(The metal content is contained in the area concerning the well)

This might be my very last trip to Ghana, Africa as most of the
infrastructure I was tasked with setting up is now in place and the cost
of going is high. ...The resources can be redirected here in the states
to do more good so it was both the best and the worst trip ever for me.
Extremely emotional. I found myself staring off into space quite often
considering the fact that I may never see the people and places again.
But when I wasn't traumatizing myself, I was having a blast doing what I
love to do.

Here are some of the things we accomplished during this trip:

THE WELL: We fixed and opened the roadside well – first clean drinking
water in almost 20 years! The celebration as the water started to flow
was electric! Prior to the opening of this well, the community of around
500 people drank, bathed and cooked with water from a waste polluted stream.

During the process of putting the well in, we realized that the new well
pump structure had a totally different bolt hole pattern as compared to
the old one. We are talking about thick galvanized steel with 25mm nuts
to hold it in place. Not something you can grab a rock and fix.
Heck... A dremel or even a file would have taken a lifetime.

So... What did we do? We traced the hole pattern from the old
structure on the new one with a pencil, threw the new structure in the
back of a transport and took an hour long ride down into the nearest
town that had a reputable metalworker.

when we arrived at the metalworker's shop, I was worried. I'm
accustomed to the "African way" of doing things. ...You use what works
even if it isn't pretty. But this place seriously had me concerned.
They were working on cars by turning them on their sides so you could
stand next to the underside of the car. The shop was nothing more than
a hastily built wood structure about the size of a garden shed with a
straw roof and ground so soaked with oil and "stuff" that it lacked the
typical red dust that all of the region has.

So... I wondered where the guy's drill press or Bridgeport was. then
he came walking out, looked at the part, discussed the situation with
our folks and walked away. When he returned, he was carrying some
copper wire (I'd guess 8ga but what the heck do I know?) and arc welding
rods and rod holders. He puts the part on an upside-down car hood,
clamps the negative electrode to the hood (not the part?!?) and proceeds
to burn the holes out with the arc welder. Mask? A dark set of sun
glasses. When the holes were close to proper size, he used a tapered
arbor and a large hammer to round them off and final size them.

It took another 40 minutes to find the nuts for the studs at the well
site since they hack sawed the old corroded ones off rather than put oil
anywhere near the well.

Back we went to the well site and proceeded to mount it perfectly.

Ingenuity at its best! ...Even if I did expect the guy to fry his
manhood off accidentally while using the arc welder.

This was a hand pump and the water level was around 60' down. We put in
around 90' of tube and the pick-up end of the pump was well submersed.

when they started pumping crystal clear water out, the hundreds of
people standing around literally cheered and the site went electric with
excitement and celebration. It is one of the most memorable moments
I've ever experienced.

We built a concrete slab to reinforce well structure.

We trained a number of local men on how to maintain and repair the well
structure as part of our ongoing efforts to build sustainability in the
area. They actually performed much of the work as a hands-on learning
experience. It took twice as long, but the lessons learned will serve
the area for generations to come!

THE LIFE CLINIC: A few years ago, we "acquired" a building in the center
of the village that was not being used for anything at all. It was a
1950's built structure that originally served as the Kindergarten
classroom. It hadn't been used for anything in decades so with our
dreams in hand and the village's willingness to trust us, we began
taking over the structure for future use. We repaired it, cleaned it up
quite a bit and re-purposed it as a medical center right in the center
of the community. In late 2012, the nation recognized it as an official
medical facility and "placed it on the map" as we would say...

This center was staffed by a number of my team's volunteers and saw over
150 patients in 4 days. They screened the blood of almost 30 people.
Found 3 children with Sickle Cell, 2 children with Malaria and 1 adult
with HIV. Sent 3 to the larger area hospital (Malaria, HIV and a
pregnant women with low hemoglobin) and saw that they received the more
advanced care they needed.

A number of our friends from the community were present for much of the
time absorbing information on better health practices and habits as well
as basic medical care.

THE SCHOOLS: We gave out new backpacks to the entire Junior High. We
also provided backpacks to the 5th and 6th grade classes.

