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Each year we go to Africa, I feel like another lesson awaits. Sure, we’re new to this whole adventure, learning so many new skills with each year and each drilling experience, but this year’s lessons we’ll never forget. We will take the knowledge that we’ve learned with us in each project as we move forward.
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Last year we began drilling in a village called Kibebe, a place, like all the others, that was in dire need of water. When we first met with the community they seemed excited at the prospect of having access to clean water, but in a way they didn’t take us seriously. Think about it; there are thousands of organizations that make promises and appeals but yet never seem to deliver… what made us different to these people?
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Their expectations of a Western non-profit became apparent when we all learned that the well we drilled last year broke down. The company we hired locally to fix it, was stalling and putting off it’s repairs, thus making it very difficult for us to maintain and manage. The bore-hole wells are in fact a blending of intricately laid pipes and parts, and just like any machine, is subject to breaking down. In Africa the breaking down of these parts is nothing new. Across the continent there are literally THOUSANDS of abandoned, broken down wells that, at some point, were neglected to get repaired by either the group that placed them there or people in the community. This is due to lack of funds for new parts. So when our well broke down and the local company who we hired to fix it kept stalling it’s repair, we realized the importance of putting the power to repair these pumps directly in the communities hands.
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The broken well threw a wrench in our schedule, but we, along with our 3 volunteers, stayed in Kibebe, helping a small group of men from the community work through the night until it was finished. It took a few days, but the outcome and lessons learned were immeasurable; if every problem that arises has to be dealt with by an outside party, whether it be us or a local repair shop, the people in the community will constantly be put at the mercy of their time. So why not create a group of individuals within the community that we could train to know these pumps inside and out? Why not make them accountable for the upkeep instead of placing the responsibility on an outside party?
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That, to me, is what true empowerment is. Give a person the ability to help themselves instead of just giving a handout. Putting the people in control is the first step to gaining this empowerment and growth within each community.
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-Alexi Panos
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As most of you already know Quiksilver Women’s honors and supports leaders who are characterized as “independent, creative, effortless sexy and timeless.” Now insert, Alexi Panos and Tennille Amor, two QSW ambassadors who both embody the passion, personality and spirit we at Quiksilver love and embrace! For the past year QSW has been partners with these two incredible women in their efforts to bring change to the people in Africa. Through their non-profit Organization E.P.I.C., Everyday People Initiating Change, Tennille and Alexi travel to Tanzania, Africa consistently to drill sustainable water wells and teach the people there the importance of hygiene and sanitation. Being partners with E.P.I.C., QSW will continue to donate 3% of our T-Shirt sales to the drilling of these wells. We are pleased to say that under E.P.I.C. two wells have already been completed and more are in the process of being developed.
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Because it is important for us to show you exactly what is going on when these two girls travel to Africa, for the next couple of weeks this blog will be presenting Blog entries from both Tennille and Alexi telling us of their travels. These entries will inform you of the real struggles these girls face while over in Tanzania, and the satisfaction it brings when one gives back. We hope their stories will open up a sense of compassion within and help drive all of our readers to help support their very special cause.
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To donate directly to E.P.I.C. click here!

 

Alexi, Tennille and Jen gave up ten days of their summer to bring life to a small town in Tanzania and in return their lives were impacted greatly. Here is their story!

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Alexi describes the hardships these families face just to have water, and how much we take for granted here in America.

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Over the years, Tennille and I have seen a share of hardships that the people in Tanzania live with; from drinking from a swamp like hole in the ground, to walking HOURS for water from a filthy river, but today paled in comparison.

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Today we saw a group of women, all with their buckets in line, gathered around a hole no more than 6 or 7 feet deep, waiting.  As we got closer, that hole contained inside of it a small “spring” of water about 12 inches in diameter.  Now when I say “spring” please don’t confuse it with the “spring” water that all of our fancy bottled waters come from.  And it’s certainly not flowing as you would expect a spring to flow.  It was a measly little puddle, and a muddy one at that.  THIS was their water source.  When we got there it was about 1:30pm, and we found out that the woman who just put the last cup’s worth of water into her bucket had been filling that single bucket since 7:30am!

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The average African FAMILY uses five 20L buckets of water PER DAY.  The AVERAGE AMERICAN (that means ONE person, people!) uses the equivalent of 400 20L buckets per day!  WOW.   (I bet if we had to walk for our water and carry it back on our heads bucket by buckets we wouldn’t use as much!)

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Jen fills us in on what it these women go through everyday just to have water in their homes.

