Helping the Navajo Nation: Update
Thank you to all who have been a part of meeting needs in the Navajo Nation! We have made our fourth trip up to the Hard Rock Chapter, and it has been a blessing to work together to love that community well. Some have been donating essential items and some have been contributing through monetary donations, and it has all making an impact.
Life in this specific area of the reservation can be hard. Resources can be scarce and the weather can be harsh. In the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, these communities are met with even more difficulties as some are without running water. There is a nurse that visits these households, using the resources that we have provided to aid these households - many of which are elders in their community and are especially vulnerable to COVID due to pre-existing conditions. There are two conditions in this situation that has had our team asking for practical ways that we can continue to help the Hard Rock community.
Water
The first is the lack of running water. Water, of course, is so crucial to health - from staying hydrated to cleaning and keeping things sanitized to limit the spread of germs. A problem is the amount of plastic that has to be used to transport all the water into these communities. They do not have recycling programs, and waste is something of which the leaders of the chapter have to pay for removal. While we have started to have the conversation of what it would take to dig wells to provide water in a sustainable way, we have first identified immediate action that can be taken.
Water transportation resources. We have used some of the donated funds to purchase 5 gallon reusable water containers - so that households can transport water more effectively, and the containers are able to be reused to eliminate some excessive amount of plastic.
Well repair. There are already some wells that have been dug around the chapter house, that we hear need repair, so we are in contact with our contact there to see if there are tools or other things that are needed to help repair those so that they can be used again.
How you can help. We have purchased ten 5 gallon container which we will be taking to Hard Rock and will be filling those with water before we take them up, but this will be a new way to do things. We can still use water! All is accepted, but we recommend purchasing gallon containers as opposed to water bottles to help limit waste - and even the gallon containers can be reused.
Well repair. There are already some wells that have been dug around the chapter house, that we hear need repair, so we are in contact with our contact there to see if there are tools or other things that are needed to help repair those so that they can be used again.
How you can help. We have purchased ten 5 gallon container which we will be taking to Hard Rock and will be filling those with water before we take them up, but this will be a new way to do things. We can still use water! All is accepted, but we recommend purchasing gallon containers as opposed to water bottles to help limit waste - and even the gallon containers can be reused.
Access to Healthcare
Another difficulty facing this community (a long with similar communities in this region) is the access to healthcare. The closest hospitals are an hour or longer commute from this area. While there is no quick fix or answer for that, we can support the work of the chapter leaders and the nurse serving this community. We were informed that they only have cloth masks, so we purchased some higher quality masks to protect the nurses and leaders as they serve the more vulnerable in this region. They told us that this is appreciated, and we are in continued conversation to find other practical ways that we can help.
Essential Items Needed
- Water (many isolated places need to import their water)
- Any Medical Supplies
- Paper Products – TP, Paper Towels, etc.
- Masks
- Gloves
- Cleaning Solutions
- Bleach
- Sanitizing Products
- Lysol Sprays
- Healthy Immune Boosting Teas
- Vitamin C
- Isopropyl Alcohol & Aloe Vera
- Non-perishable Foods
- Dog food (many households use dogs to herd sheep)
- Donations as we continue to have the discussion on how we can meet needs in a sustainable way.
- And, of course: Prayer. Lots of prayer!
- Any Medical Supplies
- Paper Products – TP, Paper Towels, etc.
- Masks
- Gloves
- Cleaning Solutions
- Bleach
- Sanitizing Products
- Lysol Sprays
- Healthy Immune Boosting Teas
- Vitamin C
- Isopropyl Alcohol & Aloe Vera
- Non-perishable Foods
- Dog food (many households use dogs to herd sheep)
- Donations as we continue to have the discussion on how we can meet needs in a sustainable way.
- And, of course: Prayer. Lots of prayer!