DelAgua - Keeping water supplies safe

Lumiere is privileged to have come into contact with DelAgua Water Testing, internationally renowned for the OXFAM-DELAGUA portable water monitoring kit. DelAgua Water Testing Limited was founded in 1985 and spun out of the University of Surrey in 2006. DelAgua distributes and supports water testing and treatment products. University of Surrey and DelAgua have spent 24 years in dedicated service providing a quick and reliable way to test water safety, so local communities can enjoy good drinking water without disease.

The following inspiring Youtube video shows just how well the DelAgua kit works, and how lives are changed for the better by this wonderful piece of equipment.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANb1ZlslAKo

In the spirit of Lumiere, why not fundraise in your community, buy a water testing kit, and donate it to an organisation/ area in need?

Read about DelAgua at
http://www.delagua.org/

Water for Life - giving fresh water to those in need

Water sustains life - do you want to give fresh water to those in need?  Dedicated volunteers and personnel are working to provide wells and a fresh, safe supply of water to people in areas around the world who lack this necessity.

Many of the problems facing people living in the poverty trap are linked to water. Many do not have safe water to drink. Adults and children die as a result of a lack of clean water. Some die from thirst and hunger. Others die from diseases linked to poor sanitation, poor hygiene and contaminated water.

Dedicated personnel at The Water Project helped orphan Bridget to find a new life  and help her fellow orphans, through the gift of water http://thewaterproject.org/meet_bridget.asp

The Fields of Life invited a team to Uganda to witness the need in East Africa for fresh and pure drinking water, easily accessible to local villages. The volunteers have done much to assist people in the area
http://www.fieldsoflife.com/get-involved/the-water-for-life-challenge.php

Wells for Zoe is a sustainable development organization helping communities in Malawi access clean drinking water. The organizations also nurtures organic agriculture and education
http://www.wellsforzoe.org/ .

Water Aid is an organisation that provides clean water for Africa, Asia and Central America. The organisation also provides sanitation and hygiene education to communities struggling with poverty
http://www.wateraidamerica.org/what_we_do/clean_water_for_africa_and_asia.aspx

In the spirit of Lumiere, why not help someone in an outlying area have access to fresh water? Areas in need include refugee camps, squatter camps, favelas, rural areas.

GOOD HEALTH LESSON 3 - SAFEGUARDING WATER SUPPLIES

GOOD HEALTH LESSON 3

SAFEGUARDING WATER SUPPLIES

Water Spread Diseases
A number of diseases are spread by water. Disease in water can be caused by bacteria (germs) which can live in water. 
  Examples of diseases spread by water include typhoid fever, dysentery or diarrhoea, liver disease (hepatitis) and poliomyelitis. 

Other diseases are caused by parasites such as some types of worms, amoebic dysentery and bilharzia. 
  The most effective way to prevent getting these diseases is to boil all water used for household purposes if you are not sure your water supply is safe.

Safeguarding Water Supplies
An effective way of safeguarding water supplies is to keep wells and water holes clean. 
  Do not litter in water areas. Avoid throwing e.g. prams and rusty objects in water, dams or streams.   Avoid throwing plastic wrapper or rubbish in the water. 

Do not allow animals to go near where people get drinking water. Fence the water area if necessary.     Do not allow urine or stools to be passed in or near water supply areas, or water holes. 

The best way to ensure clean drinking water is to have clean water piped in to your house from a reliable Water Supply Department.

Sanitation
Toilets or out-houses should be built at least twenty (20) meters away from water holes, wells or streams. 
  Do not use detergents or soaps for washing clothes in the same place where water is taken for drinking. 

It is very eseential not to allow poisons such as pesticides to run into streams or rivers from which water is taken. 
  Communities should organize self-help projects to protect springs, streams, water holes and wells in order to ensure safe drinking of water.

Test the Water
Water should be regularly tested to ensure it remains safe and clean for drinking. 
There are various cost effective water testing kits on the market, testing for:
- Eschericia coli bacteria in the water (the germ in stools which can cause serious infection in humans if water with the bacteria is drunk)
- Lead
- Pesticides
- Chlorine
- Hardness
- pH
- Nitrates
- Nitrites
- Copper
- Iron

Test your water source to ensure it is safe to drink. If you are blessed to live in an area with a Department ensuring safe and dependable water supplies, enjoy your safe drinking and household water and remember to say a prayer of thanks for those who work so hard to ensure our communities stay healthy and waterborne disease free.

Ensure drinking, bathing and household purposes water is clean and safe.

Mosquitoes
Don't allow mosquitoes to breed on water surfaces. Mosquitoes require water in which to complete their life cycle. 
  I have seen acres of water across which mosquitoes hummed and in which their larvae thrived. 
  If unchecked, mosquitoes cause grave health problems by causing the disease malaria. 

