In 1998, Hurricane Mitch devasted Honduras. In response, a group from the Episcopal Diocese of West Texas (www.dwtx.org) organized a mission trip to Honduras to learn how they might help. The group was particularly struck by the needless suffering of a village quarantined because of cholera, a waterborne disease. Further discussions with locals and missionaries underscored the prevalence of similar situations throughout Honduras due to a scarcity of safe water.

Follow up visits were organized, leading to the development of the Honduras Water Ministry, which provided safe water using volunteers from the U.S. and a rig to dig wells in underserved villages via a partnership with the Episcopal Missionary Diocese of Honduras. A grant from the Episcopal Relief and Development Fund and support from Living Water International allowed the newly formed ministry to purchase a used drilling rig, compressor, tools and a truck to make their vision a reality.

The equipment was shipped to the El Paraiso region of southeast Honduras in 2002 and the first three wells were drilled in 2003.  

In 2005, the Honduras Water Ministry became Texas Water Mission, a 501(c)3 nonprofit, to provide oversight, financial support, and strategic planning for water projects in Honduras and elsewhere.

Over the years, TWM transitioned to an in-country driller, and trained a team of local women to conduct health and hygiene courses for the communities receiving new wells. There another local team that maintains and repairs all active wells constructed under TWM’s tenure.

TWM continues to accept applications and seek funding for new wells and currently has 11 pending requests representing over 10,000 people in rural communities. The communities range in population from 80 to 5,266, and some have been waiting since February of 2022. The cost of each well including drilling, pump, and health and hygiene workshop costs between $20,000 and $30,000. The larger communities are requesting electric pumps that they can connect to a water tank and distribution system. If you would like to donate to the well fund, please click HERE and click on “Honduras.”

All of the families in communities receiving TWM wells receive countertop water filters as part of the health and hygiene workshop provided by TWM’s team of Maestras. In addition, upon request by Padre Victor Velasque of Manos de Dios, TWM provided these lifesaving water cleansers to 58 families using other sources of water in the Danli region of El Paraiso. The filters were purchased from LT Marketing in Tegucigalpa, and TWM’s Health & Hygiene team provided a 2-day workshop on proper use and assembly of the system. Each year the charcoal filters inside must be replaced at a cost of $50 each.