Our team rewarded all of the top students from Kindergarten to Junior
High with their new bags filled with school supplies.

We were able to send 8 new students to Secondary School with all of the
supplies that they needed. It was quite a moving experience to see this
group of students achieving what was once virtually impossible for any
of the students in the community.

Keep in mind that during my very first trip to the village, the students
lacked things as simple as pencils and paper and as far as we can tell,
none of the students advanced past the equivalent of 6th grade.

Education is key as it empowers the community to grow on it's own. These
students are encouraged to learn all they can and to return back to
their community and build it up from the inside. ...We essentially hope
that our services will not be needed in the future due to their efforts
- and we already see that starting to happen.

We covered openings in the roof of Kindergarten with netting to
hopefully stop a major bat infestation. The children were being
subjected to constant squeaks and noises from what we presume were
hundreds of bats in the ceiling area. Also, the school had an extremely
strong odor from the bat droppings. One volunteer familiar with farm
life said the odor was overwhelming to him and he couldn't imagine
trying to sit in a classroom for hours with that odor present. Recent
reports from the village say we have caught plenty of bats and are well
on the way to providing a safe and clean school environment for the
young children. Once the bats are gone, a clean-up process for the
school will begin.

We enjoyed a massive field day with all of the classes in the village
(over 215 students). It was quite a celebration and the photos and video
footage will start to make their way to our sites shortly.

LIFE: Built relationships that will last a lifetime or longer! ...When
we say that lives are changed during our trips, we are talking about
lives both in Ghana and here at home. You simply can't be involved
without having a life changing experience... The people and the land are
simply amazing. It is often said that the benefits of going on a trip
with AOV are truly addictive!

While there, I was able to take a quick spin on a motorcycle, drive a 22
passenger bus, hike into the bush to an ancient rock formation (looked
for Cobras and Pythons the whole time but only found a giant snail), and
taught the locals about the special joy of eating a "cotton candy" coconut.

If you would ever want to follow our efforts, you can do so via the
www.AdoptOneVillage.org site. Of course, you can always contact me
directly too!

....Now, I'm back, swamped with work and need to catch up. Adios for now
and thanks for tuning in! G

--
http://tinyurl.com/My-Official-Response

Regards,
Joe Agro, Jr.
(800) 871-5022 x113
01.908.542.0244
Flagship Site: http://www.Drill-HQ.com
Automatic / Pneumatic Drills: http://www.AutoDrill.com
Multiple Spindle Drills: http://www.Multi-Drill.com
Production Tapping: http://www.Drill-HQ.com/?page_id=226
VIDEOS: http://www.youtube.com/user/AutoDrill
FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/AutoDrill
TWITTER: http://twitter.com/AutoDrill

V8013-R

--
http://tinyurl.com/My-Official-Response

Regards,
Joe Agro, Jr.
(800) 871-5022 x113
01.908.542.0244
Flagship Site: http://www.Drill-HQ.com
Automatic / Pneumatic Drills: http://www.AutoDrill.com
Multiple Spindle Drills: http://www.Multi-Drill.com
Production Tapping: http://www.Drill-HQ.com/?page_id=226
VIDEOS: http://www.youtube.com/user/AutoDrill
FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/AutoDrill
TWITTER: http://twitter.com/AutoDrill

V8013-R

Hey Joe,

Good for you, and sorry it is your last trip (at the moment??).

Take care.

Brian Lawson.

ps...you are pretty good with words....write a book about the whole of
your visits and thoughts.

On Fri, 01 Feb 2013 13:19:42 -0500, Brian Lawson wrote:

Hey Joe,

Good for you, and sorry it is your last trip (at the moment??).

Take care.

Brian Lawson.

ps...you are pretty good with words....write a book about the whole of
your visits and thoughts.

Or start a blog. I do find your reports from the field to be
inspirational.

--
My liberal friends think I'm a conservative kook.
My conservative friends think I'm a liberal kook.
Why am I not happy that they have found common ground?

