Welcome to Water For Life (www.H2OforLife.org)


	REPORTS Spring 2007 This year marked the completion of a major project at the Orphanage and school campus of International children’s Care in Poptun, Guatemala. This was made possible through the generous donation of a set of steel forms by Mt Baker Silo Company of Bellingham Washington. The kind folks at Mt Baker gave us the forms and just as important, allowed our volunteers to watch and learn as they used the techniques on construction projects here in Washington. This gave our crew first-hand experience with the planning and construction of these water storage reservoirs. These are not simple structures. They are twenty feet in diameter and twenty feet high. Each contains 10,000 lbs of steel rebar and used more than 400 bags of concrete. They sit on bases 24 feet in diameter that are 14 in thick. The walls are 6 in thick. Each is fully enclosed without any possible avenue for the snakes, bats, bugs, and other critters that slither, crawl and fly everywhere in the jungle in that area. They are connected to the campus infrastructure by 4 in water lines. They have valves so they can be filled simultaneously or separately as needed. The tanks have a float that operates a solar-powered radio-controlled switch that controls the pump at the well as the water is used. The construction techniques used were a bit more primitive than here in the States. There was no redi-mix truck to deliver concrete of just the correct specification. There were no engineers conducting slump tests as the concrete on the project was poured. The concrete was mixed in small gas powered mixers, usually 3 or 4 depending on how many we could get and how many were working at the time. There is no equipment rental store to visit if a piece of equipment gives out. You just make do with what you have and what you can make work. This can be critical. The slab and each pour of the walls must be continuous without any “dry joints” that will leak. The workers were a combination of students and volunteers from Spokane. The Foreman was Lynn Bartholomew and the Construction Superintendent was our heavenly Father. The project was completed without serious injury to any one and the tanks are serving their intended purpose of storing the clean water that comes from the earth as a result of the generous hearts of many people. Winter 2006 On December 7, 2005, a container was loaded at the Bartholomew’s yard and headed to Poptun, Guatemala. It contained a well service truck, steel forms for a concrete water reservoir, generators, spare drilling tools, a spool of cable and other equipment; 40,000 lbs in all! The container’s journey was long and difficult. It went by truck to Seattle, then by rail to Long Beach, then by a ship of the Maersk line to Guatemala and then by truck again to Poptun. The transit was to take about 3 weeks. The container was not delivered until January 17^th due to “problems” with paper work; issues between the main office of the shipping company and the Guatemala office. After days of negotiation, faxes back and forth and the payment of some “adjustments”, the container was released. All cargo was intact. Lynn Bartholomew immediately set to work placing steel forms on the concrete pad which had previously been constructed. After 2 days of hard work the forms were ready, but the weather was not. Rain every day disrupted the schedule. Lynn decided the best course of action was to wait until April for the pouring of the walls. While Lynn had been working hard on the reservoir project, Gary Bartholomew and volunteer Brian Bot of Halifax, Nova Scotia, worked drilling a well on Los Pinos property. The drilling went well until at 280 feet the cable broke a few inches above the thimble. They prayed and then went “fishing”. They were able to extract the tools. They declared that hole completed and the rig was driven to the shop for some maintenance. After some repairs the rig was driven 10 miles to Ixobel, a “suburb” village of Poptun. (If “suburb” can describe 300 homes and hovels with no water or sanitary facilities of any kind) You can see things swimming in the only water that is available outside of a bottle. The mayor of Poptun indicated he wanted the well to be near the new school and assisted us by providing security for the rig at night and support during the day with water, soda pop, food, shade and interest. Men carried the bailed water away in order to keep the drill site dry and clean as possible. The mayor has promised to pay for casing and a pump. As of this writing the drill is at 187 feet in limestone that does not have the clay layers we have seen previously. The well is cased to 120 feet with steel. There is plenty of water in the hole. Yesterday 43 feet was drilled. A good day in the life of a 1942 GMC 22W rig far from it’s Oregon home in the highland jungle of Guatemala. Fall 2006 At the date of this writing in early December 2006, the pace of preparations at the Bartholomew shop and yard is hectic. The new rig is being prepared. Tool boxes are being built and steel covers on all tanks and tool boxes and compartments. The propane engine on this rig makes it very useful as propane is easily obtained in Guatemala and a cover has been fashioned to prevent theft of propane. The brakes were checked and repaired by our mechanic Frank Clark, and all changeable fuels and lubricants were changed. At the same time a container is being filled with drilling steel tools, pump wire, pumps and electric equipment and boxes and boxes of items destined for the orphanage campus. A special friend of the project, Mr. Willis Robinson of Spangle Washington, has offered to transport the high-cube container from Spokane to Galveston for the cost of fuel. This kind assistance allows us to stretch our dollars and makes the project possible. Another friend, Tom Richardson of H2o Drilling in Hayden Idaho, delivered his contribution. A brand new, in the box, Lincoln Welder! This generous gift completes the tools on the rig and will give many years of good service. Two weeks