In the journey that took us to starting Dear Future, I have experienced so many situations that I classified into the folder of "I can't make this $h17 up!"
I wanted to share with you guys some of these; basically the ones that I remember, and commit to making an effort to keep documenting them, because more will come for sure.
You can call it mystical, magical or divine. I'd like to believe that there's a reason, purpose and timing for every event that happens to all of us; and there's a lot of evidence in my life that there's a relationship between all of our walking paths, a relationship that carefully calculates these inputs and variables and produces a divine end result.
Out of the water well, is the most recent "you can't make this .... up" event, and I'd like to start here because I'm amazed that this actually happened; but also I'm still inspecting the architecture of the fabric that this is producing.
Thank you Rob and Lori Rollings, you guys are incredible people. I'm grateful to be able to say that you are part of this fabric.
Out of the Water Well - a Robert and Lori Story
In February of 2023 we completed the milestones of our "Build a School in Uganda" project, and although we aren't complete with the entire building, we achieved all the necessities to start educating children. Alongside that, we raised funds from a private donor to dig and build a water well next to the school.
This water well will provide clean water to the school kitchen, yard sinks and bathrooms, but also will provide clean water to hundreds - not exaggerating - of local residents that normally have to walk long distances with their cans to bring water to their homes. A water well provides access to water and empowers communities to stay healthy. The options here are two: you either walk long distances, or you can capture water with a banana leaf into your can; which is not a healthy option.
You can't make this stuff up:
On Thursday, 23 of February of 2023 at 9 am, our team met to discuss progress and needs; our project manager related to us that we have been given a large price hike and the cash would be needed ASAP to continue with the project. The reason was the fact that the engineer in charge had quoted us originally with the assumption that we would reach water at 50 ft.
At 100 ft of depth the dig team had to stop to notify management that we hadn't hit water yet.
All members of the team were stressed immediately because we had already tapped all of our potential donors to accomplish our projects to build the school and to bring electricity to it. But as we normally do: "take 5 and calm down." Think about it, and figure it out was the plan.
Here's the part I struggle explaining:
At 9:28 am, as I was busy with the above meeting, a friend of mine, with whom I rarely speak with, sent me a text:
I will paraphrase here; this is essentially how that conversation went:
* Ric: Hi Rob, what do I owe the pleasure to! great to hear from you!
* Rob: Ric as you know, I have performed some charity in Haiti, and I have been watching what you guys are doing, and I think it's great and want to help.
* Ric: Thank you Rob, that's amazing, how do you see yourself collaborating?
Rob: Well Ric, I like to help by providing clean water to places that need it, I've done some water wells in Haiti. Can we do something like that?
* Ric: (said to myself: what!!! how does this happen?). Rob, that is amazing, and water is a great necessity in Uganda as well. There are always opportunities to do something like that there.
As a matter of fact... (I proceeded to tell him about the well we are currently building).
I would be incredibly grateful if you helped us here. I have a link I can send you.
* Rob: Consider it done Ric, I can fund the remaining amount that you need. And let's see what else we can do in the future.
How does that happen?
If you missed it:
I haven't spoken to Rob in a few years, besides the occasional facebook happy birthday or photo like.
The very morning Rob's text comes in, on the very hour I was having a meeting about needing more money for the water well, Rob leaves me a message, that ends up in "I like to build water wells Ric!".
That very morning, we received the donation required to complete the project.
These things don't happen without a blueprint. You can call it, whatever you watn to call it.
I call it amazing signals that we are in the right path and this path is putting the right people next to me.
Next:
The very first documented YCMTSU story: An Art Perez Story.
ERIC - Power for the school
The Station Foundation - Let's build a school
Let's get children out of the rock quarry and into schools - a Troy Ray story
and others I need to think about.
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