I now have a twitter and website up explaining more about what we are doing and how you can help.
twitter: https://twitter.com/ADropToDrink
website: adroptodrink.org
follow our twitter for updates on whats going on and what we are up to.
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Happy 4th of July
America was founded on the main principle that all men were created equal and that they should be free. There was a lot of other reasons our country was founded too but I have always believed that we had values above all else.
It is nice to see that we haven't fully lost sight of why we are here. But there is a major stereotype of Americans in other countries. Some believe we should just give them everything we have because we have so much. Others seem to believe we are all fat and watch NASCAR. The way we give away our money is depressing, we blindly give it away to whatever charity has the best marketing campaign and never see it again.
Charity:Water completely changed the way they handle a charity's money. They show you exactly where your money goes, this model wont work for everyone though. I mean come on, who has a tech millionaire willing to front all your staff costs. Their model of complete transparency is something of envy, one I do hope to mimic once things get rolling more with adroptodrink.org.
I am trying to gear up for a lot of changes. I want to start doing more and getting things done on the ground. To do that I do need equipment that I have been too proud to ask for. I need a definite answer on how we are moving forward from the church down in Friusa and then its full steam ahead on how much we have to raise and how to raise it. I will hopefully know next week. I am waiting on a clear amount before I start asking for money and I want a transparency on how the money is being spent. I personally don't care if I ever make a dime from this, I found a need and want to see it met.
As part of this 4th of July weekend I want to ask each one of you what being an American means to you, and how you can work to change the perception of Americans in other cultures.
It is nice to see that we haven't fully lost sight of why we are here. But there is a major stereotype of Americans in other countries. Some believe we should just give them everything we have because we have so much. Others seem to believe we are all fat and watch NASCAR. The way we give away our money is depressing, we blindly give it away to whatever charity has the best marketing campaign and never see it again.
Charity:Water completely changed the way they handle a charity's money. They show you exactly where your money goes, this model wont work for everyone though. I mean come on, who has a tech millionaire willing to front all your staff costs. Their model of complete transparency is something of envy, one I do hope to mimic once things get rolling more with adroptodrink.org.
I am trying to gear up for a lot of changes. I want to start doing more and getting things done on the ground. To do that I do need equipment that I have been too proud to ask for. I need a definite answer on how we are moving forward from the church down in Friusa and then its full steam ahead on how much we have to raise and how to raise it. I will hopefully know next week. I am waiting on a clear amount before I start asking for money and I want a transparency on how the money is being spent. I personally don't care if I ever make a dime from this, I found a need and want to see it met.
As part of this 4th of July weekend I want to ask each one of you what being an American means to you, and how you can work to change the perception of Americans in other cultures.
Monday, July 1, 2013
Solving The Water Problem - The Up's and The Downs
As many of you know I took the year after my college career to explore bringing clean water to towns in the Dominican Republic. So far I am a mere 2 months into this endeavor and I feel overwhelmed and behind on everything.
There is a lot that goes into designing a system, especially one that is trying to keep cost to a minimum. I am aiming for a payback period of around 6 years for our water system. The design of it doesn't seem to be the biggest issue though. No, the biggest problem I have faced is fear itself. The fear of being good enough to do this. I am not actually inventing anything, I am hardly even improving on anything that has been done before. All I am doing is what is naturally right for the good of everyone, providing clean water.
We have yet to provide clean water to anyone yet, except if you count what is being done in Cien Fuegos. I want to do so much there and help them expand but it is difficult to help when we wait for them to see the need to help them. Progress is being made there with the water cages that are starting to be installed throughout the city. What's next requires being there, helping the people.
So the question is how can we move forward and stop feeling so overwhelmed on everything. There is not one simple answer but many small steps that need to be done, like a check list. I have a reworked process to clean the water that requires a much larger storage tank, which means no more roof tanks. That also means we have to find a place for the larger tank, in a place where space is very limited.
I still have yet to find a solution to pay for everything down there, even with a 6 year pay back period raising money will not be easy. We will require a lot of different equipment to just get started. A new well has to be dug and a study on the ground water in the area needs to be complete before we can actually start cleaning the water.
We are taking baby steps to get where we are going but its progress. I hope next time I will be able to share some great news on what is happening there.
Thank you all for your support,
Isaac
There is a lot that goes into designing a system, especially one that is trying to keep cost to a minimum. I am aiming for a payback period of around 6 years for our water system. The design of it doesn't seem to be the biggest issue though. No, the biggest problem I have faced is fear itself. The fear of being good enough to do this. I am not actually inventing anything, I am hardly even improving on anything that has been done before. All I am doing is what is naturally right for the good of everyone, providing clean water.
We have yet to provide clean water to anyone yet, except if you count what is being done in Cien Fuegos. I want to do so much there and help them expand but it is difficult to help when we wait for them to see the need to help them. Progress is being made there with the water cages that are starting to be installed throughout the city. What's next requires being there, helping the people.
So the question is how can we move forward and stop feeling so overwhelmed on everything. There is not one simple answer but many small steps that need to be done, like a check list. I have a reworked process to clean the water that requires a much larger storage tank, which means no more roof tanks. That also means we have to find a place for the larger tank, in a place where space is very limited.
I still have yet to find a solution to pay for everything down there, even with a 6 year pay back period raising money will not be easy. We will require a lot of different equipment to just get started. A new well has to be dug and a study on the ground water in the area needs to be complete before we can actually start cleaning the water.
We are taking baby steps to get where we are going but its progress. I hope next time I will be able to share some great news on what is happening there.
Thank you all for your support,
Isaac
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