ago, I was in Guatemala and visited with the Mayor of Poptun. He reported that our well in Ixobel had been tested by the authorities in Guatemala City and found to be capable of producing 300 gals/min. He was very happy. He intends to hook it to the plumbing infrastructure that is being installed in the Sante Fe and Ixobel area. I spoke with him about whether he could help us get the rig and the container into the country without paying duty. He promised his help and said that he would take the documents to his contact with the secretary of the President. He said that it would be possible to get them in to the country without paying duty. I also told the mayor that we plan to begin two wells in January. We look forward to a good drilling season with several volunteers who learned about this project through this publication. Summer 2006 Preparations are underway at the Bartholomew yard for the drilling season in Guatemala. The new to us but used rig is being readied for shipment. A large tool box is being built to go behind the cab of the truck. It looks like a sleeper on an 18 wheeler, but it is very necessary for security. The rig is being checked from top to bottom and repaired as necessary. We are collecting tools and equipment for shipment in the container that will accompany the rig to Guatemala. A generous supporter, Don Bean of Pacific Northwest Supply, has given us 1500 ft of #6 submersible wire for the wells and Tom Richardson of H2O Drilling has provided a welder for the rig. These generous men have helped us preserve the funds we have by their donations. We have promised help from a few drillers who will be coming to Guatemala to help for a couple of weeks at a time and we look forward to what we can accomplish with their help and the blessings of God. It is our intension to drill at a hospital in Belize near the Guatemala border. They are desperate for good water and they can help defray the costs of a well. With the new rig being more road-worthy than the 1946 GMC 6x6, we can more easily travel to meet specific needs such as this. We intend to ship the rig and the container in early December to be ready to drill in early January. Spring 2006 The GWP is happy to report the progress of this last winter’s drilling Project and the prospects for the coming season. This past season saw the completion of the drilling on the International Children’s Care campus, completion of one of the concrete water storage reservoirs, and the completion of a well in Ixobel, a village outside of Poptun. As a result of the generosity of Mt Baker Silo Company of Bellingham, Washington, who donated the steel forms, we were able to construct a 20 ft diameter by 20 high concrete water tower. It was completed in two visits by Lynn Bartholomew and his faithful volunteers from the Spokane Area with local help from students and workers. It was a big project, with the base pour being 18 yards mixed in three mixers. And then subsequent 12 yard pours for each time the forms were raised higher. No one got hurt, and the project was completed without incident. The GWP was blessed by a grant from a Christian organization of businesspeople with $30,000.00, to devote to further work in Guatemala. With this money we will ship a newer drilling rig which we have to support further drilling efforts in the villages around the area of Poptun, Guatemala. We will also purchase supplies and equipment that we cannot obtain in Central America. Please help us. We need money for fuel for the drilling and we need to buy many items that are necessary to support out project. Most of all, we need people who are willing to pray for our efforts and we invite anyone who feels willing, to come and help us drill. We offer a life changing experiences. Not just the lives you change by giving them water, but your own, as you see the difference you can make in the world. Winter 2005 The yard and the shop at the Bartholowmew’s in Spokane during November and December was a busy place. The stockpile of items to be shipped was growing. Each item shipped has to be labeled, inventoried, and weighed. The gas tanks have to be drained on all motors. The tool stems were checked and thread protectors fashioned. As the pile grew, weight became a primary consideration because shipping container capacity was limited to 44,000 pounds. Some decisions on what to take could not be made till the last moment. Finally the container arrived and on one long cold day was loaded with 40,000 pounds of tools, generators, forms, well service truck, and fire fighting gear. The container was to go by truck to Seattle then by rail to Long Beach and then on a Mersk Line ship to Puerto Barrios on the Pacific side of Guatemala then by truck to the northeast portion of Guatemala. This seems like a long and perilous journey for our precious load of material. This year’s project, in addition to the drilling, is construction of a 20ft diameter and 20ft tall concrete water reservoir. A generous friend, Scott Hamstra of Mt Baker Silo Co of Bellingham WA, donated a set of steel forms and allowed Lynn Bartholomew to gain experience with the techniques involved. The base of the tank is 24’ diameter and 1ft thick. This will be done in one pour with six small mixers and about 40 men. Another friend, Cory Startup, at Sequim Valley Pumps, donated a well service truck in good used condition. The truck will be invaluable to our project. This year’s first drilling effort will be one more well at the orphanage campus, and then we will drill in a nearby village. The village has no electricity or water. We have a 22 hp Lister diesel generator which will provide electrical power for the well pump and rudimentary other service. The villagers will build a generator house and dig trenches for the basic water service. At this writing the container is mired in the Guatemala import and customs process. But, we are confident that with God as our shipping agent, we will see the equipment delivered safely at the right time to the ICC campus.
*Copywrite 2007, Web site managed by www.arborstudio.net*

