The Need: Reliable water and electricity to help kids at All God’s Children Orphanage, outside of Mirebalais, Haiti.
How We Helped: Installed solar power, water wells, and other supporting systems at the orphanage to ensure clean water and reliable electricity.
Phase I of the well project was completed in 2020 (read more about that project here). However, the current water well didn’t have the capacity to provide water for the orphanage around the clock. In addition, the first well was connected to the city water system. When the city systems failed (and they often did), so did the orphanage water system.
In Phase II of this project, our goal was to create a solar-powered system that would make the orphanage run independently from the city’s unreliable electricity and water.
The current well did not have the capacity to meet the demands of the orphanage. As you can imagine, there were several operations within the orphanage that required water: laundry, kitchen, sinks, showers, and restrooms.
Thanks to the installation of a second well and gravity-fed water system, the orphanage’s new facilities are now fully functional—including an extensive bathroom remodel completed in 2020. Elevated water towers provide constant water pressure, even during power outages, while two solar panels and batteries pump water to the tanks. A new generator has also been added to ensure reliable power, supporting the water system and ensuring the orphanage’s facilities operate 24/7.
Before the solar panels could be installed on the orphanage roof, we applied a commercial-grade silicone coating. This helped prevent the roof from rusting. The coating also decreased the ambient temperatures inside the building, keeping the kids cooler in Haiti’s tropical climate.
We also constructed a building to house all of the control panels and batteries for the solar system. The building had to be 100% water-tight to protect the electrical equipment inside.
Local supplier, DigitalKap Solar will install the solar system for the orphanage, which is estimated to cost $9,064.
Included in DigitalKap system for new well solar equipment:
Jude St. Eloi has been an outstanding and vital director at the orphanage for over 15 years. Jude is now married and lives with his wife, Modelaine, very close to the orphanage. The orphanage could not operate without Jude–he literally keeps all the systems working.
We wanted to bless Jude and Modelaine with solar for their new home. At the same time, having solar at their own home gave Jude the critical experience he needed to develop a relationship with DigitalKap (the local Haitian Solar company), to keep the orphanage solar systems up and running for the long term.
Jude’s house prior to the solar system installation
This system was provided by DigitalKap of Haiti, totaling at $15,010.
The installation included:
Wilfrid Louissaint has also been an indispensable director at All God’s Children’s Orphanage for more than 15 years. Now married to Beatrice, Wilfrid lives near the orphanage, where his leadership is crucial to its daily operations.
As with Jude and Modelaine, we wanted to bless Wilfrid and Beatrice with solar for their home—in addition to providing Wilfrid with the solar knowledge to keep the orphanage systems running smoothly.
This system was provided by DigitalKap of Haiti, totaling at $16,700.
The installation included:
