|
Executive Summary
City water in Mazatlan Mexico comes into the schools contaminated, mostly due to outdated city infrastructure and the sharing of trenches with the city sewer lines. Government entities do not provide safe drinking water, This is left to the parents and teachers, most of whom cannot afford to provide solutions. In Mexico many schools do not have a water purification / filtration system and the children drink contaminated tap water at school and at home. This Rotary Global Grant will fund point of use clean water filtration systems for up to 100 primary and secondary public schools in and around Mazatlan, Mexico.
This will create measurable and meaningful change to the population of Mazatlan through the introduction of purified refrigerated water to the underserved schools. Keeping these children healthy is of utmost concern and will provide a meaningful investment in their present and future lives. Clean Water is one of the seven areas of Focus for The Rotary Foundation. This Global grant project is planned for the 2026-2027 Rotary Year has these critical features already included:
1. We are planning to raise $200,932.13. This will provide clean water systems to 71 primary schools at a cost of $2830.03 per school. Detailed cost per school to be listed separately.
2. It uses two trusted partner clubs as leaders of the project:
a. Rotary Club of FT Collins, - 140 members District 5440 founded in 1915 International Club
b. Rotary Club of Mazatlan Marina 25 Members District 4100 Founded in 1969 who will serve as On site Host Club
These two clubs have successfully completed several clean water Matching grants together as partners in Mazatlan MG 4616 , MG 4839, and MG 4800
3. We are using a proven solution for in school water filtration. There are 31 existing schools in Mazatlan successfully using this system for over 1 year.
4. We have Local manufacturing and local suppliers for all the filtration components in Mexico. No international shipping is needed.
5. This solution is scalable up to and beyond the 100 primary schools and secondary schools in Mazatlan It uses a low cost and highly efficient 3 level water filter system that filters out bacteria down to 0.02 microns.
6. The solution is sustainable as user and sponsor income sources are lined up to fund the ongoing known system maintenance and repair costs. Water system maintenance is understood and a current maintenance team is in place.
7. The Host club ( RC of Mazatlan Marina) has skin in the game and has committed to contribute $1000 USD. Two other Mazatlan Rotary clubs are likewise contributing funds, and will participate. Their District 4100 Governor Elect Octavio Sanchez is committed to this project's success, and will contribute DDF funds.
8. Rotary can easily visit the sites. All schools and the host club are in the city of Mazatlan, Sinaloa Mexico. Mazatlan has an international airport with many direct non-stop international flights per day from cities in the US and Canada plus Central America. Direct flights are available to Mazatlan from Minneapolis, Phoenix ( 1.5 hours), Houston ( 1 hour) , Calgary, Toronto, and Vancouver by several airlines ( United, American, Westjet etc). This easy access makes site visitation easy and relatively quick for international clubs.
9. This project has a solid NGO organization supporting the project. La Vina has a full time staff supporting humanitarian projects in Sinaloa Mazatlan for over 5 years. See https://vineyardmcm.org/ . LaVina will handle the water system plumbing and installation under the oversight of RC of Mazatlan Marina.
10. La Vina has installed 31 water systems in schools and public places over the past 3 years. They are a known and trusted NGO that has worked along side both Rotary clubs, RC of Mazatlan Marina and RC of Ft Collins on two previous Rotary Matching grants.
11. The District Governors are supporting this project - Octavio Sanchez, District 4100, and Albon Shaw District 5440. We hope the Canadian district 5060 club Salmon Arm (Shuswap) and their DG will also join. They have expressed interest.
12. WE have clear measures of success outlined and are already gathering this data.
13. Rotary Club members from the RC of Mazatlan Marina will actively participate in the school selection, teacher training, and project review. The RC of FT Collins has been in Mexico for 1 month Feb 15- March15, 2026, has participated in 5 project planning meetings face to face, and will be coordinating remotely with both La Vina and the the host club RC of Mazatlan Marina.
14. This project is a clear winner.
| 