REPORTS

Spring 2007

This year marked the completion of a major project at the Orphanage and school campus of International children’s Care in Poptun, Guatemala. This was made possible through the generous donation of a set of steel forms by Mt Baker Silo Company of Bellingham Washington. The kind folks at Mt Baker gave us the forms and just as important, allowed our volunteers to watch and learn as they used the techniques on construction projects here in Washington. This gave our crew first-hand experience with the planning and construction of these water storage reservoirs.

These are not simple structures. They are twenty feet in diameter and twenty feet high. Each contains 10,000 lbs of steel rebar and used more than 400 bags of concrete. They sit on bases 24 feet in diameter that are 14 in thick. The walls are 6 in thick. Each is fully enclosed without any possible avenue for the snakes, bats, bugs, and other critters that slither, crawl and fly everywhere in the jungle in that area. They are connected to the campus infrastructure by 4 in water lines. They have valves so they can be filled simultaneously or separately as needed. The tanks have a float that operates a solar-powered radio-controlled switch that controls the pump at the well as the water is used.

The construction techniques used were a bit more primitive than here in the States. There was no redi-mix truck to deliver concrete of just the correct specification. There were no engineers conducting slump tests as the concrete on the project was poured. The concrete was mixed in small gas powered mixers, usually 3 or 4 depending on how many we could get and how many were working at the time. There is no equipment rental store to visit if a piece of equipment gives out. You just make do with what you have and what you can make work. This can be critical. The slab and each pour of the walls must be continuous without any “dry joints” that will leak.

The workers were a combination of students and volunteers from Spokane. The Foreman was Lynn Bartholomew and the Construction Superintendent was our heavenly Father.

The project was completed without serious injury to any one and the tanks are serving their intended purpose of storing the clean water that comes from the earth as a result of the generous hearts of many people.

Winter 2006

On December 7, 2005, a container was loaded at the Bartholomew’s yard and headed to Poptun, Guatemala. It contained a well service truck, steel forms for a concrete water reservoir, generators, spare drilling tools, a spool of cable and other equipment; 40,000 lbs in all!

