(Aug. 14, 2015 - by Laura Rescorla)  In a small, dusty clearing in a remote area of the West African country of Burkina Faso, surrounded by mudbrick houses, is a new water well. Walking past lively goats and pecking chickens, shade trees and household gardens, the women and children of the community come to fetch water for their families.

For people like Bie’youdofi Woulou, this new development is especially exciting. A widow with two young children, she previously had to walk to collect water from a shallow, open, hand-dug well. With no protection from bird droppings, dirty buckets or mischievous children, the water was always contaminated.

Located just 300 meters (1,000 feet) from her home in the small town of Dossi in southwestern Burkina Faso, the new well provides a source of clean, safe water. “My children get sick from time-to-time,” she said. “This well will help them get over their sicknesses.” The new well is a drilled borehole with a hand pump, preventing contamination that is inevitable in open wells.

Working with partner Radio Évangile Développement (Gospel Radio for Development or RED) based in the capital, Reach Beyond has built upon past involvement in Dossi, helping establish a partner radio station in nearby Houndé and providing healthcare training. The station is one of eight outlets in the RED network, founded in 1993, that makes gospel programming available in two-thirds of the country.

In November 2013 a Reach Beyond medical team spent several days in the community of 5,000, treating patients and sharing truths from God’s Word. A year later, the Sub-Saharan Africa community development team did training on water and hygiene for RED staff members as well as two community leaders.

Now the people are pleased to have a new well. At the dedication ceremony on Tuesday, June 9, several local pastors prayed over the well and the people who will use it. But this isn’t the end of the story. Citing an African proverb, RED’s executive director, Etienne Kiemdé, proclaimed, “If we help you wash your back, you must wash your own face.”

Caring for the well and improving residents’ health is now in the hands of community members who have established a water and sanitation committee to spearhead these tasks. This committee plans to collect a small fee from users to ensure that funds are available for future repairs and maintenance.

While the new well puts a spotlight on people’s physical health, it’s also an opportunity to address their spiritual health. Residents have observed how RED and Reach Beyond care about their lives, and they’ve heard that it’s out of love for Jesus Christ. As they listen to the local RED outlet and interact with the staff, residents are hearing the gospel, motivating them to love others.

Source: Reach Beyond