[Mission: Agua-Possible] We are buying a pump to bring water to a parched neighborhood in Venezuela!

This is week 19 of our efforts to raise Steem equal to 1300 USD, to buy a water pump for Hive account@edgargonzalez! His family and small farm need water, but the old pump which brought water up from the aquifer was destroyed. Want to help us reach our goal and complete this awesome project?

Background

Severe economic and political crisis over the past few years in the South American country of Venezuela intensified recently, as president Maduro doubled down on his currency manipulation, price-fixing, propagandizing citizens, and suppressing resistance. You've likely heard about the country's recent turmoil. But the world's media isn't showing us even half the reality!

I met a few people from Venezuela, and I started to hear their interesting stories - and ask questions. I discovered the dark truth about the economic and political situation there. Shops are empty, people are hungry - the economy is at a standstill. Theft, corruption, and violence escalate as society breaks down. Millions are fleeing on foot - if they can escape. The harsh socialist government attempts to control almost every aspect of life, 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. There is talk of Russian military involvement, supporting Maduro. This week, the Americans backed their puppet, a new leader called Guaidó. It seems that violence may be coming.

A few months ago, I met Edgar (Hive account@edgargonzalez), 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, foraging for fruits, and growing cassava on his late-father's plantation. He uses Steemit to share his stories and make Steem 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 other families in the neighborhood. Without a pump to bring water up from the aquifer, his gardens have withered - and the neighborhood must forage for water elsewhere.

(Edgar yesterday harvesting what little was left by drought and thieves.)

Without government water services, and now without water from his well, Edgar and a few other families are in a tough situation. When I heard about this problem, through Steemit, I realized that the blockchain could also be the SOLUTION!

That's when I stepped forward with Mission Agua-possible! Once we gather 1300 USD worth of Steem, I'll transfer it to Edgar, to be converted to cash to buy the pump.

Getting this pump to the farm as soon as possible is vital. Water is life!

Modest progress

We continue to get noticed by various members of the community, many of whom upvote posts and provide ongoing support. Thank you! The snowball is growing as it rolls :)

There were a few direct donations this week - thank you very much to @MediKatie (1.0 Steem), Hive account@jk6276 (2.0 Steem), and Hive account@cryptojiang (0.5 Steem)! This helped us stack some Steem, though the dropping USD price blunted overall progress.

Resteems help get new eyes (and upvotes) into the project, so thank you if you're able to resteem occasionally.

Much appreciation to those who upvoted last week:

Week 19

week 18 funds: 144.449 Steem

new funds:

• week 18 post payout = 0.287 SBD and 0.778 STEEM POWER = 1.556 Steem
• direct donation from @MediKatie of 1.0 Steem
• direct donation from Hive account@jk6276 of 2.0 Steem
• direct donation from Hive account@cryptojiang of 0.5 Steem
• you can send me Steem directly and your donation will be noted here

Total funds: 149.505 Steem

Current USD value: $50.53 (of $1300)

Current progress: 3.9%

Down from 4.3% last week, because Steem fell to $0.338 USD. But it was only recently we passed the 3% mark, so steady overall progress is being made.

Upvoting this post is appreciated so much! 100% goes toward the pump.

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