Mosquitoes lay eggs on the water surface. Their larvae live in water and come to the surface to breathe. 
  Larvae develop into pupae, and finally into adult mosquitoes. 
  New adults rests on the water surface in order to dry.
  This enables their bodies, newly emerged from their pupae, to harden. 
  Mosquito wings need to spread out and dry properly before they can fly.

Malaria
The malaria parasites spend part of their lives in the red blood cells of certain female mosquitoes (Anopheles), and another part in the red blood cells of humans. 
  A female mosquito carrying malaria parasites bites a human and sucks blood. 
  The bite thereafter itches, and looks like a small inflamed (reddish) bump on the skin. 

The mosquito has a characteristic humming whine as it waits for an appropriate opportunity to bite.    The bitten human can then develop the disease malaria. 
  Another Anopheles female mosquito can then bite the infected human, and suck up the blood cells which contain malaria parasities. 
  These malaria parasites then develop and increase in numbers in the stomach of the female mosquito. 

After approximately ten days the parasites move into the mosquito's salivary gland, and can be passed on to another person. 
  If you receive a bite from a malaria carrying mosquito and become infected, you can start showing signs of malaria two weeks after being bitten. 

Treatment of Malaria
Prevention
Firstly, prevent malaria by ensuring mosquitoes don't breed on water. 
  If you know you are going into an area where there are many mosquitoes and malaria occurs, make sure you visit your Doctor and receive a prescription for special medications to prevent malaria while you visit the malaria endemic area. 

Reliable Treatment
If you have contracted malaria, immediately go your Accident and Emergency Unit or visit your Doctor and receive the correct medication to treat the disease. Don't wait - it is treatable. 
  However, as with all illnesses, the quicker the diagnosis and treatment begins, the better. 

Tips to prevent mosquito bites
During my field trips with the Charity, I have been in many mosquito-infested areas.
Deterrents are:
- Wear sleeves to the wrist
- Wear clothing that buttons up to the neck 
- Keep the full body covered  
- Wear trousers to the ankles. 
Salwar kameez clothing is wonderful for keeping mosquitoes at bay while travelling. 
  Socks prevent mosquitoes from biting feet.
A scarf or dupatta around the neck is another deterrent.  
  I carry a small spray bottle of Safari Strength Insect Repellant  which repels mosquitoes, ticks, black flies, biting midges, sandflies, chiggers, fleas and stable flies.
I apply the repellant to my skin as per the instructions, especially on face, hands and feet - avoiding my eyes and mouth. 
  I find it invaluable for repelling insects and mosquitoes. 
  Ask your Doctor or Pharmacist for a reliable brand, and directions how to use the repellant safely and correctly.

Insect Repellant Mats
In one malaria prevalent area Charity workers gave me a little device with insect repellant mats.    The device gets plugged in (there was electricity in the area I was in), the little mat gets placed in the device which lightly heats up and gives off an odour which is not noticeable to humans but repels mosquitoes. I always use it as I find it effective.

Night Light
The most helpful I find is the following: if I keep a small night light on, this invariably deters mosquitoes for some reason. 

Want to help?
Possibilities to consider:
- Fundraise and sink a well in an area with no water
- Organise water testing kits to test water in squatter camps/ refugee camps/ areas where it is unsure whether water drinking wells are safe
- If you are a water engineer, why not donate some of your valuable time pro deo to an area that needs assistance in achieving safe water
- Sponsor the education of a water engineer student.

Please note that the information contained within this blog post

is not meant to replace Doctor or Health Professional Care

GOOD HEALTH LESSON 2: CLEAN WATER SUPPLIES

CLEAN AND PURE WATER
Clean and pure water is essential to maintain health.

DISEASES
If water is not clean, diseases such as diarrhoea, cholera, hepatitis (liver disease), guinea worm disease, and typhoid fever can result from drinking the water. 

  Schistosomiasis (bilharzia) is spread when the person swims, wades or washes in infected water.    Contaminated drinking water may spread Amoebiasis.
  Taeniasis infections can be spread by water that has been contaminated by tapeworms.  

  Dysentery with resultant diarrhoea can be spread by contaminated water. 
  Poliomyelitis can be transmitted through contaminated water.

PURIFY WATER
It is best to drink water from a pure water system.   If this is not possible, all water should be boiled before drinking. 
  Do not offer the boiled water to anyone to drink until it has cooled. 

  Keep all flies, mosquitoes and dust away from the surface of the water. 
  If you are in a very dusty area, and do not have a fridge, make sure you have netting to place over the water.

- According to the Washington State Department of Health, boiling is the safest way to purify water.   Bring the water to a rolling boil (where the water bubbles and rolls around the top of the container - be careful not to burn yourself on the boiling water) - for one minute. 
  Let the water cool before drinking.

