Going back to Ojo de Agua

You may recall my local rotary club, Chapala Sunrise Rotary, has an ongoing relationship with the village of Ojo de Agua to address their many needs. Much has happened over the past year, and the Rotary club went back out to Ojo de Agua to meet with the local government and people and take stock.

Over the past year, local and visiting (from NOB) Rotarians have regularly visited Ojo de Agua: to meet with the people and assess their needs, to plant fruit trees in yards, to tour and better understand the area, and to repaint the town plaza and refinish the roof of the gazebo. We did all these things with the active participation of the 300 or so people of Ojo de Agua, as well as our partners in Aipromades, a local multi-city health and environmental group.

Yet the big enchilada here is the need to replace the town’s water supply. Ojo de Agua means “spring” in español, and the town is unique in that while it lies on the shores of Lake Chapala, it has a natural spring which provides clean fresh water for the town. Or at least it did provide. Over the past five years, the spring has been producing less water over fewer months per year, leaving the townsfolk high and dry, dependent upon water trucks from the local government, buying garrafons from visiting vendors, or drinking coca cola. Coca cola, or coca as the locals call it, is the bane of Mexico, the drink of choice and a major contributor to obesity and childhood diabetes.

First the Chapala Sunrise Rotary Club helped the locals build a retention water tank near the village, hoping that storing water could help alleviate the occasional outages. Which it did, but it was clear the situation was deteriorating. At about the same time (a little over a year ago–yesterday in Mexico), the local government changed party control, and the new presidente (mayor) offered to work with the Rotarians for a more comprehensive solution.

That solution evolved into a full partnership: the Poncitlán government would drill a new well for the town, near the spring. Rotary would fund another retention tank and replace/extend the distribution pipe system. Aipromades coordinated with the villagers and provided clean water & health training. And the people of Ojo de Agua would agree to change habits and drink water.

Like any such effort, it all takes time. Poncitlan drilled a well and hit clean water, but the well hole didn’t hold up — it collapsed. So they are digging another well, better prepared to prevent another collapse. Rotary clubs from across the United States and Canada visited and sent monetary support: but we still haven’t secured the final approval and matching funds from Rotary International. As a federal bureaucrat of almost forty years, I have to say that the US federal bureaucracy has nothing on the Rotarians! Aipromades is completing the training for the vilagers, and the villagers are being patient (God bless ’em).

The locals were enthusiastic for the support. They are a marginalized community, geographically isolated from their local government and traditionally ignored. At the meeting, they implored the architect to have the only access, a dirt road, re-graded and a playground built: no sense holding back when el Hefe sends his rep to town! He made some phone calls, and promised to have the equipment on site soon, with the new well drilling to begin mañana (or next week).

All said, the kids had a great time demonstrating their knowledge of hand -washing and how germs spread, and the adults were satisfied our partnership continues to mature and progress. Patience is always a virtue; it’s also a necessity in Mexico and bureaucracy!