and Maseru, Lesotho, Southern Africa
A 501 c 3, public charity
The not-so-distant past:
How 11 Oaks got started
The August 2005 issue of "Guideposts" magazine contained an article on Mr. Richard Chapin entitled 'Gods Gardener'. Known affectionately as the father of drip irrigation in America, Mr. Chapin, now 89, still works around the world supplying inexpensive bucket irrigation kits to people who live where it does not rain for months or even years at a time. It is a simple technology that we have employed everyday in our nursery and landscaping business- and is used by others to feed thousands of children in the tiny African country of Malawi alone.
After reading the Guideposts article our immediate reaction was "we can and should be doing this too!" Our entire career has prepared us to grasp and teach the technologies of sustainable small scale agriculture. Those of you who know us have seen us invest much effort and enthusiasm into making our little North Coast Nursery survive and thrive. But, during those months when the snow is so deep you can't find the ground, much less get a shovel into it- we decided to trade our usual part time winter jobs for a mission in sustainable agriculture.
We hope to garner the support necessary to allow 11 Oaks to do its best to improve the lives of subsistance farmers in the 3rd World. However... our pockets are not quite deep enough to get this done on our own....
We wish to extend our sincerest thanks and a 'may God bless' to all the generous contributors so far.. you know who you are! We, all of us involved in 11 Oaks, promise not to let you down! As ever... your friends, Chris and Susan Skellenger, Tessa Bell, Paul Howes, and the 11 Oaks leadership team.
So far:
2008:
***Partnered with Canadian Rotaries to restore clean running water to the St. Charles High School in Seboche, Lesotho. This is where we will be drip irrigating up to 3 acres this November-January!
*** Set up 11 Oaks 'home away from home' at the Bytown Orphanage in Maseru, Lesotho
***toured Soweto, South Africa, to study bucket irrigation in shanty towns.
***Redesigned the basic bucket irrigation kit as historically used. Ours is cheaper, lasts longer, is easier to clean, and the parts are universally available.
***Established the 11 Oaks Research Farm to experiment with various styles of gravity fed drip irrigation and grow vegetables under conditions of extreme drought. The Research Farm will expand it's output to around 12,000 lbs. of veggies per season in response to the 'Farm to School' initiative which encourages local schools to use locally grown, fresh vegetables... and (almost) all grown with drip irrigation!
2007:
***Worked with Sustainable Harvest International in Belize for 5 weeks, see Journal for specifics or read La Cosecha article.
***Sent the first of 100 bucket kits to the Yoro District of Honduras
***Sent a gas powered generator to hurricane ravaged Jamaica.
*** Attended the HANA Conference on HIV and Nutrition at the ECHO Global Research Farm in Ft. Myers, Florida
2006:
~ Attended the ECHO Conference in Ft. Myers, Florida. Three days of intense meetings, lectures and demonstrations on sustainable agriculture. Got to meet and assist Mr. Richard Chapin of Chapin Living Waters Foundation and Chapin Watermatics at the conference.
~ Got to know the Camino Seguro organization in Guatemala City. Served on the leadership team of a Traverse City support group known as Great Lakes Friends of Safe Passage. We held a FIESTA! Benefit and raised over 23,000 dollars for Camino Seguro in one afternoon!
~ Sent Chapin Bucket Kits and seed packages from ECHO to the group Help Lesotho of Ottawa, Canada, for their establishment at the Bytown Orphanage in Lesotho, Southern Africa.
~ Contributed landscape design and installation services at the Camino Seguro (Safe Passage) school at the dump in Guatemala City.
~ Demonstrated the use of Chapin Bucket Irrigation Kits to extentionists from several Latin American countries at the Sustainable Harvest International Demonstration Farm in Virrey, Honduras. Learned of the possibility for placement of this technology in Belize in 2007.
~ Facilitated the shipment of medical supplies to Paramedics for Children in Copan Ruinas, Honduras.....
to read chris' journal on his time in Guatemala and Honduras in 2006, click here
