Do you wonder if your donation dollars are really making a difference in people’s lives? Here’s a sample of what recipients of the Shree Nityananda Education Trust’s bio sand water filters are saying about their new water-cleaning device: “Wow, in this hot summer time we can drink cold, very clean, very tasty water. … We are surprised to see how clean the water comes out of it.” “…It is very useful… very easy to use… Dirty water cleans faster…We are confident about the purity.” “You have given the filters for the betterment of health of villagers…very good concept for purifying water.” “The water tastes sweet… We like to drink the water again and again.””We rate this filter as best of the best.” “This is very good, very simple.” “It functions without electricity.” “Overall it is great and gives us safe water to drink. We are thankful to the [SNET] Trust.” “It give us clean water in a short time.”
Do you make a little sacrifice each month to send in a donation, the price of one dinner out, and then wish you knew it mattered? Do you want to know what kind of impact a water filter makes in the lives of mother’s concerned about the health of their family? Read here the effect of using the water filter and how long it took before the positive effect was noticed: “We feel very healthy and confident that now water-borne diseases will not affect us.” “We felt the effect within a week’s time and we feel better when we drink filtered water.” “After using this filter for one month, we started to notice very low illness in our home and it is like a refrigerator in the summer season.” “Just in a few days we noticed a difference. It is great. The earlier fear of bad water [has left] and now we drink filtered water confidently.” “I feel it is good for the family health.” “We feel more healthy and energetic now-a-days.” “Before we were unsure about our well water, but now we can drink it confidently.” “We feel positive after drinking the water that comes out of the filter.” “We used to feel that we were ill but after drinking the filtered water, we feel safe and healthy. Within a week’s time we began to feel the effect.” “Can’t say what illness we used to experience, but after using [the water filter] we are sure that we will not feel ill.”
Do you doubt that people really suffer from lack of clean water? Do you want to know what kind of sickness they experienced before receiving the water filter? Listen to these answers: “We had fever, malaria,” “We fell ill periodically and had malaria and other illnesses.” “Lots of illness like dysentery and quick fever,” “water-borne illness like malaria, jaundice,” “in the rainy season, there is bad water in the well. In this [hot] season we can use it a lot,” “illness in the rainy season,” “We face many illnesses during the rainy season but now, for this upcoming rain we will be fine.” “illness throughout the year, maybe due to bad water,” “illness like malaria, fever, dysentery and diarrhea,” “During the rainy season, the whole village use to feel ill.”
Do you wonder if this is the best model for this population? Do you want to know what problems they have experienced with the bio sand filter from SNET? Not many really. One out of ten surveyed said, “We have some leakage around the bottom,” and this one will have to be repaired. This is one of the reasons why we are doing the survey, is to discover if there are problems.“It would be better if we had some kind of container with a tap to use in dispensing the clean water.” (We will be providing a new water catchment container with a spiget when our new health educator makes house visits.) “It is very heavy to move.” Since they are heavy, the filter is less likely to be moved and broken. Many, many people say “No problems.” “We need some kind of container to catch the clean water so that it will not spill all over the floor.” “takes up a lot of space,” “not movable,” “very heavy.”
What Suggestions do the recipients have for the SNET? “ We need a collector with a tap system. [SNET] Trust is doing a great job. We wish the Trust should get more help to serve more countryside villages.” “From the bottom of our hearts, on behalf of the villagers of Gorhad, we are thankful to the Trust.” “Thank you to the Trust. The filter should be light weight and easy to handle.” “the Trust is doing a great job. We need a bore well to ease our life. If possible, can the Trust arrange a bore well? The filter is beautiful.” “Thank you to this social welfare Trust. If they want to help us more, installing a bore well would be great.” “It would be great if SNET could provide a bore well to the villagers since it is so much hard work to take water from the well.” “With folded hands, we say thank you! And now, distribute to every village.” “Try to help us by donating a bore well. Thank you for giving the filter.” “We are so pleased and happy due to the donation of the filter to our family.” “Thanks for giving filters. SNET is doing great seva to mankind. We are in need of a bore well.”
SNET staff and volunteers are so excited to hear the first results of the SNET water filter survey. We will visit all of the 960 recipients of the SNET bio sand water filters that have been given out over the last 3 ½ years to hear what the effect of our efforts has been. Gorhd, the first village to be interviewed and from which these comments were captured, have had the filters for just over six months. All of the families had between 4 and 9 family members utilizing the filter. We are so pleased to hear and announce that in just a short time, these ten families have received life changing benefits.
