Annandale resident raises funds for water project in African village
Annandale resident Lassine Doumbia is one of the few people from a remote village in the West African nation of Mali to emigrate to the U.S. and find success working for the federal government.
Rather than simply focus on creating a new life here, he has been working tirelessly on making life better for the people back home. He has built a school and health clinic in the village of Koungodjan and is now working on getting a water tower and well built to serve those facilities.
After exhausting his own funds and other resources, including funds from the Mali government and private foundations, Lassine still needs $25,000 to complete the water project.
Anyone willing to help is encouraged to make a donation through Lassine’s GoFundMe page.
Without clean water, the residents of Koungodjan have to carry water from distant wells. And people are still getting sick from drinking impure water.
Every basic service is a struggle in Mali, one of the poorest countries in the world. Lassine dedicated the health clinic to his father, who died of medical complications from a broken hip at age 97 after waiting five days for a medical technician to arrive from the city.
Before Lassine built the school, children had to bike to a school 16 miles away – that is if they had a bicycle.
The school and clinic – and the future water project – will continue to make life better for the residents of Koungodjan. Access to clean water is especially important as this sub-Sahara country is getting even drier due to climate change.
Lassine’s community spirit also extends to Annandale: He is in charge of arranging the Spotlight by Starlight summer concerts at Ossian Hall Park featuring music and dance from diverse countries.
To everyone who takes clean water for granted – who fills a glass from the tap without thinking – give a thought to those who don’t have that. And please give what you can to help the people of Koungodjan realize their dream of clean drinking water. No donation is too small.
This is a great story. Lassine Doumbia should be0 be nominated for the Chick-Fil-A local hero giveaway.
May she have as much success as the project Lifetime Wells for Ghana which has grown through local support and now has 3 well digging crews working 9 months a year in the finding and digging fresh water supply wells.