Tim Wescott, Communications, Control, Circuits & Software
http://www.wescottdesign.com

On 2/1/2013 1:19 PM, Brian Lawson wrote:

Hey Joe,

Good for you, and sorry it is your last trip (at the moment??).

Take care.

Brian Lawson.

ps...you are pretty good with words....write a book about the whole of
your visits and thoughts.




Thanks for the kind words! I hope it's not my last trip but we shall see...

As for the book... I'm not tooting my own horn or anything, but I was
seriously considering a small write-up from first through third trip
and/or a narrated slide show or something.

--
http://tinyurl.com/My-Official-Response

Regards,
Joe Agro, Jr.
(800) 871-5022 x113
01.908.542.0244
Flagship Site: http://www.Drill-HQ.com
Automatic / Pneumatic Drills: http://www.AutoDrill.com
Multiple Spindle Drills: http://www.Multi-Drill.com
Production Tapping: http://www.Drill-HQ.com/?page_id=226
VIDEOS: http://www.youtube.com/user/AutoDrill
FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/AutoDrill
TWITTER: http://twitter.com/AutoDrill

V8013-R

On 2/1/2013 9:21 AM, Joe AutoDrill wrote:
(The metal content is contained in the area concerning the well)

This might be my very last trip to Ghana, Africa as most of the
infrastructure I was tasked with setting up is now in place and the cost
of going is high. ...The resources can be redirected here in the states
to do more good so it was both the best and the worst trip ever for me.
Extremely emotional. I found myself staring off into space quite often
considering the fact that I may never see the people and places again.
But when I wasn't traumatizing myself, I was having a blast doing what I
love to do.


What a great story. How did you first get interested, Joe?

--


___________________________________

Keep the whole world singing . . .
Dan G
remove the seven

On 2/2/2013 6:43 AM, DanG wrote:
On 2/1/2013 9:21 AM, Joe AutoDrill wrote:
(The metal content is contained in the area concerning the well)

This might be my very last trip to Ghana, Africa as most of the
infrastructure I was tasked with setting up is now in place and the cost
of going is high. ...The resources can be redirected here in the states
to do more good so it was both the best and the worst trip ever for me.
Extremely emotional. I found myself staring off into space quite often
considering the fact that I may never see the people and places again.
But when I wasn't traumatizing myself, I was having a blast doing what I
love to do.


What a great story. How did you first get interested, Joe?


Dan,

That is a very good question! My friend is actually from the village we
serve. He's in his 50's now and is the founder of the Adopt One Village
organization. He often tells the story that he didn't have his first
pair of shoes until he was 16 and is embarrassed to admit that well into
his 50's he had trouble typing shoe laces.

Check out his profile he
http://www.adoptonevillage.org/about/about-the-founder/

Most of what you read there happened prior to my involvement. But here
is where I come in...

A few years ago, he invited four of us to join him in Ghana to see what
we might be able to do to organize customized trips and efforts for a
local charity in NJ. I was heavily involved in the charity and had
never met Emmanuel prior to the trip. The AOV effort was kicked into
high gear by the follow-up from that trip and we launched the
www.AdoptOneVillage.org site on the web, Facebook, etc. We have a board
of 7 people (site is outdated in that regard at the moment) and around
100 volunteers working behind the scenes here in the states to make this
stuff happen. A few minutes each day by a great number of people adds
up to some really, REALLY cool trips and progress for the people we serve.

....When I first walked into the village, the kids were all barefoot and
many had festering sores. Most had never even seen a BandAid. ...We
wanted to make sure we gave them a hand up rather than a hand out so we
focus on sustainable efforts there rather than cargo containers full of
'stuff" only. The adults there didn't really have any trust of the
Obruni (outsiders) beyond being cordial and kind. Now, we have an
extended family atmosphere that goes way beyond what any of us had
imagined. Our top education leader was recently given the title of
"Queen Mother" of the village. It's a title that will not pass away
when she does, etc. The title can never be taken away or reassigned to
someone else... Quite an honor. ...Why did they do this? Because her
efforts in organizing and leading the educational charge have lead to
the village sending about a dozen kids to the next level of schooling.
....Something that had essentially never happened before in the history
of the village.

