A Year Later: "So happy and grateful"

When the well at St. Joseph Junior Secondary School dried up, it left almost a thousand students and teachers without water for drinking, cleaning, or handwashing. And when the well did work, its water was often contaminated.

"Before, this water point was seasonal," said principal Erica Kotio, whom we interviewed both before and after the well was rehabilitated. "It [would dry] up during the dry season. Water would not be available to use. Sometimes, the water point [would] break down twice in a month. In fact, the water was not pure to drink."

But since we helped to rehabilitate the school's well last year, all of the struggles the school used to experience with water are in the past.

"The water is pure to drink, and I can wash my hands frequently," Erica said. "The staff and pupils are so happy and grateful for the water point [you have] done for the school."

Erica has confidence in the water's cleanliness and the well's functionality because of our field staff and their regular visits.

"[We] appreciate the effort of the staff who visit from time to time to make sure that the tap is handled well," Erica said. "The water point is monitored. They do chlorination and do water quality testing for us. Also, the water point is safe and pure to drink."