In the summer of 2007, there was presented a real need to dig a well on the Plant-A-Seed Farm in Uganda, Africa. We wanted to build the well during the wet season and pump water up to planned holding tanks. The purpose was to store and then use the water in the dry season. This would help with watering summer crops.
“Logistically” the project required prayer, thought, and engineering. The distance and the degree of slope to the top of the hill were over miles away with a 33-degree slope.
In the winter of 2008, Rick Gray, Eric Layman and Darrin Denlinger, through a lot of prayers, came up with ideas of how we could conquer this challenge, which seemed to be impossible to the local people of the region.
With the help of Nexus Engineering in Modesto, a plan was drafted.
Now all we needed was the funding, resources, and people to help us solve a challenge that we know the Lord had laid on our hearts.
Romans 8.28 states: “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, and who are called according to his purpose.”
With that promise, the Lord put together a team and opened doors that we could have only imagined. We were even able to fund a receiving house for students to come, stay, work, and learn. These students could then take what they had learned back to their own villages. It was an opportunity to help local students understand simple farming practices and bring more food to their table.
Today, the farm in Africa has in production coffee, bananas, peas, corn, pineapple, and now a couple of beef cattle. Farm production as gone up over 30% with the abundance of water.
2009 Team: Rick Gray, Eric Layman, Gordon Rumble, Darrin Denlinger,Levi Heinrich, Dave Wolf, Loren Thompson, Leah Layman, Kayla Layman, Gianna Gallo, Vicki Nyberg, Cami Denlinger.
Special thanks to PBM Supply & Mfg.,Duarte Nursery, Stanislaus Implement & Hardware, Flory Industries, Waterford Irrigation and Layman Electric