AREWA AID’S SECOND ANNUAL BENEFIT DINNER AND AUCTION ANOTHER SUCESS

Our Second Annual Benefit Dinner and Auction for Arewa Aid was another success. Dave Goolsby of Healing Hands International was the keynote speaker. Dave gave his assurance to the stability and progress of the work in Maiduguri that he along with Randall Mc Cadams saw during their visit in August of this year. He commended all present for their standing with Arewa Aid during the challenges of the past few months, and commended them as well for their vision for the future.

 

Lee Hodges gave an over view of the work of Arewa Aid during the last year and shared the new vision for 2009 of bringing Pompomari Training Farm to self sustaining status by the end of next year. He also shared a pressing need to work with a group of 16 churches that have banded together to build buildings to house a Preachers Training School. They are making the brick by hand. This group wants agricultural to be apart of the training to enable graduates to be self supporting when they leave school without the need for dollars from the US.

 

Another call was shared that has come from the nation of Chad. Brethren in this French speaking nation tell of a critical need for water to sustain life.  They too would like Drip Irrigation and Food Preservation Workshops to be held after water is made available.

 

Arewa Aid while dealing with tremendous challenges has by the grace of God not only been able to survive, but to launch out into the deep to fulfill commitments made and to trust God to make the means available to answer all of these needs of faith brothers and sisters in Christ.

Eight Piece Blue Grass Band Entertained

 

 

A Portion of those in attendance

 

 

Coffee Bar

Silent Auction

AREWA AID’S SECOND ANNUAL BENEFIT DINNER & CHARITY AUCTION

 

Second  Annual Benefit Dinner

and Charity Auction

November 13, 2008, 6:30 PM

College Hills Church of Christ, Lebanon

 

 

· Special Entertainment

· Silent & Live Auctions

· Guest Speakers

Tickets 10.00 each – ( We purchased a few extra tickets – so call NOW to get your seat reserved.)

Come and learn how programs begun in partnership with

 Healing Hands International are now planned for other

African Nations, Afghanistan and Iraq.

 

Special thanks to our hosts:

COLLEGE HILLS CHURCH OF CHRIST

1401 Leeville Pike, Lebanon, Tennessee 37087

For more info, call 615.390.2134

 

SUBSTANTIAL CONFIDENCE FROM SUPER KITS

As our vegetable farm grows the demand for additional drip irrigation equipment increases.  Many of our trainees continually visit the farm and office requesting drip kits.  One individual drip irrigation kit covers 50 square meters while selling for about $12.  The popularity of our dry season vegetables has created a greater demand to increase production.  The twofold purpose of the farm is to: 1) serve as a training site for local farmers; 2) generate revenue to move the farm toward self-sustainability.

Thankfully, Dave Goolsby at Healing Hands connected us with Dick Chapin from Watermatics Inc. in Watertown, New York.  Watermatics is quite possibly the largest seller of drip irrigation equipment in the United States.  Other nations like Israel, South Africa, and Germany produce the drip equipment but finding a dealer willing to help small-scale African farmers is difficult.  As we’ve communicated with Dick Chapin, we’ve seen a wide variety of drip equipment: 1) individual kits; 2) super kits; 3) ¼ acre kits; 4) 1 hectare kits.  However, it’s important for us to maintain the appearance of the site as easily sustainable by a local farmer.

This makes the super bucket kits ideal for INTERCEP’s present developmental stage.  The super bucket kits are the largest drip equipment that runs off of 1 meter of gravity pressure.  Larger drip tape needs more water pressure with a system of pumps and regulators.  To convince the local farmer that drip irrigation works, maintaining affordability, practicality, simplicity, and sustainability is paramount.  Therefore, we have to start small at the individual kit level to persuade our learners that this is for village conditions.

Last week, we erected our first super bucket kit at the farm to much internal fanfare among the INTERCEP team members.  A small 1 meter dirt mound was constructed against the wall as a 35 gallon drum was mounted with large pieces of lumber for support.  The individual kit connects with a 5 gallon bucket, thus, we were excited to witness at least 10 drip tapes radiating from the larger barrel.  We began to envision the entire 1 hectare field overlaid with super buckets kits growing dry season vegetables.  A small portion of the farm will always be reserved for training with the individual kits but these super kits will allow us to maximize production while maintaining simplicity.

In the image of drip irrigation, one can see how “The Word” left heaven to live a simple life.  As He “pitched His tent” among us, we labor to sit where the local farmers sit.  When the Messiah dwelled with us, He revealed how ultimate power is defined through simplicity.  Our prayer is that as local farmers share in the grace of improved agriculture that they will acknowledge the Most Merciful.  The truth is that people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.

Bore hole is now providing water through a motorized pump until solar equipment arrives.

Harvesters check the new Super Bucket kit.

BIG HOPE OVER BORE HOLE

The thirst for water can never be overemphasized in the semi-arid climate of Borno State. As I was traveling back from Kano to Maiduguri on Sunday, I noticed a bore hole and overhead tank in one village. Dozens of young men pushing carts with plastic cans line up to wait their turn to fill their receptacles with this precious liquid. As I continued driving from at least 1 to 3 kilometers, I kept seeing one cart after another being pushed to and from this village bore hole. If this much water is being pushed around in February from this distant bore hole, how much more will be consumed during the excruciating heat of March, April, and May!On February 21, 2008, Zarma Water Services began drilling at the INTERCEP Pompomari farm site in Maiduguri. This caused quite a commotion during Day 4 of our food security workshop for Borno youth. However, Dave Goolsby used the background noise of the initial drilling to inspire hope in the trainees concerning the success of drip irrigation farming. The drillers from Zarma Water Services worked late that night to meet their goal of hitting the first artesian aquifer. To our surprise, on Friday after the workshop’s conclusion, they hit the first aquifer at 30 meters!Nevertheless, as I traveled to Kano with Dave Goolsby and Randall McAdams on Saturday, Ebenezer Udofia reported that the Zarma drillers hit the second artesian aquifer at 42 meters! By the time that I arrived back in Maiduguri on Sunday, the drillers had hit the third aquifer at 62 meters! Then on Monday morning, they hit the fourth aquifer at 70 meters guaranteeing a steady supply of water for many years! They are now installing the 5” casing and screen into the bored hole to create a chamber for the PVC pipe. All along, one of our trainees at the August 2007 workshop, Ibrahim Ngamdu, was present to insure the quality of the project.

This is so thrilling to our farm manager, Ebenezer, that he is anxious to start supplementing the drip irrigation project with livestock after his marriage in early April. Our first target is to convert the existing water reservoir into a fishery with 200 fingerlings. Ebenezer testifies that the lucrative nature of Nigerian fisheries cannot be underestimated. Our farm assistants, Ephraim and Justina Tsesar, are equally thrilled to have a continuous water source to supply the drip buckets for vegetable production. Finally, our days of thrice weekly purchases of tankers to deliver water to the farm are nearing an end.

Also, we are looking forward to connecting a pipe from the newly completed overhead tanks to the outside of the wall. This will enable Pompomari residents to access clean drinking water during daylight hours. The hottest months of the year are just around the corner as we enter March, April, and May. This means that nomadic Fulani herders of cattle, goats, and sheep will be making regular pilgrimages through Pompomari in western Maiduguri to find greener grass in southern Borno state. This external pipe supplying water to the world outside our farm will be a witness to the amazing grace of the Almighty!

Dave Goolsby and Randall McCadams in Maiduguri for the Food Preservation and Drip Irrigation Workshops are pictured with Brad as the drilling rig is about to be set up.