El Chorrillo is a hamlet in the Cascas district. Around 31 families live there. Until 2020, they were supplied with water from "springs or so-called water holes" existing in the village.
Doña Elcira (57 years old) and her husband José (62 years old) have lived in El Chorrillo for more than 20 years. Elcira recounts having lived through very difficult days due to the absence of drinking water. She remembers that they were supplied with irrigation water and to do so they had to make several trips carrying heavy buckets daily. "Living without water is very sad, one cannot do anything, water is useful for cooking, washing things, cleaning and without water everything is more difficult. No person can live without water, it's not pretty."
The husband and wife remember the hardships their three children suffered from not having water. At 8, 10 and 12 years old, they carried large buckets of water around 3 times a day. To bathe they had to go to a large well that the family had far from the house. Elcira comments "The water we brought was only for kitchen chores, to wash clothes we had to do it in one of the water wells for irrigation or in the well where we bathed."
After a pause, Mrs. Elcira's face changes, she looks at me happily and comments that this year when drinking water arrives at her house, she feels happier and more rested because now she has water in the house to do everything: wash, clean the house, cooking, washing. This joy has inspired her to continue with the repairs of the house.
Elcira now lives happily and putting into practice everything she learned with the project's health educator. "Thanks to the educator, Mrs. Rosita, I learned the importance of having a toilet corner, having more order in my kitchen and in the house. I thank Mrs. Rosita for everything she taught and the beautiful moments during her visits."
For his part, José, Elcira's husband and president of the JASS, complements his wife's experiences by saying: "Before, in the village, we drank unhealthy water and now we are all happy with drinking water because it is a benefit for everyone and that is why we will always take care of our connections." José continues by saying that they worked very hard together with the master builders and that there was quite a bit to do; Above all, at the points for collecting water where the mountain had to be grazed until finding the source of the water and capturing it to the houses.
"With the JASS committee we have agreed to have our first meeting in May to make agreements on the payment of the family fee. For now we have agreed to charge S/. 3.00 monthly" points out Don José.
José mentions that, at the beginning, the population was incredulous and had distrust of the project due to so many years of forgetfulness that they had experienced. Concern led them to think about how far they should go to search to bring water to the village; However, the silver solution was for each house to have its own catchment. Now, the families of El Chorrillo are grateful to have clean water and electricity. José emphasizes "Now we live in the best possible way and are happy. Water is life and with treated water we are going to last a little longer. That is why I want to thank the institutions and authorities that made it possible for Chorrillo to have drinking water. On behalf of all the families of my homestead, thank you very much!"