In 1981, George and Molly Greene began a small environmental consulting company in Charleston called General Engineering Laboratories. GEL grew to become one of the top 10 environmental testing laboratories in the U.S. and one of the largest environmental engineering consulting firms in South Carolina.

In 1998, the company responded to the devastation in Honduras caused by Hurricane Mitch. The Greenes had close connections in Honduras through their local church's mission work and had spent time in the country visiting their daughter, who, at the time, had lived there for two years.

George e-mailed the Episcopal bishop of Honduras asking what he could do to help, and the next day, a reply came with the request of six drinking water systems. Molly said she and her husband weren't expecting to hear back so soon, but the bishop's response gave them something concrete they could do to help.

As a chemical engineer, George decided to design his own water treatment system. With water treatment handbooks, college textbooks and assistance from another engineer, a prototype was designed, built and tested in just two days.

Molly said GEL employees got so excited about the project that within two weeks of the hurricane, volunteers worked to construct and pack six drinking water treatment systems. Each system was capable of producing safe drinking water at the rate of 10 gallons per minute. This initial effort was called Project Living Water, and the water treatment unit became known as the Living Water Treatment System. The units were capable of providing safe water for communities of several thousand people.

A team of 16 volunteers traveled to Honduras for a week, installing three water treatment systems each in the northern and southern regions of the country.

Molly Greene recalls the success of Project Living Water not being so great at first.

"The market for water treatment systems is huge," she said. "Funding was a problem, and General Engineering could no longer fund the project."

The Greenes spent days reading books, including the Bible, and said they felt it was time they made a change in their lives.

"We felt like we were being called to set up something that was more significant at the time in our lives," Molly said, "to set up some type of organization that could respond to the global water crisis."

In order to better focus their attention on these needs, the Greenes sold GEL in March 2001 and used a substantial portion of the proceeds of that sale to found the Charleston-based Water Missions International.

WMI is a nonprofit, Christian engineering organization serving the water and sanitation needs of people in developing countries and disaster areas.

"It's been a roller coaster ride," Molly Greene said. "It's been an incredible opportunity to give back resources that the Lord has blessed us with."

Water Missions International has been working to respond to disasters across the world, including those in Eastern Europe, Africa and Central America, some in response to natural disasters and some in support of ongoing development projects.

Mary Scarborough, a member of the Orangeburg Morning Rotary Club, spent a week working with WMI in Honduras almost four years ago on a Rotary grant. She said her most memorable moment was at the last installation site in Honduras. It was obvious the gentlemen at the site weren't too thrilled when she and a couple other female volunteers showed up to install the water treatment system, Scarborough said.

"Women weren't too high on the totem pole there," she said.

After the installation, she said the village leader thanked each of them, noting the water system would save the lives of the elderly and children in his community.

"To hear someone say that was just wonderful," Scarborough said.

She said the possibility of saving a person's life is what makes WMI such a wonderful organization.

According to Water Missions International, an estimated 25,000 people die from a lack of safe water and sanitation every day. The World Health Organization estimates that 80 percent of all diseases worldwide result from contaminated water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene.

"Given the opportunity and the time to do it again, I would be there in a minute," Scarborough said.

If traveling out of country isn't of interest to potential volunteers, she said people are needed to help test the system for shipment. She said volunteers range in age from retirees to school kids.

Afternoon Rotary Club member Robert Miller has been to Peru four times with WMI. He's installed five water treatment systems and has a fifth trip scheduled for December.

"It was a great feeling of humanitarian spirit to help those who just don't have clean drinking water," Miller said.

Miller was introduced to Peru through First Presbyterian Church, where he is a member. The congregation has done mission work in the country for 10 years.

When the Afternoon Rotary Club received a donation through the Rotary Foundation two years ago, Miller jumped at the chance to volunteer with Water Missions International.

"It's just a calling that I have to help those that are less fortunate," he said. "We just don't realize how blessed we are."

Miller has been heavily involved with the WMI fund-raiser coming up Saturday, Nov. 10, at the Orangeburg County Fairgrounds. The purpose of the 7 p.m. event is to raise awareness in Orangeburg that there is a need worldwide for clean water. Money raised will put a water system in a hospital in the Congo region of Africa, Miller said.

The cost to assemble one water treatment system is nearly $15,000, he said. That system can provide clean drinking water for a village of 3,000 to 5,000 people.

The hospital currently draws all water used in the hospital from a nearby river.

Tickets for the Nov. 10 event are $25 and include a Southern barbecue dinner, non-alcoholic beverages, live musical entertainment from The Original Kicks and a cash bar. Event tickets are available at 1058 Grille, All Star Deli, House of Pizza, Chestnut Grill, all area Subway and Quick Pantry locations and Mimi's -- a Unique Boutique.

Sponsors are Cox Wood Preserving Co., Sun Printing, Centrex Promotions, Superior Motors, Honda of Orangeburg, W&B Enterprises, Sign-A-Rama, Grove Park Pharmacy, Revelation Outdoor Management, Bad Dog 95.7 FM, Star 105.1 FM and WORG 100.3 FM.

Founders Molly and George Greene say the work Water Missions International has done thus far is just scratching the surface.

"Our mission is to provide physical water that is the same quality of water we have and also to share the living water that is Jesus Christ," Molly said. "That's the water we all need to have -- eternal water."

T&D Features Writer Candace Newson can be reached by e-mail at cnewson@timesanddemocrat.com or by telephone at 803-533-5540. Discuss this and other stories online at TheTandD.com.

You must be logged in to comment.