Water taken from wells, rivers or holes for drinking, even when it looks clean, may spread disease. 
  Therefore, always boil water before use. Be careful not to swim in water which has not been proven by testing to be clean. 
  Diseases can be spread from the water into the skin, and can be very distressing.

A good and safe water supply should be free from harmful bacteria (germs), and should not contain too much chemicals or salts. 
  It should look clear (not cloudy, full of grit, dirt, worms, sand) and should have no smell or taste. 

WHERE DOES WATER COME FROM?
All water supplies come from rain. Some water sinks into the ground and can be reclaimed through wells, boreholes or springs. 
  Some water forms the water of rivers and dams. 

Rain water is usually relatively clean. Rain water can provide a good source of water if collected into clean tanks for storage. 
  It is still best to purify it by boiling. 

Surface Water
Surface water is the rain water which drains from an area which we call the catchment area. 
  This water forms rivers, lakes or dams.

Underground Water
A good amount of rain water sinks into the ground until it reaches a water table, or layer of rock. 
  It then collects there, and can be accessed by a well or borehole. 

The level of the underground water may be shallow or deep. 
  A shallow well can run dry after long droughts. A deep well may give a more permanent supply of water, such as the water in oasis in the deserts. 

WATER PURIFICATION
A simple water filtration system can be made. Slow sand filtration method can be used. 

The World Health Organisation explains that slow sand filtration may not only be the cheapest and simplest, but also the most efficient method of water treatment. 
  In areas of Africa, a drum is sometimes filled with clean sand, the water is poured in at the top and drips out of a pipe or tap at the bottom, clear and pure. 
  Wash and clean the sand regularly, new sand if possible should preferably be used. 


Washington State Department of Health
http://www.doh.wa.gov/Emergencies/EmergencyPreparednessandResponse/Factsheets/WaterPurification.aspx

Waterborne diseases
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterborne_diseases

WHO Slow Sand filtration
http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/publications/ssf9241540370.pdf

With thanks to doh.wa.gov, wikipedia.org and who.int

Lumiere Charity remembers Wisconsin

A candle has been lit in remembrance by Lumiere for all those who have passed away in the recent tragic shooting during worship at the Sikh Temple in Oak Tree, Wisconsin.  May strength be with all those who have suffered bereavement and loss during this sad event. 

http://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/headlines/20120805-7-including-gunman-dead-in-shooting-at-sikh-temple-in-wisconsin.ece

GOOD HEALTH LESSON 1; ENVIRONMENT AND HEALTH - HEALTHY HOUSING

GOOD HEALTH LESSON 1

ENVIRONMENT AND HEALTH - HOUSING 

So; you wish to work in a disadvantaged area, and help effectively as a volunteer. 
  There will be certain things you will need to know to help the people in the area. 
  Many people often require support, assistance and education with health and school education. 

Lumiere has published a series of blog posts with health tips for use as resource. 

Adequate housing
Good and adequate housing has an effect on health. A strong, well built house gives protection against the natural elements. 
  It provides warmth in cold and wet weather, and shade in hot, sunny weather. 

A house provides physical and mental rest for both individual and family by affording adequate space for sleep and rest. 
  Good housing has clean, disease free water. The family are thus able to wash, cook and drink water in order to maintain good health.

Housing provides security and safety to individual and family - affording a safe place to live and sleep. 

Protection is offered by doors and windows against intruders and health hazards such as mosquitoes and snakes. 
  Effective sanitation and plumbing prevents many diseases.

Building a house
A house should be built so that it is strong, is not damp or subject to rising dampness, has good   ventilation (air movement) and has plenty of light.   Housing should be built in areas that are not subject to flooding, earth tremors or earthquakes.

 The floor level should be above ground level in order to prevent dampness and flooding by surface waters.
  Roof overhang should be designed so as to keep rainwater from the walls. 
  Hygienic arrangements should be made for sleeping, cooking and food storage. 

Toilet facilities
Toilet facilities should be available. 
If you live in outlying areas, every family should have an outhouse (a flyproof privy or closet). 
  This can be made quite simply by digging a deep hole with a little house over it. 
  Adults and children should not pass water or stools around the house and near places where drinking water is obtained. 
  People should not use rivers or water sources as a toilet.

Cleanliness
It is important that the house is kept clean. No spitting should be allowed on the floor. 
  Spitting can spread diseases such as tuberculosis. Animals such as fowls (birds), pigs and other animals should not be allowed in the house as they can sometimes carry disease. 

The householders should regularly check that no vermin such as rats, bedbugs, flies, fleas or other pests are present in the house. 
  If there are any signs of these vermin, the necessary steps should be taken to remove them as they too can carry disease.

