WorldWide Drilling Resource

WorldWide Drilling Resource ® is proud to be a member of these international associations. New Zealand Drillers Federation, Inc. +03.324 2040 Ontario Groundwater Association Tel: 519-245-7194 Fax: 519-245-7196 ogwa@ogwa.ca www.ogwa.ca Australian Drilling Industry Association adia@adia.com.au British Colmubia Ground Water Assn. Tel: 604-530-8934 Fax: 604-530-8934 isecretary@bcgwa.org • www.bcgwa.org Alberta Water Well Drilling Association Tel: 780-386-2335 awwda@xplornet.com Atlantic Water Well Association Tel: 888-242-4440 Fax: 902-435-0089 nsgwa@ns.aliantzinc.ca • www.nsgwa.ca 47 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® APRIL 2014 Water for Life International by Tim Rasmussen Mystery Solved When the container was introduced into the port this year, a snag developed that was very puzzling. We had all the documents correct, having learned over the years the proper procedures. The shipper had done his part, all fees were paid, and all the boxes for the local hos- pital were correctly listed on the mani- fest. Yet the customs official said there was a problem. In the past, when there was a “prob- lem” it was usually Guatemalan for “more money” or some version of it. We offered the usual money to solve the problem, but it did not seem to do the trick. The customs official was being fairly myste- rious about the issue. This concerned us. Berny and I exchanged some anxious phone calls on the subject, and I could tell he was at a loss to know what the problem was or what to do to find the solution. Meanwhile, the meter for stor- age of the container at the dock was ticking at about $120 dollars per day. Finally, without much explanation, the customs official told Berny he could move the container out from the port then come back in about a week and finish the paperwork. This was very unusual. We had never had this happen before. But the message was clear - get the container and go. So that is exactly what Berny did. The container was placed on a truck, and the guard and driver left within a couple of hours. A week later, Berny went back across the country to the port and sought out the official. When he sat down in the office and started to go over the paperwork, the official waved it aside and began to ask about Water for Life and what we were all about. He wanted to know why we were drilling wells, asked how much money we were making, and questions like this. Berny told him about our mission to ease the suffering of people and to spread the good news of the Gospel, and that it was free to the villagers. At the conclusion of the meeting, the customs man asked Berny to come back and bring some Bibles for his work- ers at the port, and Bible study materials as well. Only when this conversation was concluded was the customs man willing to look at the papers. He casu- ally looked the papers over, imposed a modest fee, and finally cleared the con- Rasmussen cont’d on page 48.