The village is about 9 miles from a main town that has electricity and
most major amenities yet the village is about as poor as you can find in
the southern half of the nation with most families making between $1 and
$15 per week.

If I could move to the space between the village and this town, I'd be
there tomorrow!

Education is at the top of the list followed by simple things like
creating clean water options that they can maintain moving forward, etc.

So my involvement was initially a "check this out and tell me what you
think we can do to serve them and the local charity that wants to send
folks" and turned into a passion that runs so deep in my being that I've
been literally thinking and dreaming about what to do in Ghana for three
years straight. It takes more of my "brain space" than the business I
run on a daily basis. ...Some day, maybe the doors will be open for a
life direction shift. For now, I do what I can where I can when I can.

Every time I go, I post a follow-up here with the metal-related content
and more. I hope folks enjoy it.

--
http://tinyurl.com/My-Official-Response

Regards,
Joe Agro, Jr.
(800) 871-5022 x113
01.908.542.0244
Flagship Site: http://www.Drill-HQ.com
Automatic / Pneumatic Drills: http://www.AutoDrill.com
Multiple Spindle Drills: http://www.Multi-Drill.com
Production Tapping: http://www.Drill-HQ.com/?page_id=226
VIDEOS: http://www.youtube.com/user/AutoDrill
FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/AutoDrill
TWITTER: http://twitter.com/AutoDrill

V8013-R

Joe AutoDrill wrote:

He often tells the story that he didn't have his first
pair of shoes until he was 16 and is embarrassed to admit that well into
his 50's he had trouble typing shoe laces.


How many types are there? ;-)

It's great to hear that some people still care enough to help others.

On 2/4/2013 2:21 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

Joe AutoDrill wrote:

He often tells the story that he didn't have his first
pair of shoes until he was 16 and is embarrassed to admit that well into
his 50's he had trouble typing shoe laces.


How many types are there? ;-)

It's great to hear that some people still care enough to help others.



I have tremendous faith in the human race - aside from any of them given
extreme amounts of power or influence that is. They will eventually ruin
it for the rest of us.

--
http://tinyurl.com/My-Official-Response

Regards,
Joe Agro, Jr.
(800) 871-5022 x113
01.908.542.0244
Flagship Site: http://www.Drill-HQ.com
Automatic / Pneumatic Drills: http://www.AutoDrill.com
Multiple Spindle Drills: http://www.Multi-Drill.com
Production Tapping: http://www.Drill-HQ.com/?page_id=226
VIDEOS: http://www.youtube.com/user/AutoDrill
FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/AutoDrill
TWITTER: http://twitter.com/AutoDrill

V8013-R

Joe AutoDrill wrote:

On 2/4/2013 2:21 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

Joe AutoDrill wrote:

He often tells the story that he didn't have his first
pair of shoes until he was 16 and is embarrassed to admit that well into
his 50's he had trouble typing shoe laces.


How many types are there? ;-)

It's great to hear that some people still care enough to help others.



I have tremendous faith in the human race - aside from any of them given
extreme amounts of power or influence that is. They will eventually ruin
it for the rest of us.


I took on a crooked politican in Ohio years ago. Took him to court,
and got a settlement just moments before the trial started. That kept
him from being re-elected after 20+ years in office when people found
you could fight back. Other times I crawled out of bed with the flu to
do emergency repairs to a neighbor's house, and gave another my last $5
when he told me that he and his wife hadn't eaten for three days. I
didn't tell him that I was broke and had no food in my house, and no
income. I just gave. I had the faith that I would survive, and that
the $5 wouldn't make that much difference in what happened to me. It
helped them, and that was what mattered.

On Mon, 04 Feb 2013 19:24:59 -0500, "Michael A. Terrell"
wrote:


Joe AutoDrill wrote:

On 2/4/2013 2:21 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

Joe AutoDrill wrote:

He often tells the story that he didn't have his first
pair of shoes until he was 16 and is embarrassed to admit that well into
his 50's he had trouble typing shoe laces.


How many types are there? ;-)

It's great to hear that some people still care enough to help others.



