Conwy Valley rotary club celebrates humanitarian landmark

Apr 21 2011 by Samantha Castle, North Wales Weekly News

Rotarians Graham Booth, Peter Thorman Jones and Pete Farr

A CONWY Valley charity which distributes life-saving Aquaboxes around the world are celebrating after reaching the 1,000 mark.

For the past 11 years the Rotary Club of the Conwy Valley has been preparing and distributing Aquaboxes, which are filled with humanitarian aid and then sent out to areas of need, where the box is then turned into a water filtration unit capable of purifying 1,100 litres of water.

Back in 2000 the Rotary Club, under president Cath Roberts, decided to make Aquaboxes their objective for the year, and to fill as many as possible.

Although the club had filled a couple of boxes previously, this was to be a major project. Little did the club know just how major.

“Cath organised the task on an industrial scale, and her garage became the focal point for deliveries of items such as clothes, tools, household items and toiletries, all donated locally from in and around the Conwy Valley,” explained Rotarian Den Reeve.

“Regular trips were made by club members to the Aquabox Centre in Derbyshire to deliver full boxes and collect empty ones.

“Over time, Cath enlisted the help of local businesses and organisations, securing donations and involving several local schools in filling the boxes.

“Ysgol Eglwysbach was filling three to four boxes a year for which they received a commendation from the club.”

In 2006, the club received a generous donation of $2,000 from the Rotary Club of Sedro Woolley, Washington State, after a member of the Conwy Valley Rotary Club visited them and told them about their Aquabox scheme.

The donation was used to purchase four Aqua30s, which were tracked to Uganda for use in hospitals and schools.

Boxes have also been dispatched to Ghana and Sierra Leone.

Den added: “During the Asian tsunami disaster, several boxes left Eglwysbach for Sri Lanka, and during the crisis in Haiti following the earthquake, and more recently the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, Aquaboxes have been part of the relief programme.”

With 50 more boxes delivered recently the club has passed its target of 1,000.

The club has provided tons of warm clothing, toiletries, household items, tools and sundries to people in need and has provided 1,182,500 litres of purified water to disaster areas.

Over the ten years Rotarian Cath Roberts has been involved with the Aquabox scheme, she has been awarded a Paul Harris Fellowship, a Certificate of Merit and a Community Award from her own club.