Things are going well at the Clinic with new babies arriving every month. We are planning several large projects in the near future as funds become available. It’s exciting to see how far we have come, but a little daunting to realize how much further we need to go.
At present, the majority of our staff for the Clinic have been living in patient rooms. We have grown to the point that we need to move them into the staff quarters where we have been storing the excess equipment and supplies donated last year. To that end, we are purchasing a 40’ cargo container to use for storage. Once the foundation for that is in and it has been delivered the staff quarters will be cleared and construction of sleeping quarters and a bathroom will begin. The cost of a container and foundation is around $4000. We are waiting for the estimate on what finishing the staff quarters will cost, but trust that it can be accomplished soon.
Another project that needs to be completed in the near future is plastering the wall around the compound. The heavy summer rains are taking their toll and the wall is beginning to deteriorate. The estimated cost for plastering is $3500.
We are beginning to raise money for a water purification system that will not only supply the clinic with pure water but will produce enough water that we can bottle it and sell it to the community. With the very sandy soil in Nigeria all the surface bacteria is quickly washed into the water table. Our water tests show that our well has 290 ppm of coliforms (bacteria). The accepted standard for safe drinking water is ZERO! We have to purchase all of our drinking water and water for other purposes has to be boiled to be safe. We have never visited anywhere in the country where the water from the tap was safe to drink. If we are able to sell safe drinking water it will be a profitable revenue stream to help sustain the clinic.
We have been on a tour of a factory in Rocky Ford, Colorado, that produces a solar/wind powered filtration system that would be perfect for our compound. Once the system is in place the only cost would be for bottling supplies. The filters they manufacture have been shown to last over 13 years! The cost of the system is $25,000. Shipping costs and a bottling machine would at another $5000.
We have raised about $15,000 for the water system to date. We are constantly amazed at the generosity of our donors. We will still need to raise another $25,000 to complete all the projects on our to-do list. We are trusting that these endeavors will be blessed.