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Today we went to Mangalali, the village where the well was built last summer with donations from Quiksilver Women’s eco-friendly product revenue, as well as private donations raised by E.P.I.C. We began the morning by meeting some local women at the well. They brought us buckets and took us to the Ruaha River where they used to gather water before the well was dug.  It was a beautiful walk due to the natural untouched landscape; however, this walk can be very dangerous for women and children walking alone.  Many have been raped along this route. After about 45 minutes, we arrived at the river with our buckets in hand. The water was so dirty it look brown and very cloudy.  We picked up the buckets we had filled with water from the river and placed them on top of our heads.  My bucket was the same size most children carry, holding 10 liters of water, half the size the mamas carry!  It was so heavy that I needed help placing it on my head.

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This walk was an eye-opening experience to say the least. My neck was hurting, my shoulders and the top center of my head.  At one point, I was holding the bucket with one hand and the back of my neck with the other.  I heard a giggle from one of the mamas because she saw me holding my neck.  I wanted to give up to stop the pain, but I knew I had to complete the walk without putting the bucket down.  If these women did this every day 3-4 times a day, I had to do it at least once.

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Tennille describes how much joy a clean water well brings to a village in Tanzania.

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One of the most memorable experiences of the trip for me was going to Mangalali, a very rural village in Iringa, about eight hours away by bus from where we were staying in Kawe.  Mangalali is where we drilled our second well, with the help of the royalties from QSW.

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The well at Mangalali was incredible to see, especially after knowing how much it is needed there!  The people in the village have taken such pride in it too, and have already built a wall around it in order to protect it, and were digging a drainage system for it as well while we were there.  We are so proud of everything they have been doing in order to properly maintain both the hand-pump, and the well itself, so we feel very confident that it will provide the people with all of their water needs for many years to come!

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It is impossible to come here without realizing how necessary it is to keep doing what we have been doing, in order to provide as many villages as we possibly can with sustainable access to safe, clean water.  Water here really is more important than gold, it is life, and to be able to give life to people who truly cherish it, is the greatest gift of all.

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Our girls, Alexi and Tennille of E.P.I.C. (Everyday People Initiating Change) recently set out on an adventure to  continue their mission to drill clean, sustainable water wells in communities that don’t have access to clean water. Inspired by our E.P.I.C women, Jen Barrios of Quiksilver, felt a desire to join in on the efforts and booked a ticket to join them in Africa.

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Three women willing to give up their free time and comforts of home to make a difference – AMAZING! Over the next few days we will get to hear some of their stories and find out what they were feeling on this E.P.I.C. adventure.

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Let’s tune in to their initial thoughts as they began their quest.

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Jen

“I’m due to arrive in Dar Es Salaam tomorrow afternoon.  I have a layover in Dubai and I’m sitting in my hotel room thinking to myself…I’ve read about so many people doing amazing things, volunteering their time to help strangers, and I’ve always had great respect for them, admired them for leaving what they know.  It takes courage because leaving your comfort zone can be quite scary…and to leave it for someplace halfway around the world, even more so.  I know the kind of person who can do this; I’ve just recently married one.  But even when my husband left last summer for 3 months in West Africa, I never thought that someday, I would really ever have the guts to do it.  Mind you, I’m not reaching so far out my comfort zone, I’m only going for 10 days, which actually bums me out because I’m not sure I can honestly see and feel, truly understand the people I’m going to learn from in such a short amount of time.  But this is my opportunity, so no matter how short, I’m going to take it all in, let them into my heart, and see what I can take back with me to share with everyone at home.”

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Alexi

“Our fourth year in Tanzania… I can’t believe that we’re here again.  It seems every year times goes a little faster, and the days in between trips grow shorter and shorter.  I have mixed feelings as we enter our “Africa home” in Kawe, Tanzania: anxious, excited, tired and (always) hungry.

We have a lot to do this trip: drill a well at Kibebe Village and hopefully one in Kibaha Village (if the hydro-geological test says we can find water!), conduct our hygiene and sanitation program with both the kids and adults of Mangalali Village (the site of our water well from last summer) AND scope out some new villages for next year!  (And I must add, I’m quite excited to bust out the “good teeth” – “bad teeth” sock puppets Tennille and I made during our hygiene program!)”

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Tennille

“When we pulled into Kawe, feelings of excitement filled me as I anticipated seeing everyone again!  First there was Babu, sitting outside his shop, awaiting our arrival.  The children in the neighborhood all greeted us with enthusiastic cries of, “Wazungu! Wazungu!” which means, “white people” in Swahili!

In Tanzania, life is about love, and respect for the community.  It is about fulfilling basic needs, and coming together in order to survive.  We come here to help in whatever small ways we can, but each time we come, we remember that they do so much more for us than we could ever do for them.  I am forever indebted to them for opening my eyes up to what really matters in life, and I hope that I will never forget!”

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More on http://www.epicthemovement.org/

Having first bonded over their love for music, Tenille and Alexi later came to find that their vision for the world and long-term goals were also similar. While watching a  program about the growing problems in Africa, they came up with the idea of E.P.I.C (Everyday People Initiating Changes) and the concept that people of every age, race, creed or social status have the ability to change the world for the better every day in whatever they choose.