During the working weekend on 15 and 16 November, many tasks, both small and large, were accomplished. The first day started off with the yearly routine of emptying most wells and water reservoirs. This is done to prevent the pipes inserted into the water from being damaged if the water freezes and expands.

Besides drowning the grass with all this well water, the ‘boederijpomp’ next to the Crete windmill was repaired for a second time. Earlier, the pump had already been repaired, with the seals and some screws on the piston being replaced. But when the top section was again placed on the base, the mounting flange broke, preventing the top and base from being sealed together. The solution to this problem was to make a new seal with two rubber rings and a metal ring. These were made by grinding metal and cutting rubber. The only problem with this ‘fix’ is that the pump is now mounted 90 degrees off from the basin. A ‘beunhazen’ solution was to use a bicycle inner tube to guide the water into the basin.

Last on this day, the attic was cleaned. This cleaning spree consisted mostly of sweeping up a kilogram of dust, throwing away unused materials and random junk, and moving important documents downstairs to the office. Notably, amid all the mess in the attic, we found an old projector with a lot of old projector slides. So when it turned dark in the evening, we all sat together to watch these old projector slides, and it was really cool to see this time capsule of the WOT from years ago.

The next day, the decision was made to repair and replace the water pump in front of the office. The wooden parts of this pump were completely rotten through, and the pump had already broken earlier this year. Repairing the pump consisted of two parts: the pump’s metalwork and the pump’s woodwork. Starting with the pump’s metalwork, layers of old paint were stripped away from the metal body, which revealed the pump’s long and well-worn history. After welding several holes in the pipe shut, the pump was given a fresh coat of green paint, which hopefully will protect it for many years to come. For the woodworks, the wooden handle and supporting structure were replaced with new, higher-quality wood, which should last a lot longer than the old pump

Last but not least, a shelf in the kitchen cupboard had been replaced, and the newly created ‘suggestion box’ was painted.

On Saturday the 22nd of November “Stichting boot vluchteling” (the boat refugee foundation) organised a lustrum event, a series of lectures and interviews followed by an information fair in Amsterdam.

Stichting boot vluchteling is a foundation that aims to provide essential humanitarian aid to people that are stuck in refugee camps on the edges of Europe. They do this by providing physical and mental healthcare and by raising awareness and trying to influence asylum policies throughout Europe.
In the past we have had the pleasure of including two course takers from this foundation in our annual T-week where they brushed up on valuable technical skills that can greatly increase self-reliance in the field.

We were honored when they proposed we could fill a stand at their information fair. Two of our members took the trip from Enschede to Amsterdam.

We arrived after a nice drive and set up a stand. One extra thing we added to this stand was a small quiz on recognizing car fluids. We took 8 jam jars filled with different oils, fuels etc. and whoever could guess the contents right won a small prize!

All in all it was a very interesting event, we got to hear some very moving stories from both volunteers and refugees that were present and got to share our T-week experiences with new people. 

We want to thank the Boat Refugee Foundation for inviting us!

 

On the early morning of October the 11th, six determined WOT members set out on a unique challenge: walking 40 km while carrying a complete drilling setup – and then drilling a well by hand. All this to raise funds for TADEH, a charity that teaches people to drill wells, as to sustainably supply safe drinking water.

The organization began weeks in advance and included raising awareness through every available channel: Whatsapp, email, social media, newspapers, and more. A GoFundMe campaign was also set up to raise funds, and many companies contacted for sponsorships.

The walk was a great success! Heavily packed our team crossed the finish line after just over 10 hours, where they were greeted by a vast group of friends, family and other supporters. Soon after, the drilling begun. A settling pit was dug, barasol mixed, and a drilling stem prepared. The soil turned out to be soft, and before long the second and third drilling rod were added. With more stems, the work became heavier and heavier. Finally the 6th and last pipe was in place. Working in pairs now, the stem was lifted, dropped and turned gain and again… until eventually, it was all the way in.

Then all pipes were removed, and a plastic casing inserted into the freshly drilled borehole. Using a simple marble pump, the water could then be extracted from the well. What an achievement!

The event raised 5580 euros in funds for TADEH, which will be used to train people in Zambia to drill their own wells. This way, we hope to have helped bring safe drinking water to many communities.