SUCCESSES  :  The Call to Preach   The Call to Teach   The Call to Heal    The Call to Build

In the past the missionaries built. As a result there are literally thousands of Churches, rectories, convents, hospitals, schools, orphanages, cathedrals and a host of other buildings. These buildings house an incredible diversity of good works, from the silence of contemplative prayer to the cacophony of a multitude of small children at play; from the sounds of a carpentry shop to the syncopated beat of an African liturgy; from the soothing sounds of a hospital ward, to the lowing, squeals and crowing of a barnyard.

Today and tomorrow missionaries will continue to build but with a difference. They are trying to help a people build a community, a country, to become self-reliant. One of the most serious issues in Africa is an adequate supply of clean water. One of the most pressing issues for many missionaries is how to provide this adequate supply of clean water.

Successes:

• Mityana Water Project

  For many men, women and children living throughout Africa, the problem isn't just not having enough water to drink - but also not having CLEAN water. When a child has walked mile after mile to fetch a container full of water to bring home to his mother, he is sometimes near exhaustion. The hot sun parches his mouth and his body. As a result, the temptation to have just a sip of water before he gets home is oftentimes overwhelming. But he knows that if he drinks it before the water is boiled, he could die.

  As missionaries, we are compelled to reach out to those who have suffered so much. We are committed to caring for those who have no one to care for them . . . for our hearts ache out of love for the little children who are dying of thirst.

• Rain Harvest

  Gold, diamonds, silver, uranium - they have all been called the jewels of Africa. But at this very moment - all throughout Africa - the thing which is valued most is clean water! Without water, neither crops nor animals can survive. Without clean water for drinking and bathing, humans are doomed. Water is essential for life! That's why water projects such as the Rain Harvest system in Arua, Uganda, are so important to us. You see, as missionaries, how can we speak about life - if those whom we serve have no way to share in it?

  Rain Harvest systems allow for clean rain water to be saved during the extended rainy seasons experienced in various parts of Africa. After the rainy season has ended, the clean water is conserved in large tanks for use during the ensuing dry months. It is a simple program - but without it, too many people in Africa are dying.

• Wells for Meguet

  It is amazing how many of us take clean water for granted. Oftentimes we turn on a faucet or run the dishwasher without much thought. But in many parts of Africa, clean water is desperately valued, sought-after and urgently needed! It is a treasure that people cannot live without.

  In Burkina Faso (West Africa), Missionary of Africa priest Fr. Armand Garneau is working to bring clean water to the some of the more than 50,000 people who are a part of his parish. With the help that we are able to offer through our benefactors, Fr. Armand will be able to help the local villagers drill bore-hole wells that will tap into the abundant water supply that lies hundreds of feet beneath the earth's surface. It will be an incredible day when the people of Meguet finally get the water they need. They will be thanking God for the water . . . and for those who made the well possible!

• Water For College

  They had the energy, the strength, the desire. They had the land. But most importantly, they had a thirst - a thirst they had known too long. They just wanted to have water. It's that way with most people in Africa. For nearly all their lives, they have known what it is like to be thirsty. They are praying that one day - the constant need to be in search of clean water will come to an end. "One day," they pray, "may we know what it is like to thirst no more."

  Jesus said, "Come to me all who labor and thirst, and I will give you rest." As missionaries, we are working to bring these words to life among the African people. We are working to help end the water crisis that continues to be prevalent throughout much of Africa. We are working to help the poorest people on earth, know thirst no more.