Rotarians continue work bringing water to Africa

January 25, 2011

By PAUL SIMS
sdnnews@bellsouth.net

The region Starkville Rotarians share with 43 other clubs is continuing its focus of helping to bring clean water to people in various parts of Africa.
Bill Boykin of Greenville, the District 6820’s water chair, spoke to the local club Monday about the latest effort to rid communities in the east African nation of Malawi of deadly water sources.
Boykin further explained the latest effort after Monday’s meeting.
The focus this year is on digging about 25 wells at a cost of about $2,500 per well, Boykin said.
He explained the need by saying people in the villages there dig holes to obtain water which is unclean and leads to a mortality rate of 115 per 1,000 live births for children under age 2.
The rate of death among village populations can be 25 percent a village because of the polluted water, he said.
Starkville Rotarian Zach Rowland also provided a recap after the meeting about last year’s effort.
The focus of attention and fundraising in 2010 for District 6820 was in the Ngushishi region of Kenya.
Boykin said the effort district-wide raised more than $20,000, with about $10,000 of it coming from the Starkville Rotary Club.
The effort provided money for pipes to supply water directly to villages, catch basins, metering systems and tanks, Rowland said.
For information, send Boykin an e-mail via billboykin@gmail.com or call him at (662) 820-0487.