Seventy-year old Ann Adoyole lives in a tiny village in one of Kenya’s dustiest, most arid regions: West Pokot County. Along with other women and girls in her community, she has spent most of her life searching for and fetching water for her family. Then suddenly, in late 2013, everything changed…!
What a difference Ann and the other villagers see today!
In late 2013, Operation Eyesight drilled a borehole which provides clean, safe water to everyone at Kalemungorok. For Ann and the rest of the community, the borehole is a blessing.
“It is like a new dawn for me! We can easily access the water for drinking, cooking and for bathing. I want to be as clean as government officials, clean and smart,” she says, adding that before the borehole, the only time she wore clean clothes was when the clothes were new. Only occasionally did she risk bathing in the river, fearing attacks from crocodiles.
Today, Ann and her community not only have water for household use but also for their herd animals. All their water containers are filled to capacity at all times! Both girls and boys can easily access water, leaving more time to study. The community and schoolchildren at Kalemungorok have been sensitized to the need to observe personal hygiene, with an emphasis on keeping their eyes clean to avoid the infection of trachoma.
Ann is still in disbelief because she never thought she it would be so easy to access water. She thought she was condemned to a life with no water. This is not true anymore.
“It is like living in a dream!” she says. “Thank you!”
In 2011, Operation Eyesight began to implement a trachoma elimination project in Pokot with the goal of eradicating blinding trachoma. In late 2013, Operation Eyesight drilled a borehole at Ngo’tut, which is fully equipped and operational, and drilled a second borehole at Ann’s village, Kalemungorok. If you’d like to learn how you can help sponsor a well in the Pokot region, please contact us at 1-800-585-8265.