From Stanwood to Panama with fresh water

Dr. Joy Fackenthall (right) explains a young girl's medication to her mother. Some do-gooders are bringing a float to the Stanwood Camano Fair Parade Saturday.

A physician at Stanwood's Everett Clinic, Dr. Joy Fackenthall has been to Panama annually for six years, to diagnose ailments and dispense medicines for the poor indigenous children of Bocas del Toro. She partners with the president and founder of Operation Safe Drinking Water, Dave Jeffers, who said that the float in the parade tells the whole story.

Some six years ago, David and Joellen Jeffers sold their coffee distribution company in Arlington and moved to Panama. The Jeffers didn't speak Spanish or the Indian dialect, but they jumped to the challenge before them. After building a small cabin, setting up a first aid station, and developing a donor program to educate children, they e-mailed their friends to pack their bags full of medicines and come.

Since then Fackenthall and her husband, Aleph Fackenthall, and her parents doctors Ron and Eleanor Guderian, have gone about once every year. Dr. Ron Guderian manages a mobile dental clinic for Medical Teams International.

Some newcomers are also joining the team.

Ed Bartlett, of Stanwood, is going for the first time next spring. When Bartlett heard stories about the project, he thought of going, but he didn't think he had any skills to offer. A master at barbecuing ribs, Bartlett realized he could contribute by preparing meals and is now busy thinking of menus as well as ways to raise the funds for his ticket.

An Arlington dentist, Dr. Al Erickson, also decided to go on the next trip, even though he admits he is not very adventurous.

Having leaders like Aleph Fackenthall and Ron Guderian gives him the confidence he needs, Erickson said.

The water system, which will be displayed on the float in the parade, was the result of the Fackenthalls' and the Guderians' efforts to help the children and their parents. While caring for medical and dental patients who lined up at the clinic, they became aware that many of the children were sick because of unsanitary drinking water. Treating their health problems would only be a temporary fix unless the water system was improved, explained Joy Fackenthall.

"How much help is it to treat the illness without addressing the cause," she remembers thinking long ago.

To the rescue: Operation Safe Drinking Water, a non-profit organization that provides water systems that catch rain off the roof and store it in tanks.

Now, six years and six trips later, hundreds of children and their families are healthy because they no longer drink from the same stagnant streams and dirty water holes that were used for bathing, washing clothes and watering animals. Now they have clear, clean water to drink.

And more partners have joined the effort in annual spring break trips to Panama, organized by the congregation of Christ the King Church in Arlington.

A staunch supporter of the program, Pastor Rick Schranck is thrilled that the church has caught the vision to help.

"Some of our people are returning again and again while others are providing scholarships or raising funds to purchase more water tanks," Schranck said.

"It means so much to know you are doing something to improve the lives of others."

Young people go along, as well, teaching and playing with the children there.

"These water systems, along with the medical and dental service, have had an amazing impact in the communities of Boca del Toro," Guderian said.

"The children, now happy, healthy, and strong, are being educated. The parents have discovered new energy for each day and hope for the future," Guderian said.

Not only do these trips make a difference for the Panamanians, but also for the Americans who go.

Tim Powers, a 21-yearold machinist, and his sister, Catherine Powers, a student at Everett Community College, went for the adventure but found much more.

"I thought it would be fun to play with the kids," Catherine said.

"But it was really awesome to help the people."

Meanwhile, back in Stanwood, watch the parade to see the water-catching system, and pick up a brochure.

For more information about the project, see the Web site at www.operationsafedrinkingwater. org