I have tremendous faith in the human race - aside from any of them given
extreme amounts of power or influence that is. They will eventually ruin
it for the rest of us.


I took on a crooked politican in Ohio years ago. Took him to court,
and got a settlement just moments before the trial started. That kept
him from being re-elected after 20+ years in office when people found
you could fight back. Other times I crawled out of bed with the flu to
do emergency repairs to a neighbor's house, and gave another my last $5
when he told me that he and his wife hadn't eaten for three days. I
didn't tell him that I was broke and had no food in my house, and no
income. I just gave. I had the faith that I would survive, and that
the $5 wouldn't make that much difference in what happened to me. It
helped them, and that was what mattered.


Been there, done that.

Your a good man, Mike.

Gunner

The methodology of the left has always been:

1. Lie
2. Repeat the lie as many times as possible
3. Have as many people repeat the lie as often as possible
4. Eventually, the uninformed believe the lie
5. The lie will then be made into some form oflaw
6. Then everyone must conform to the lie

On Feb 4, 11:11*pm, Gunner wrote:
On Mon, 04 Feb 2013 19:24:59 -0500, "Michael A. Terrell"









wrote:

Joe AutoDrill wrote:

On 2/4/2013 2:21 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

Joe AutoDrill wrote:

* He often tells the story that he didn't have his first
pair of shoes until he was 16 and is embarrassed to admit that well into
his 50's he had trouble typing shoe laces.

* * How many types are there? ;-)

* * It's great to hear that some people still care enough to help others.


I have tremendous faith in the human race - aside from any of them given
extreme amounts of power or influence that is. They will eventually ruin
it for the rest of us.

* I took on a crooked politican in Ohio years ago. *Took him to court,
and got a settlement just moments before the trial started. *That kept
him from being re-elected after 20+ years in office when people found
you could fight back. *Other times I crawled out of bed with the flu to
do emergency repairs to a neighbor's house, and gave another my last $5
when he told me that he and his wife hadn't eaten for three days. I
didn't tell him that I was broke and had no food in my house, and no
income. *I just gave. *I had the faith that I would survive, and that
the $5 wouldn't make that much difference in what happened to me. It
helped them, and that was what mattered.

Been there, done that.

Your a good man, Mike.

Gunner

The methodology of the left has always been:

1. Lie
2. Repeat the lie as many times as possible
3. Have as many people repeat the lie as often as possible
4. Eventually, the uninformed believe the lie
5. The lie will then be made into some form oflaw
6. Then everyone must conform to the lie

"Been there, done that."

Sure you have. What a liar you are.

On 2/4/2013 7:24 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

I took on a crooked politican in Ohio years ago. Took him to court,
and got a settlement just moments before the trial started. That kept
him from being re-elected after 20+ years in office when people found
you could fight back. Other times I crawled out of bed with the flu to
do emergency repairs to a neighbor's house, and gave another my last $5
when he told me that he and his wife hadn't eaten for three days. I
didn't tell him that I was broke and had no food in my house, and no
income. I just gave. I had the faith that I would survive, and that
the $5 wouldn't make that much difference in what happened to me. It
helped them, and that was what mattered.


Kudos. If everyone acted with such conviction and caring, we wouldn't
need a government at all.

--
http://tinyurl.com/My-Official-Response

Regards,
Joe Agro, Jr.
(800) 871-5022 x113
01.908.542.0244
Flagship Site: http://www.Drill-HQ.com
Automatic / Pneumatic Drills: http://www.AutoDrill.com
Multiple Spindle Drills: http://www.Multi-Drill.com
Production Tapping: http://www.Drill-HQ.com/?page_id=226
VIDEOS: http://www.youtube.com/user/AutoDrill
FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/AutoDrill
TWITTER: http://twitter.com/AutoDrill

V8013-R

On Feb 4, 7:24*pm, "Michael A. Terrell"
wrote:
Joe AutoDrill wrote:

On 2/4/2013 2:21 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

Joe AutoDrill wrote:

* He often tells the story that he didn't have his first
pair of shoes until he was 16 and is embarrassed to admit that well into
his 50's he had trouble typing shoe laces.

