“I am very grateful for this project. God sent you because He saw our suffering,” said community member Rubén Limachi.
On Saturday, September 19, 2026, we shared one of those days that remind us why this work matters. In the highlands of Corocoro, Bolivia, families from Collpa Belén and Chijchi Baja (Romerhuma) gathered with community leaders, local authorities, Rotarians, partners and volunteers to celebrate the official handover of the Access to Clean Water and Sanitation project. It was a day of gratitude and pride, because this achievement belongs to everyone who made it possible, and above all to the communities themselves, who worked for this moment from the very first day. For U4C, being part of this partnership is our mission in action: building, together with others, communities that are resilient, empowered and able to count on the basic resources every family deserves.
This project was born from a partnership that stretches from New Mexico to the Bolivian highlands. The Rotary Clubs of Hobbs and Lovington and Rotarians across New Mexico joined hands with Rotary La Paz San Jorge, Rotary District 4690 in Bolivia, U4C with Fundación QBL Bolivia, and the communities themselves to turn a shared vision into reality. Today, every home in both communities has safe, clean water. Together, the partners made possible a complete water system, from the water source to the storage tank to the pipelines that reach each family’s door, designed to serve the community for decades. Community members worked side by side with the field teams on every part of the construction, and their steady labor carried the project through real challenges, including a 53 day road blockade in La Paz that stopped work for weeks before it could resume. For the 120 families of Collpa Belén and Chijchi Baja, clean water at home means better health, more time for women and girls who once spent hours each day carrying water, and a new sense of dignity for everyone.
From the beginning, all the partners agreed that pipes and tanks alone would not be enough. For clean water to truly change lives, families need the knowledge and confidence to care for it themselves, and that is where SoyAgua comes in. SoyAgua means “I am water,” and it was never designed for the communities, but with them. U4C took the lead to co-create eight short videos and workshops, so every lesson reflects the community’s own language, culture and life. The videos feature familiar faces and places, which makes each message easier to remember and easier to share with neighbors and children.
At the heart of SoyAgua is Gotita, a friendly little drop of water wearing a traditional Aymara lluchu. Gotita was designed together with Rotary Peace Fellows, Rotarians and community members, so that children and grandparents alike would see themselves in the story. To bring Gotita to life, David Sadler, a Rotarian, U4C donor and sculpture expert, worked hand in hand with local sculptors, sharing his techniques while honoring their own skills and artistic traditions. Together they turned a simple drawing into a character the community could see, touch and feel proud of. Gotita has become a symbol of what SoyAgua stands for: water as part of who we are, and something worth protecting together.
Through the workshops, families learned about safe water use and hygiene, preventing the illnesses that hit children hardest, sanitation, caring for the environment and managing conflicts peacefully. That last topic matters more than it may seem. When communities make decisions about how water is used, who maintains it and how costs are shared can easily become a source of tension. Learning to talk through disagreements and solve them together protects not only the water, but the relationships that keep a community strong. The sessions were led by Efraín Cotjiri, Daniel Murillo, Valeska De Cárdenas R., Yhudit Shekina, Vania Aban, Vanessa Rojas and Melina Chambi, whose patience and dedication made each lesson come alive.
Beyond training representatives from all 120 families in Collpa Belén and Chijchi Baja, SoyAgua is reaching far beyond these two communities. With the support of the Municipality of Corocoro, 30 more leaders from nearby communities joined the workshops, and they will carry what they learned to approximately 1,800 Indigenous people in their own villages. At the September 19 celebration, each community’s water committee also received copies of the SoyAgua videos, so the lessons can keep being shared for years to come. “I am very grateful for this project. God sent you because He saw our suffering,” said community member Rubén Limachi.
This achievement was made possible by a powerful partnership between the communities of Collpa Belén and Chijchi Baja, the Rotary Clubs of Hobbs and Lovington, Rotarians across New Mexico, the leaders of Rotary District 4690, the volunteers of Fundación Quaker Bolivia Link, U4C and the wonderful field teams who worked shoulder to shoulder with each family. Our heartfelt thanks go to Bob Reid, representing Rotarians of New Mexico, for their generosity and belief in this work, to Mario Yaffar, Mauricio Steverlynck, Víctor Hugo García Meza, Eduardo Invernizzi, Antonio Alvarez, Deysi Clavijo, Andrea Ampuero, Carla Murillo, Alex Huanca, Jeaneth de Steverlynck, Nataly Mendoza, José Montes and Cinthia Gil, to David Sadler and the local sculptors who gave SoyAgua life, and to every volunteer who made this historic day possible. You are proof that when working together, change is real.
At U4C, we believe access to water is not a privilege but a human right. Since 2020, working hand in hand with communities and Rotary partners, U4C has helped bring clean water to six communities in Bolivia, reaching more than 2,000 indigenous people. Every system built together plants the seeds for healthier families, more girls in school, more time for women to tend their crops and grow their livelihoods, and communities ready to thrive. Clean water has changed daily life in Collpa Belén and Chijchi Baja, and with SoyAgua, families now have the knowledge to protect it for generations to come.
