SDSS Students Launch Heroic Effort to Tackle Water Crisis in Uganda

In a tale of boundless compassion, South Delta Secondary School’s (SDSS) Rotary Interact Club has once again rallied their forces to combat the dire water crisis plaguing rural Uganda. 

Teaming up with the Rotary Club of Tsawwassen and the Rotary Club of Mbarara, Uganda, they embark on the ambitious Water and Sanitation Health (WASH) project, targeting the remote areas of Irimya Parish in South West Uganda.

A staggering goal of $110,000 has been set, a sum that, when combined with contributions from Rotary District, Rotary International, and local government, forms a colossal budget of $450,000 for the monumental Gravity Flow System.

In a spectacle of sheer determination, last year’s efforts saw the SDSS Interact Club raise over $1,400 through extraordinary initiatives like bottle drives and bake sales, revealing their unwavering dedication to making a profound difference.

Enter Grade 11 students and Rotary Interact Club co-presidents Amy Yang and Eileen Cai, who marvel at the astounding success of their bake sale and are already contemplating a repeat performance this year.

 But that’s not all – brace yourselves for unconventional fundraisers, including the audacious “taping a teacher to a wall” and the uproarious “pie to the face” event, all designed to entice their peers to contribute to this noble cause.

Yet, amid this fervor, the Rotary Interact Club seeks more than just numbers; they yearn for souls genuinely committed to the club’s humanitarian mission. “We don’t want people to join just for the incentives.

 We want them to be able to help and volunteer,” emphasizes Cai. “We don’t want them just sitting in the meetings for 30 minutes just to fill out the attendance form and then not actually volunteer for anything, so we want people who are genuinely motivated to help out and plan on volunteering.”

At the heart of the WASH initiative lies a simple yet monumental objective: to furnish clean, sustainable drinking water to a region long besieged by the cruel scarcity of safe water sources. 

This endeavor, in its essence, is about more than water; it’s about empowerment. Beyond the construction of the Gravity Flow System, the project endeavors to train 7,000 individuals, arming them with the indispensable knowledge to safeguard this vital lifeline.

Yang encapsulates the sentiment perfectly, saying, “I am glad that we are helping. I think it is a necessity (clean water). We should probably do more fundraisers this year; the WASH project has been the club’s international project.”

In this initiative of SDSS students, the pages turn with fervor, painting a vivid narrative of unyielding spirit and a resolute dedication to change lives, one drop at a time. 

The heroes of South Delta Secondary School march forward, poised to rewrite the story of Irimya Parish and, indeed, Uganda itself.