Repair
Keep the house in good repair. Fill cracks and holes in the walls and floor of the house so vermin cannot hide in those areas. 
  Householders should keep both bedding and clothing clean. 
  They should be washed regularly, and hung in the sun where possible.

Avoid overcrowding
Do not overcrowd the house. Overcrowding such as many people in bunkbeds in a small room can lead to the spreading of disease, and emotional stress as people need space and privacy. 
  A family needs sufficient space for privacy. Cramped living conditions can affect children's study at home, and cause depression and anxiety. 

As volunteer
As a volunteer worker, do what you can to assist people to have access to affordable housing.

How to build an outhouse 

http://www.i4at.org/lib2/hmnwaste.htm

With thanks to hmnwaste.htm

Grandma Mentoring Program - a work of Inspiration and Grace

Grandma Tanya giving a haircut

Lumiere has heard a program in Southern Russia that pairs caring adults with needy orphans. Emotional nurturing of parentless children is essential for a child's well being, and this program helps the children to receive the personal love and attention they need. 

A 'grandma' is any adult involved with Mary Mother of God Mission Society Parish in Vladivostok, Russia. 'Grandpa's get involved too. They are typically parishioners who do not have full-time employment, and don't have enough pension to cover their basic living necessities such as food and shelter. This great program allow these caring adults to spend time doing something they love, while also sensibly providing a source of income for their personal needs. The parish in Vladivostok gives a Grandma $60 monthly. The Grandmas spend 48 hours per month in personal one-on-one time with the orphans.

The 'grandmas' take the children on excursions to the city, give haircuts, and spend time with the children. The 'grandpas' are a positive male role model for the children, many of whom are between the ages of 3 and 5. The children love to spend time out of doors exploring everything from parked cars to snowy hills. The orphans long for physical contact; one grandpa found it a common experience to have ten different children grabbing on to one of his fingers.

I have experienced this personally many times. Walking with orphans, the children all want to hold my hand, so often I have spread both my hands out to find myself shortly walking and trying not to bump into twenty little orphans, each one a different height, holding onto a different finger, and chattering away. What loneliness, what a need for love, each little one manifests.

The day I went into my room and cried was when I went into an Asian orphanage on one of my field trips. One of the carers told me that a little girl had not spoken a word since she had come in to the orphanage ten days before. She asked if there was anything I could do for the little girl. I said if there was, I certainly would do so. A short while later I went into the chapel, removing my shoes first in respect according to the custom of the area, to pray. A few minutes later, I heard the soft sound of hesitant feet coming towards me. I did not open my eyes, and eventually I heard a little person settle on the ground next to my feet. I still did not open my eyes, I guessed who it was. When I judged I would not frighten the little orphan, I opened my eyes and looked at her. Large eyes, tragic and sad, stared back at me. She spent a little time looking at me, then took my hand in hers and led me over to the statue of Mary of Nazareth, the mother of Jesus. This little lady looked at me, and then said, 'mama' and mimed eyes closing, and face resting on her two little hands as if going to sleep. Then she pointed up towards the ceiling, to show her mother had gone to heaven. Then she pointed to the statue of Mary, and said, 'Mama', showing me that the only mother she now had was Mary of Nazareth in heaven to watch over her. Then she took my hand again.

I heard later she had been with her mother when her mother passed away from illness, leaving her destitute and alone at the side of the road until the Sisters had taken her in to care for her. One of the Sisters had comforted her by telling her that Mary of Nazareth would be her mother now. The sight of those sad little eyes with fathomless pain in their depths proved too much for me, and I fled to the bedroom I was using, so I could cry quietly without distressing the children. What suffering our children of the world go through. I got onto my mobile phone and rang my mom, just to hear her voice. How blessed have I been to have my parents.

Many of our Lumiere children consider me family, and have told me that my mother is their grandmother now; and my father who passed into heaven is their father too. They tell the children at school that their Didi is coming to visit them, because she loves them. From this background, I found the wonderful work of the Grandmas and Grandpas in Vladivostok inspiring. According the the pamphlet Lumiere was given, they are in urgent need of assistance.
In the spirit of Lumiere, please consider helping this worthy cause in any way you are able.
Another option is to help an orphan or street child yourself in some way. It surely will have been no accident that Divine Providence led you to read these words...

If you wish to help the work of the Grandmas and Grandpas, please find the information you will need;
Website of Grandma Mentoring Program
http://www.vladmission.org/Grandma%20Mentoring/GrandmaMentoring.htm
Donation can be made at the bottom of the above website page to;
MFP Baby Hospital #3 Vladivostok or
MFP Specialised Baby Home Ussurysk
MFP Psychneurology Baby Home Artyom
MFP Donation to any Orphanage in Need



Brian and his 'grandkids'
Photos courtesy of Grandma Mentoring Program website