Companies With A MissionSuper Service Project

dots in blue waterMr. Michael Baer

South Adams High School, Berne, IN

Hurricane Fay, Gustav, and Hanna hit Haiti (2008)

A friend of mine, Pastor Pierre, taught at a small school of mostly HIV-orphans at the time of the hurricanes.

When the 9-foot floodwaters swept through the village, children and some local families

escaped the floods by climbing onto the roof of the school.

Three days passed, no rescue. Hungry, thirsty children simply droppedinto the waters, having lost all hope.

A seven year old explained to her mother how she imagined all of those who had drowned in the hurricane flood waters:

“Lots and lots of dots, in blue water.”

My students suggested substituting their science labs for a project-based learning experience that would allow them to develop, test, and assemble water purification units to help those in need.

By the end of the 2010-2011 school year, dots in blue water had become a corporation-wide, K-12 learning-across-the-curriculum project, ready to deliver and install five complete, student-developed water purification systems to Haiti.

The village-sized system was powered by car batteries, recharged by solar panels, and can chlorinate impure drinking water to drinkability.

I am the science teacher whose classes made that commitment to help Haiti with clean water. I have been directing dots in blue water ever since, and am currently preparing for my 5th and 6th trips there.

dots in blue water 2011 – Chambrun, HaitiOne week.8 high school students and 8 of their teachers.“Making a World of Difference”

One purifier was installed in the village of Chambrun.An additional purifier was installed on the roof of the school that had experienced the major flooding in 2008.A third and fourth purifier were installed in Port-Au-Prince at a school and nursing home. The fifth….

Cholera Outbreak - BouziOn Wednesday of our trip, the school headmaster received an urgent e-mail from the remote mountain village of Bouzi. A cholera outbreak had occurred and was threatening to wipe out an entire village of 1,500 people. In just two days, there had been 300 cholera cases, and five deaths.A UNICEF clinic had been airlifted in, but they needed medicines, or clean water…

Cholera Outbreak - Bouzidots in blue water responded, renting 4WD Land Rovers and delivering our first-ever three-tank system. Within a week of installing our fifth purifier, there had been no additional new cases or deaths reported.

Since June of 2011, the school has focused on annual return trips, monitoring use of the purifiers, training local villagers in sanitation and hygiene, as well as researching and developing systems that rely on sustainable wind energy and improved solar energy technology. dots in blue water has received several honors, including recognition by the Indiana State General Assembly, as well as other local, state, and national organizations.

But this was not the end for dots in blue water….

Summer 201212 students8 teachersReturned to Haiti to assess work done the previous summer. After discovering that three of the five purifiers were being regularly utilized, we re-evaluated how we could best use our available water purification resources.

Five-Gallon (Family) Bucket Purifiers - OnavilleOnaville is an IDP (internally displaced persons) camp, located outside of Port au Prince that resulting after the earthquake of 2010. It is currently home to nearly five hundred thousand people. We partnered with GAIN USA, distributing bucket purifier systems to 36 Onaville families. Provided training in basic hygiene and sanitary food preparation.

San Luis du Nord – Ebenezer Evangelical MissionMr. Baer and another high school teacher spent an extra week scouting future sites for projects and assisting a medical mission in the coastal city of St Luis du Nord (population 12,000)

Mr. Baer and Mr. Lehman assisted in a medical clinic, where they saw over 700 patients suffering from water-related illnesses (malaria, parasites, worms, dysentery) – ALL PREVENTABLE.

Summer 2013 – St. Luis du Nord15 students10 teachersTraveled to St. Luis du Nord, Haiti to Ebenezer Evangelical Mission on Haiti’s north coast.

Ebenezer Evangelical MissionEEM is operated by Larry and Linda Ralph from Martinsville, IN. While Larry and Linda are in the States, “the Seven Brothers” care for the mission, the church, and on-site school of 360 students grades K-6.

EEM Purifierdots in blue water replaced and installed a 1,200 gallon, two-tank purifier on top of the EEM roof. This provides clean water to the entire mission.

Roche Rond – Family-Sized PurifiersThe team hiked five miles up the mountain to the remote village of Roche Rond, and distributed over 50 bucket purifiers.

Distribution in Roche Rond

Using translators, the team trained the families how to use the family bucket purifiers. The training covered operation and sanitation.

This is the 2013 team our school sent to Haiti, posing with seven young men “The Seven Brothers” who were rescued off the streets as school children and now serve as our facilitators and translators.

LOOKING AHEAD: Summer 2014

During the summer of 2014 and beyond, we will continue returning to St. Luis du Nord focusing on water purification and establishing an ongoing partnership with the school by providing on-site teacher training, classroom resources, and computers and technology for the classrooms.

Super Service ChallengeShould dots in blue water receive a portion of the Super Service Challenge, they would use the funds to help purchase materials to research and develop improved water purifier—including sustainable solar and wind technology—and purchase school resources and equipment for the EEM school.

THANK YOU

for helping dots in blue

water continue

Making a World of Difference!