Shenandoah Presbytery Sends Team to School!   Back

Consider These Facts! •97 % of the water on this planet is salty. •Of the remaining 3%, 2% is locked in the polar ice caps. •That leaves 1% of water of earth for human consumption, agricultural and industrial use. •And, half of water available for drinking and cooking is contaminated. •The effect of this alarming fact is that 3 million people each year die of water-related illness, and most are children. So, needless to say, water-related illness is the leading cause of death among children throughout the world, and dirty water is the number one health crisis in our world, and will be for the foreseeable future.       Living Waters for the World is meeting this crisis head on, with a water purification system and a learning process that is ideal for use in health clinics, churches, schools and orphanages.     By providing a system that's simple, sustainable and affordable, and by teaching local leaders to lead health, hygiene and spiritual education among the community, Living Waters for the World and its partners have been able to help those in communities with contaminated water take ownership of making their own water clean again. Harrisonburg, VA. March 21, 2004. Mac Sterrett, Rhonda Richie, and Dan Woodworth from Shenandoah Presbytery, recently attended the first ever Clean Water U, the training school of Living Waters for the World.  Living Waters for the World is the mission resource of the Synod of Living Waters of the Presbyterian Church (USA). Located at Hopewell Camp and Conference Center outside of Oxford, Mississippi, Clean Water U is a four-day simulation experience designed to equip mission teams with the skills necessary to form partnerships with communities in need of clean water.  Training included skills to install a community-based water purification system and equip local leaders to lead ongoing health, hygiene and spiritual education. The first session of Clean Water U took place on March 17-21, 2004. Fifty people representing 8 churches and mission groups from throughout the country spent four days learning this process from the ground up. "It was an exciting time together learning about how clean water can make such a difference in people's lives in so many ways," said Richie. "Our whole team is excited about the potential of this project.  We're pumped and ready to go to work," remarks Mac Sterrett, who will lead the team. Mac, Rhonda and Dan will form the core of the Shenandoah Presbytery Team.  They will be training additional team members in site and water analysis, health and hygiene and system installation.  If you are interested in being a part of this team, or can help on the newly forming Living Waters Resource Team, contact the presbytery office at (540)433-2556.