* * How many types are there? ;-)

* * It's great to hear that some people still care enough to help others.


I have tremendous faith in the human race - aside from any of them given
extreme amounts of power or influence that is. They will eventually ruin
it for the rest of us.

* *I took on a crooked politican in Ohio years ago. *Took him to court,
and got a settlement just moments before the trial started. *That kept
him from being re-elected after 20+ years in office when people found
you could fight back. *Other times I crawled out of bed with the flu to
do emergency repairs to a neighbor's house, and gave another my last $5
when he told me that he and his wife hadn't eaten for three days. I
didn't tell him that I was broke and had no food in my house, and no
income. *I just gave. *I had the faith that I would survive, and that
the $5 wouldn't make that much difference in what happened to me. It
helped them, and that was what mattered.

Nice of you. Not very conservative, I might add. Anyway, if it gets
too rough out there, then throw your pride in the trash can and come
back to civilization; you know, downtown Seattle, San Fran, New York
or Chicago where everything is *actually going on*.

(there are better opportunities there)

On 2/4/2013 7:24 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

Joe AutoDrill wrote:

On 2/4/2013 2:21 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

Joe AutoDrill wrote:

He often tells the story that he didn't have his first
pair of shoes until he was 16 and is embarrassed to admit that well into
his 50's he had trouble typing shoe laces.


How many types are there? ;-)

It's great to hear that some people still care enough to help others.



I have tremendous faith in the human race - aside from any of them given
extreme amounts of power or influence that is. They will eventually ruin
it for the rest of us.


I took on a crooked politican in Ohio years ago. Took him to court,
and got a settlement just moments before the trial started. That kept
him from being re-elected after 20+ years in office when people found
you could fight back. Other times I crawled out of bed with the flu to
do emergency repairs to a neighbor's house, and gave another my last $5
when he told me that he and his wife hadn't eaten for three days. I
didn't tell him that I was broke and had no food in my house, and no
income. I just gave. I had the faith that I would survive, and that
the $5 wouldn't make that much difference in what happened to me. It
helped them, and that was what mattered.


Move back to Ohio, your work isn't done here!

On 2/1/2013 10:21 AM, Joe AutoDrill wrote:
(The metal content is contained in the area concerning the well)

This might be my very last trip to Ghana, Africa as most of the
infrastructure I was tasked with setting up is now in place and the cost
of going is high. ...The resources can be redirected here in the states
to do more good so it was both the best and the worst trip ever for me.
Extremely emotional. I found myself staring off into space quite often
considering the fact that I may never see the people and places again.
But when I wasn't traumatizing myself, I was having a blast doing what I
love to do.

Here are some of the things we accomplished during this trip:

THE WELL: We fixed and opened the roadside well – first clean drinking
water in almost 20 years! The celebration as the water started to flow
was electric! Prior to the opening of this well, the community of around
500 people drank, bathed and cooked with water from a waste polluted
stream.

During the process of putting the well in, we realized that the new well
pump structure had a totally different bolt hole pattern as compared to
the old one. We are talking about thick galvanized steel with 25mm nuts
to hold it in place. Not something you can grab a rock and fix.
Heck... A dremel or even a file would have taken a lifetime.

So... What did we do? We traced the hole pattern from the old
structure on the new one with a pencil, threw the new structure in the
back of a transport and took an hour long ride down into the nearest
town that had a reputable metalworker.

when we arrived at the metalworker's shop, I was worried. I'm
accustomed to the "African way" of doing things. ...You use what works
even if it isn't pretty. But this place seriously had me concerned.
They were working on cars by turning them on their sides so you could
stand next to the underside of the car. The shop was nothing more than
a hastily built wood structure about the size of a garden shed with a
straw roof and ground so soaked with oil and "stuff" that it lacked the
typical red dust that all of the region has.

