,” said Maribel. “Thank you so much and may God bless everyone who made this water project a reality.” 

What a beautiful example of how CBN partners share the love of Jesus around the world with people in need! If you’re not yet a partner, we invite you to join us today. Help bring God’s love through initiatives like clean water wells, medical missions, feeding programs, and so much more—all in the name of Jesus! Join us today and become a part of what God’s doing through CBN partners.