Bethel Home; an orphanage and widows home in Maso, Kericho county is home to 60 children aged between 3-17 and four widows who act as house parents. It is a beautiful and serene place surrounded by greenery. Nestled away from the hustle and bustle of the busy town. The home was started in 2010 by the Church of Christ to help children who lost their parents due to one reason or the other and widows who were losing property and becoming homeless for cultural reasons. Francis Chepkwony; the director, with the help of his team, the church and the house parents has kept the home in good shape: the children are well-fed, educated and happy.
Bethel Home Installation
The Maji Zima team setting up the MS-MZ water filter at Maso Children's Home
We started our journey with Maso Children and Widows Home in November of 2021 when they approached us and told us their story. They needed help ensuring that the children got access to clean drinking water. The water they were using made them susceptible to waterborne disease, this solution was meant to keep them safe and reduce the cost of medical expenses in turn directing the much-needed funds towards their food and education. The home's main source of water is a borehole. Water from the well is often very muddy and not pleasant to drink.
Francis and his team cared for the MS-MZ water filter, taking out the pre-filter often and rinsing it out with clean water. Doing this frequently helps with stopping the mud from the well water from clogging the filter cartridge and interfering with its working. They also did a weekly backwash to clean out the cartridge. Weekly maintenance has helped them maintain their filter in the best shape possible.
Cartridge Replacement
Lenin and Francis discussing on how to care for the water filter post installation
Our first visit post-installation was on 6th September 2022. We noticed their water was extremely muddy and needed a second pre-filter to make the filter cartridge job easier by eliminating most of the mud. We, therefore, installed a second pre-filter to help reduce the load on the cartridge.
During our February 2023 visit, 6 months after the first visit, we brought a new cartridge and replaced the damaged one. We confirmed it is working well. Our team inspected every part of the water filter, taking apart the pre-filter and washing them. Checking if there could be any damage done to the rest of the filter and backflushing the water.
We re-assembled the water filter ran the water for ten minutes and collected water samples in sterilised bottles for testing. Before we left the home, we took the meter reading which was at 3200 litres as of February 2023. There were no reports of any kids falling ill for the last 6 months. This is encouraging as Kenya usually loses at least five children yearly to waterborne diseases.