So... I wondered where the guy's drill press or Bridgeport was. then
he came walking out, looked at the part, discussed the situation with
our folks and walked away. When he returned, he was carrying some
copper wire (I'd guess 8ga but what the heck do I know?) and arc welding
rods and rod holders. He puts the part on an upside-down car hood,
clamps the negative electrode to the hood (not the part?!?) and proceeds
to burn the holes out with the arc welder. Mask? A dark set of sun
glasses. When the holes were close to proper size, he used a tapered
arbor and a large hammer to round them off and final size them.

It took another 40 minutes to find the nuts for the studs at the well
site since they hack sawed the old corroded ones off rather than put oil
anywhere near the well.

Back we went to the well site and proceeded to mount it perfectly.

Ingenuity at its best! ...Even if I did expect the guy to fry his
manhood off accidentally while using the arc welder.

This was a hand pump and the water level was around 60' down. We put in
around 90' of tube and the pick-up end of the pump was well submersed.

when they started pumping crystal clear water out, the hundreds of
people standing around literally cheered and the site went electric with
excitement and celebration. It is one of the most memorable moments
I've ever experienced.

We built a concrete slab to reinforce well structure.

We trained a number of local men on how to maintain and repair the well
structure as part of our ongoing efforts to build sustainability in the
area. They actually performed much of the work as a hands-on learning
experience. It took twice as long, but the lessons learned will serve
the area for generations to come!

THE LIFE CLINIC: A few years ago, we "acquired" a building in the center
of the village that was not being used for anything at all. It was a
1950's built structure that originally served as the Kindergarten
classroom. It hadn't been used for anything in decades so with our
dreams in hand and the village's willingness to trust us, we began
taking over the structure for future use. We repaired it, cleaned it up
quite a bit and re-purposed it as a medical center right in the center
of the community. In late 2012, the nation recognized it as an official
medical facility and "placed it on the map" as we would say...

This center was staffed by a number of my team's volunteers and saw over
150 patients in 4 days. They screened the blood of almost 30 people.
Found 3 children with Sickle Cell, 2 children with Malaria and 1 adult
with HIV. Sent 3 to the larger area hospital (Malaria, HIV and a
pregnant women with low hemoglobin) and saw that they received the more
advanced care they needed.

A number of our friends from the community were present for much of the
time absorbing information on better health practices and habits as well
as basic medical care.

THE SCHOOLS: We gave out new backpacks to the entire Junior High. We
also provided backpacks to the 5th and 6th grade classes.

Our team rewarded all of the top students from Kindergarten to Junior
High with their new bags filled with school supplies.

We were able to send 8 new students to Secondary School with all of the
supplies that they needed. It was quite a moving experience to see this
group of students achieving what was once virtually impossible for any
of the students in the community.

Keep in mind that during my very first trip to the village, the students
lacked things as simple as pencils and paper and as far as we can tell,
none of the students advanced past the equivalent of 6th grade.

Education is key as it empowers the community to grow on it's own. These
students are encouraged to learn all they can and to return back to
their community and build it up from the inside. ...We essentially hope
that our services will not be needed in the future due to their efforts
- and we already see that starting to happen.

We covered openings in the roof of Kindergarten with netting to
hopefully stop a major bat infestation. The children were being
subjected to constant squeaks and noises from what we presume were
hundreds of bats in the ceiling area. Also, the school had an extremely
strong odor from the bat droppings. One volunteer familiar with farm
life said the odor was overwhelming to him and he couldn't imagine
trying to sit in a classroom for hours with that odor present. Recent
reports from the village say we have caught plenty of bats and are well
on the way to providing a safe and clean school environment for the
young children. Once the bats are gone, a clean-up process for the
school will begin.

We enjoyed a massive field day with all of the classes in the village
(over 215 students). It was quite a celebration and the photos and video
footage will start to make their way to our sites shortly.

LIFE: Built relationships that will last a lifetime or longer! ...When
we say that lives are changed during our trips, we are talking about
lives both in Ghana and here at home. You simply can't be involved
without having a life changing experience... The people and the land are
simply amazing. It is often said that the benefits of going on a trip
with AOV are truly addictive!

While there, I was able to take a quick spin on a motorcycle, drive a 22
passenger bus, hike into the bush to an ancient rock formation (looked
for Cobras and Pythons the whole time but only found a giant snail), and
taught the locals about the special joy of eating a "cotton candy" coconut.

