Chizule Village: One Family Funds Clean Water for 520 Residents
Chizule Village Well Project - Impact Dashboard
Chizule Village now has clean water for the first time in its history. Thanks to the extraordinary generosity of a single donor, Chizule Village was fully funded just days after its project was published. The well was drilled on February 22, 2026, with an excellent water flow, and the pump has been installed and blessed. The 520+ residents of this community, along with children and staff at the nearby primary school, now have access to safe, clean drinking water for the first time.
This project was made possible by the extraordinary generosity of Steve A. and his 96-year-old mother, whose remarkable gift funded the entire Chizule Village well. Steve A. has a deep and longstanding connection to this mission. He helped fund one of Father Petros's early well projects even before Water of Mercy was officially formed. Steve A. and his mother also funded nearly 90% of the Zebediya Village Well Project, demonstrating a commitment to bringing clean water to rural Malawi that spans years and multiple communities.
The generosity of this family is humbling. Two people, one of them 96 years old, saw a village in need and responded with immediate, complete, and wholehearted compassion. Their gift will give over 520 people access to clean, safe water for approximately 75 years. We are deeply grateful and inspired by Steve A. and his mother, and we express our most heartfelt thanks to them both.
From Crisis to Clean Water
Before this well, the 520+ residents of Chizule Village had no access to safe drinking water whatsoever. The only water source available was a shallow concrete pit that collects rainwater, an entirely inadequate and dangerous source that produces dirty, stagnant water covered in algae and surrounded by mud. Residents, including learners and teachers at the nearby primary school, had no choice but to lean into this open pit and scoop contaminated water into buckets and containers.
Mothers were forced to feed this contaminated water to their infants. Livestock share the same water source. And when the rains stop, the pit dries up entirely, leaving the community with no water at all. Waterborne diseases are very common in this area, presenting severe health risks to the entire community. Please watch the video to see the conditions these families have faced every day.
Rapid Impact, Lasting Change
Fully funded at 100% of our goal on February 7, 2026, just days after the project was published, Chizule Village received one of the fastest responses we have ever seen. The drilling was completed on Saturday, February 22, 2026, and the water flow was excellent (see the video).
Once complete, over 520 people, including children and staff at the nearby primary school, will have access to clean, safe drinking water directly in their village. Mothers will be able to provide their infants with clean water instead of the algae-covered, stagnant water they are forced to use today. School children will have access to safe water during their educational day, supporting better health outcomes and attendance. Families will gain reliable, year-round access to clean water, ending the cycle of disease and the uncertainty of a source that disappears when the rains stop.
The village will establish a maintenance committee to care for the well, and with proper management, this vital resource should serve the community for approximately 75 years.
Pump Blessing
On March 3, 2026, Father Petros presided over the blessing of the new pump at Chizule Village. The ceremony was filled with prayer and song as the community gathered to give thanks for this life-changing gift. In a moving expression of gratitude, community members offered generous gifts of grain and livestock for the poor — a deeply meaningful act of charity from a village that has known great hardship.
Please keep Father Petros in your prayers as he continues his dedicated work serving the people of Malawi.
The Power of One
The Chizule Village Well Project is a testament to what one family's generosity can accomplish. Steve A. and his 96-year-old mother saw a community drinking algae-covered rainwater from a crumbling concrete pit, a source shared with livestock that disappears entirely without rain, and they responded without hesitation. Their gift has transformed the future of an entire village, including every infant, child, and family that will live here for generations to come.
Steve A.'s connection to this mission runs deep. He was there at the beginning, supporting Father Petros's early well work before Water of Mercy even existed. His faithfulness to this cause is an inspiration to all of us. On behalf of the 520+ residents of Chizule Village, and the generations yet to come who will drink clean water because of this gift, thank you, Steve A., and thank you to your remarkable mother.
A gallery of the well drilling, construction, and pump blessing images and videos from the Chizule Village Well Project are included below.