Here's DRutter, and the momentous 75th weekly post for Mission: Agua-Possible! It updates our progress toward the goal of 1300 USD (in STEEM) for a well pump to bring water to the family farm of @EdgarGonzalez.
Background
Severe economic and political crisis over the past few years in the South American country of Venezuela intensified in 2019, as president Maduro doubled down on his currency manipulation, price-fixing, propaganda, and suppressing resistance. You've heard about the country's recent turmoil, but the world's media isn't showing us even half the reality!
I began to see more and more Steem users from Venezuela, I started to hear their interesting stories - and ask questions. I discovered some dark truths about the economic and political situation there. Most shops are empty, the currency is collapsing, people are hungry - the economy is at a standstill. Theft, corruption, and violence escalate as society breaks down. Those who can are fleeing on foot - 8 million already. The harsh socialist government attempts to control/fix the economy, and blames problems on the people. Most government services (like running water) work only in certain areas - or not at all.
The people are desperate for any change and protests sometimes fill the streets for miles. Maduro announced that Venezuela will no longer accept US Dollars for oil exports, then tried to get his country's gold back from Bank of England, who refused. The Russian military has become involved, supporting Maduro. The Americans back a man called Guaidó, who also has little public support. Electrical and internet blackouts happen regularly. Stability for the people appears out of reach.
Edgar
In mid-2018 I found @edgargonzalez, the blog of Edgar, a Venezuelan man about my age. He's a father of young children, and a professional whose job disappeared because of the crisis. He feeds his family by fishing, harvesting fruits, and growing cassava on his late-father's plantation. He uses the Steem blockchain to share his stories and earn cryptocurrency to buy food. Shortly after I met Edgar, a power outage caused a failure of the pump used to bring water up to the farm. A repairman confirmed the pump is beyond fixing. Edgar had been using his well to water his crops, and to provide drinking water to his children and nearby families. Without a pump to bring water up from the aquifer, his harvests are reduced - and the neighborhood must forage for water elsewhere.
Without government water services, and now without water from his well, Edgar and a few other families are in a tough situation. I wondered what a poor Canadian man could do to help. After using the Steem blockchain to learn about the problems, I realized that it could also be the SOLUTION!
That's when I first began Mission Agua-possible! (The first post was here. I published a special video edition in week 43 here.) Once we gather 1300 USD worth of Steem, I'll transfer it to Edgar, to be converted to cash to buy the pump.
Water is life! It is vital we get this pump for the farm as soon as possible.
STEEM fell, sending our progress back down
Donations and upvotes were once again no match for the fluctuating price of STEEM this week, as the price fell from 0.25 to 0.22, and our holdings dropped in value from $1002 to $884.
Nevertheless, myself and several other dedicated MAP supporters declared our intention to complete the project well before our self-imposed deadline of July 1st. Our motto, which I said even in the very first post 75 weeks ago, is "this is happening!" It's only a matter of 'when'... which is discussed below. Thank you to the supporters and believers - you're making it happen!
Will you make the water flow, with us?
Much appreciation to those who upvoted last week:
Week 75
week 74 funds: 4024.261 STEEM
new funds:
- week 74 post payout = 2.231 SBD and 10.238 SP = 20.476 STEEM
- 30.0 STEEM direct donation from @Streetstyle and SteemLove
- 100.0 STEEM direct donation from @Kunschj
- you can send me cryptocurrency directly and your donation will be noted here
Total funds: 4174.737 STEEM
x 0.211 USD/STEEM = $880.87 USD (of $1300)
Current progress: 67.8%
Backsliding from 77% to 68% may seem dramatic, but keep in mind, a tiny move back up in the STEEM price will send our progress shooting into the 70s or even 80s. All that matters at this point (which we can control) is:
- continue to accumulate donations and upvotes weekly
- make preparations for the pump installation
- get ready to transfer the funds to Edgar
I asked Edgar for some information and cooperation last week, and he responded in the comment section. The aquifer is clean and ready. The pump room itself needs some attention and a new lock. The exact make and model of pump has yet to be determined, but 1300 will approximately cover it. It's tough to find retailers for large equipment in the middle of a zone experiencing unrest and poverty. If anyone has a lead, feel free to suggest it. In the meantime, Edgar is sourcing suitable pump retailers from the ground.
Considering his propane tanks (cooking and heating fuel) were stolen this week, a proper security upgrade of the pump house seems important. Maybe we could find a few extra bucks to make sure that's done properly.
I decided to begin powering down my Steem Power this week. The first of 13 payments will arrive next Saturday, in time for me to report on it in the next MAP post. I'll be getting 510 STEEM per week:
Because I'm powering down my full SP amount, it will only take about 6 or 7 weeks to have the MAP funds in hand, and ready for use! If we continue our progress, and the price of STEEM cooperates, that should be just about perfect... and well ahead of our July schedule.
Anyone else who wants to get involved in Mission: Agua-Possible before it's over, I recommend you do it soon! This is an historic and precedent-setting project, which will be looked at for inspiration and guidance by other fundraisers and community-builders in the future! We're doing this all on our own, grassroots, people power. We're showing how it can be done, innovating techniques, and decentralizing relief work.
And we could be just 6 weeks from completion!
Upvoting this post is MUCH appreciated! 100% goes to the project.
Mission Agua-Possible will help many people, and inspire other great projects. It's a group success story, playing out on the Steem blockchain. Together, we're going to dramatically improve the lives of a whole neighborhood that really needs it!
DRutter
Keep up the great work, everybody! We are over 2/3 complete, which is inspiring!
BIG thanks to @Kunschj for his 50.0 STEEM direct donation this week!
See you tomorrow (Saturday) for the weekly update :)
Amazing effort @drutter and it is getting closer. I agree, that this is just a small step backwards, but our efforts will continue to push this forward.
As soon as 6 weeks! I'm excited. Thanks for your ongoing support, I appreciate it a lot!
Looking forward to seeing a victorious post by Edgar, someday soon, showing clean running water in his house and on his land. We will each be responsible for helping bring that water to his crops and family. I hope it becomes part of a much greater restoration of services and hope for Venezuelans.
Indeed this is an amazing feat!
Beautifully said.
Awesome getting close now👍
Posted using Partiko Android
Yeeeeeah! So great to see it holding over half way. Home stretch time!
Upvoted and shared for Edgar!
Thanks for resteeming! :)
Sadly it seems like this has been a quiet week. Okay for upvotes, but no donations showing yet. And the price of STEEM has once again crashed hard, so we are probably backsliding more.
Hang in there, Edgar!!