If you would ever want to follow our efforts, you can do so via the
www.AdoptOneVillage.org site. Of course, you can always contact me
directly too!

...Now, I'm back, swamped with work and need to catch up. Adios for now
and thanks for tuning in! G



God bless ya' Joe! I bet it feel good to be able to use your talents a
bit out of the usual box.

On 2/5/2013 8:18 PM, Tom Gardner wrote:

God bless ya' Joe! I bet it feel good to be able to use your talents a
bit out of the usual box.

Tom... It not only feels good, but it's liberating. To be able to do
something that isn't corporatized, totally professional and requires
ample creative thinking moments and cooperation from others is the spice
of life IMHO.

I'd migrate there and do that stuff full time in a heartbeat if it were
possible.


--
http://tinyurl.com/My-Official-Response

Regards,
Joe Agro, Jr.
(800) 871-5022 x113
01.908.542.0244
Flagship Site: http://www.Drill-HQ.com
Automatic / Pneumatic Drills: http://www.AutoDrill.com
Multiple Spindle Drills: http://www.Multi-Drill.com
Production Tapping: http://www.Drill-HQ.com/?page_id=226
VIDEOS: http://www.youtube.com/user/AutoDrill
FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/AutoDrill
TWITTER: http://twitter.com/AutoDrill

V8013-R

On 2/6/2013 9:07 AM, Joe AutoDrill wrote:
On 2/5/2013 8:18 PM, Tom Gardner wrote:

God bless ya' Joe! I bet it feel good to be able to use your talents a
bit out of the usual box.

Tom... It not only feels good, but it's liberating. To be able to do
something that isn't corporatized, totally professional and requires
ample creative thinking moments and cooperation from others is the spice
of life IMHO.

I'd migrate there and do that stuff full time in a heartbeat if it were
possible.



I'm proud to know you...such as I do! Your efforts truly make a
difference.

Gunner wrote:

On Mon, 04 Feb 2013 19:24:59 -0500, "Michael A. Terrell"
wrote:


Joe AutoDrill wrote:

On 2/4/2013 2:21 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

Joe AutoDrill wrote:

He often tells the story that he didn't have his first
pair of shoes until he was 16 and is embarrassed to admit that well into
his 50's he had trouble typing shoe laces.


How many types are there? ;-)

It's great to hear that some people still care enough to help others.



I have tremendous faith in the human race - aside from any of them given
extreme amounts of power or influence that is. They will eventually ruin
it for the rest of us.


I took on a crooked politican in Ohio years ago. Took him to court,
and got a settlement just moments before the trial started. That kept
him from being re-elected after 20+ years in office when people found
you could fight back. Other times I crawled out of bed with the flu to
do emergency repairs to a neighbor's house, and gave another my last $5
when he told me that he and his wife hadn't eaten for three days. I
didn't tell him that I was broke and had no food in my house, and no
income. I just gave. I had the faith that I would survive, and that
the $5 wouldn't make that much difference in what happened to me. It
helped them, and that was what mattered.

Been there, done that.

Your a good man, Mike.


Thank you. I've tried to be, my entire life. I've lost count of the
number of people I've got out of a jam, and not one has ever paid me
back. That doesn't stop me from offering to help where I can.

Joe AutoDrill wrote:

On 2/4/2013 7:24 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:

I took on a crooked politican in Ohio years ago. Took him to court,
and got a settlement just moments before the trial started. That kept
him from being re-elected after 20+ years in office when people found
you could fight back. Other times I crawled out of bed with the flu to
do emergency repairs to a neighbor's house, and gave another my last $5
when he told me that he and his wife hadn't eaten for three days. I
didn't tell him that I was broke and had no food in my house, and no
income. I just gave. I had the faith that I would survive, and that
the $5 wouldn't make that much difference in what happened to me. It
helped them, and that was what mattered.


Kudos. If everyone acted with such conviction and caring, we wouldn't
need a government at all.



We would take a couple giant steps in that direction if we could just
teach people that they are responsible for their actions.