wfn.org | [PCUSANEWS] Living Waters for the World set to open second Clean Water U site

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This story available online:

www.pcusa.org/pcnews/2009/09153<http://www.pcusa.org/pcnews/2009/09153

Living Waters for the World set to open second Clean Water
U site

California facility will double training capacity

>by Janet Tuck
>Special to the Presbyterian News Service

NASHVILLE ― With continued dedication to bringing
clean water to people in need, Living Waters for the
World (LWW) plans to open a West Coast Clean Water
U at Calvin Crest Conferences in Oakhurst, CA.

Clean Water U-West will expand the capacity of LWW ― a
ministry affiliated with the Synod of Living Waters ― to
train and equip people to install clean water systems
around the globe. Clean Water U is the training school for
LWW. It uses simulation to equip teams with the skills
needed to form partnerships with communities in need of
clean water, show local leaders how to continue education
and install clean water systems.

LWW plans to hold Calvin Crest's first Clean Water U in
October. LWW will continue holding training sessions at the
original Clean Water U site at Camp Hopewell in Oxford, MS.

"We've talked for a few years about starting a second
campus," said Wil Howie, founder and director of LWW.

Calvin Crest Conferences, located about twenty miles from
Yosemite National Park, is near Fresno, CA, which has one
of the largest Southeast Asian immigrant communities in the
nation.

"Through ties with our partners working with the Laotian
immigrant community, already the conversation has begun
toward developing a network in Laos," Howie said.

The hope is that more clean water systems can be installed
in Southeast Asia because of the establishment of the Clean
Water U site in California.

Joanie Lukins, chairwoman of the LWW committee, said that
God led the way for this new endeavor.

"The opportunity came along unbidden and will be so
beneficial to both parties," she said. "We felt God leading
us in this way."

Having the Calvin Crest campus will allow congregations in
the western part of the United States to have easier access
to the training.

"The point is to expand the total number of students we can
train in a year, therefore expanding the clean water we can
bring to those in need in the world," Lukins said.

Before finalizing plans, the LWW committee and
representatives from Calvin Crest Conferences conducted
long and detailed discussions. They crafted a covenant
detailing responsibilities and finances that was approved
at the January meeting of the Synod of the Living Waters.

"When we met Tony Biasell, the program director at Calvin
Crest, and Scott Henderson, the executive director, we felt
that God's timing was at work," Lukins said. "We (at LWW)
are unanimously convinced that this is the right thing at
the right time. We believe that this is a Spirit-driven
thing and that the people and funding we need will be
provided."

Biasell will serve as the program director of Clean Water
U-West.

Henderson said he is excited about the partnership.

"The establishment of Clean Water U at Calvin Crest is
about sharing something we take for granted: clean water,"
he said. "And it is about making a lasting impact on
people's lives."

Through this new partnership, LWW continues its mission to
provide clean water for all God's children.

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