The Rotary Club of Taylor is partnering with the Northwest Austin Rotary Club to participate in a global initiative bringing clean water to rural African communities.
The Rev. George Qualley of St. Paul Lutheran Church and the Rotary Club Foundation said, “As a smaller Rotary Club, Taylor partners with a larger club to do international projects which we could not do alone.”
The Taylor club’s contribution will help bring 13 water wells to rural Uganda, an area that currently has only 26% clean water, officials said.
Rotary is an international civic and social organization known the last 100 years for its motto, “Service above self.” Worldwide initiatives have included eradicating polio.
The local chapter’s major programs consist of sponsoring projects in seven categories, with the latest initiative falling under “water, sanitation and hygiene.”
Clubs may do local work with some Rotary funding or get involved in projects across the planet with support from the Global Grant program.
Kent Miller of the Northwest Austin Rotary Club is on the committee for global grants. He presented the water wells project to Taylor’s club during a recent meeting.
“It’s a lot more than just water wells,” Miller said. “It’s about giving life and education, creating community, building hope, giving a future and crossing international boundaries in compassionate, humanitarian work.”
Rotary International has 35,000 clubs in 220 countries with 1.2 million members.
Completing a project on the scale of the Uganda water wells requires both a host club in the country where the project is located and an international club sponsoring the majority of the fundraising.
The Rotary Club of Taylor is now on the team of the Northwest Austin Rotary Club, the international sponsor, which has raised the funds for the project with Muyenga Rotary Club of Uganda as the host club.
The Central Texas Rotary clubs partnered with two organizations that will complete the work on the wells.
The first is Water to Thrive, an Austin nonprofit that has funded and provided over 2,000 water sites in Ethiopia, Uganda and Tanzania since 2008.
The other is PaCT, or Partners for Community Transformation, located in Mityana, Uganda.
“These two organizations are cooperating agencies in the global grant project of the Rotary clubs,” Miller said. “Water to Thrive offers their expertise in oversight, guidance and evaluation of the work. PaCT does the contracting, work and training of the local community members.”
The project entails more than just providing clean water, Rotarians said.
“It’s a 15-year sustainable project that involves community development and education,” Miller said.
Goals include retaining access to safe and clean water, improving knowledge about sanitation and proper health practices and sustaining the operation and maintenance of the wells.
After approval from Rotary International, work could begin in late March or April.
The Taylor club meets noon to 1 p.m. Thursdays at Sirloin Stockade, 3607 N. Main St.