The container’s journey was long and difficult. It went by truck to Seattle, then by rail to Long Beach, then by a ship of the Maersk line to Guatemala and then by truck again to Poptun. The transit was to take about 3 weeks. The container was not delivered until January 17^th due to “problems” with paper work; issues between the main office of the shipping company and the Guatemala office. After days of negotiation, faxes back and forth and the payment of some “adjustments”, the container was released.

All cargo was intact. Lynn Bartholomew immediately set to work placing steel forms on the concrete pad which had previously been constructed. After 2 days of hard work the forms were ready, but the weather was not. Rain every day disrupted the schedule. Lynn decided the best course of action was to wait until April for the pouring of the walls.

While Lynn had been working hard on the reservoir project, Gary Bartholomew and volunteer Brian Bot of Halifax, Nova Scotia, worked drilling a well on Los Pinos property. The drilling went well until at 280 feet the cable broke a few inches above the thimble. They prayed and then went “fishing”. They were able to extract the tools. They declared that hole completed and the rig was driven to the shop for some maintenance. After some repairs the rig was driven 10 miles to Ixobel, a “suburb” village of Poptun. (If “suburb” can describe 300 homes and hovels with no water or sanitary facilities of any kind) You can see things swimming in the only water that is available outside of a bottle.

The mayor of Poptun indicated he wanted the well to be near the new school and assisted us by providing security for the rig at night and support during the day with water, soda pop, food, shade and interest. Men carried the bailed water away in order to keep the drill site dry and clean as possible. The mayor has promised to pay for casing and a pump.

As of this writing the drill is at 187 feet in limestone that does not have the clay layers we have seen previously. The well is cased to 120 feet with steel. There is plenty of water in the hole. Yesterday 43 feet was drilled. A good day in the life of a 1942 GMC 22W rig far from it’s Oregon home in the highland jungle of Guatemala.

Fall 2006

At the date of this writing in early December 2006, the pace of preparations at the Bartholomew shop and yard is hectic. The new rig is being prepared. Tool boxes are being built and steel covers on all tanks and tool boxes and compartments. The propane engine on this rig makes it very useful as propane is easily obtained in Guatemala and a cover has been fashioned to prevent theft of propane. The brakes were checked and repaired by our mechanic Frank Clark, and all changeable fuels and lubricants were changed.

At the same time a container is being filled with drilling steel tools, pump wire, pumps and electric equipment and boxes and boxes of items destined for the orphanage campus.

A special friend of the project, Mr. Willis Robinson of Spangle Washington, has offered to transport the high-cube container from Spokane to Galveston for the cost of fuel. This kind assistance allows us to stretch our dollars and makes the project possible. Another friend, Tom Richardson of H2o Drilling in Hayden Idaho, delivered his contribution. A brand new, in the box, Lincoln Welder! This generous gift completes the tools on the rig and will give many years of good service.

Two weeks ago, I was in Guatemala and visited with the Mayor of Poptun. He reported that our well in Ixobel had been tested by the authorities in Guatemala City and found to be capable of producing 300 gals/min. He was very happy. He intends to hook it to the plumbing infrastructure that is being installed in the Sante Fe and Ixobel area. I spoke with him about whether he could help us get the rig and the container into the country without paying duty. He promised his help and said that he would take the documents to his contact with the secretary of the President. He said that it would be possible to get them in to the country without paying duty. I also told the mayor that we plan to begin two wells in January.

We look forward to a good drilling season with several volunteers who learned about this project through this publication.

Summer 2006

Preparations are underway at the Bartholomew yard for the drilling season in Guatemala. The new to us but used rig is being readied for shipment. A large tool box is being built to go behind the cab of the truck. It looks like a sleeper on an 18 wheeler, but it is very necessary for security. The rig is being checked from top to bottom and repaired as necessary. We are collecting tools and equipment for shipment in the container that will accompany the rig to Guatemala.

