WALLINGFORD - It's doesn't look like much from the outside. It's just a concrete box with a dripping faucet. But for the thousands living in abstract poverty in the Dominican Republic, it's a cheap remedy that can change lives.
Local volunteers under organizer John Powers are getting ready to embark on their 19th trip to the Dominican Republic this summer, and held a fundraiser Saturday night at Sheehan High School to gather money to manufacture as many water filters as possible.
The 250 volunteers that will make the two-week trip this year come from many different churches and social service organizations, and will also build schools and churches, tend to the sick, distribute clothes, and educate children, said Powers, who is a member of the Wallingford First Baptist Church.
Since the trips began the group has deployed 600 water filters and built the two-story Good Samaritan Hospital in La Romana, Dominican Republic. Without the water filtration plants found in developed countries, much of the water in the Dominican Republic is contaminated and causes countless disease. The filters clear out contaminants, however.
The fundraiser should bring in at least $15,000, Powers said.
One of the new endeavors this year is a program to feed patients of the hospital. While bad hospital food is clichéd in the United States, patients are expected to provide their own meals in the Dominican Republic, said Wallingford Rotarian Ken Sause.
He had large cooking pots set up for people to throw money in. One was labeled with a $20 sign, the cost of providing a person with three meals a day.
It's his hope to set up a fund so the neediest can be fed while they convalesce, he said.
"It's incredible," Sauce said. "You're really buying health for people."
Inside the auditorium, a talk show-style entertainment entitled "Life in Their Shoes," with music and guests was held following a pasta dinner.
Videos and photos of the poor conditions people endure in the Dominican Republic were displayed, interspersed with interviews with members working on the trip and musical acts such as the Southern Connecticut State University Symphonic Orchestra.
In the lobby, Donna Bergman of Marlborough was browsing items part of a large silent auction used to raise money for the trip.
"Friends of ours go (on the trip) every year," she said. "I think it's amazing. As much as I can I like to help out."
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