A generous supporter, Don Bean of Pacific Northwest Supply, has given us 1500 ft of #6 submersible wire for the wells and Tom Richardson of H2O Drilling has provided a welder for the rig. These generous men have helped us preserve the funds we have by their donations.

We have promised help from a few drillers who will be coming to Guatemala to help for a couple of weeks at a time and we look forward to what we can accomplish with their help and the blessings of God. It is our intension to drill at a hospital in Belize near the Guatemala border. They are desperate for good water and they can help defray the costs of a well. With the new rig being more road-worthy than the 1946 GMC 6x6, we can more easily travel to meet specific needs such as this.

We intend to ship the rig and the container in early December to be ready to drill in early January.

Spring 2006

The GWP is happy to report the progress of this last winter’s drilling Project and the prospects for the coming season. This past season saw the completion of the drilling on the International Children’s Care campus, completion of one of the concrete water storage reservoirs, and the completion of a well in Ixobel, a village outside of Poptun.

As a result of the generosity of Mt Baker Silo Company of Bellingham, Washington, who donated the steel forms, we were able to construct a 20 ft diameter by 20 high concrete water tower. It was completed in two visits by Lynn Bartholomew and his faithful volunteers from the Spokane Area with local help from students and workers. It was a big project, with the base pour being 18 yards mixed in three mixers. And then subsequent 12 yard pours for each time the forms were raised higher. No one got hurt, and the project was completed without incident.

The GWP was blessed by a grant from a Christian organization of businesspeople with $30,000.00, to devote to further work in Guatemala. With this money we will ship a newer drilling rig which we have to support further drilling efforts in the villages around the area of Poptun, Guatemala. We will also purchase supplies and equipment that we cannot obtain in Central America.

Please help us. We need money for fuel for the drilling and we need to buy many items that are necessary to support out project. Most of all, we need people who are willing to pray for our efforts and we invite anyone who feels willing, to come and help us drill.

We offer a life changing experiences. Not just the lives you change by giving them water, but your own, as you see the difference you can make in the world.

Winter 2005

The yard and the shop at the Bartholowmew’s in Spokane during November and December was a busy place. The stockpile of items to be shipped was growing. Each item shipped has to be labeled, inventoried, and weighed. The gas tanks have to be drained on all motors. The tool stems were checked and thread protectors fashioned. As the pile grew, weight became a primary consideration because shipping container capacity was limited to 44,000 pounds. Some decisions on what to take could not be made till the last moment.

Finally the container arrived and on one long cold day was loaded with 40,000 pounds of tools, generators, forms, well service truck, and fire fighting gear. The container was to go by truck to Seattle then by rail to Long Beach and then on a Mersk Line ship to Puerto Barrios on the Pacific side of Guatemala then by truck to the northeast portion of Guatemala. This seems like a long and perilous journey for our precious load of material.

This year’s project, in addition to the drilling, is construction of a 20ft diameter and 20ft tall concrete water reservoir. A generous friend, Scott Hamstra of Mt Baker Silo Co of Bellingham WA, donated a set of steel forms and allowed Lynn Bartholomew to gain experience with the techniques involved. The base of the tank is 24’ diameter and 1ft thick. This will be done in one pour with six small mixers and about 40 men. Another friend, Cory Startup, at Sequim Valley Pumps, donated a well service truck in good used condition. The truck will be invaluable to our project.

This year’s first drilling effort will be one more well at the orphanage campus, and then we will drill in a nearby village. The village has no electricity or water. We have a 22 hp Lister diesel generator which will provide electrical power for the well pump and rudimentary other service. The villagers will build a generator house and dig trenches for the basic water service.

At this writing the container is mired in the Guatemala import and customs process. But, we are confident that with God as our shipping agent, we will see the equipment delivered safely at the right time to the ICC campus.

Copywrite 2007, Web site managed by www.arborstudio.net