WorldWide Drilling Resource

by Tim Rasmussen Water For Life has been making progress on the new government requirements for our continued operation. We have received PIN numbers for our accounts, and begun to transfer funds into those accounts. We are also starting the inventory process with the registration of each major asset with SAT, the taxing authority in Guatemala. This is the equivalent of our Internal Revenue Service. (The agency which strikes fear into every business owner’s heart.) Berny reports the process has been slow because all businesses are required to comply with new regulations and since we are a nonprofit corporation, the policies are new and the government has not fully established the policies. We work closely with our accountant on the process, and he provides guidance and instructions. We are hopeful to be able to receive authorization to import our container in the very near future. The importation will be a test of our compliance with the new regulations. Always before, the import process was a mystery. I have written of our experiences that the personality of the import official seemed to have more to do with the amount we are charged than any written policy or rule. We will see if this is still true. Since the scandal, which provoked the changes involved the importation of containers and the amount of duty charged, there may well be significant changes in the import process as well. We will see. As usual, we will have our shipping agent in Quebec, Canada, arrange for the delivery of the container to our shop for loading, then for passage to the dock in Puerto Barrios, Guatemala, for customs clearance, then to our shop in Poptun. This has usually gone smoothly, but there are times the container has made unscheduled stops in Mexico, or been inexpl icably delayed in Seattle, Washington, before being placed on a ship for passage. International shipping is an industry we know very little about. We just depend on our shipping agent to give us correct advice. We do know how to pay, and this seems to be our part. We also depend on our volunteers and donors to make all this possible. Most of all, we depend on the Good Lord to place it in the hearts of people to help others. We are just the way they can do it. We provide the opportunity. Our volunteers come from all walks of life, many Christian denominations, or none at all. They do have something in common. They are will- ing to expend their time and resources to help folks have clean water to drink. I wish everyone could see the gratitude a stream of clean, life-giving water brings to vil- lagers who previously had to get their drinking water out of a filthy stream or pond, or to see the smile on a mother’s face as she pumps water she knows will not make her children sick. I am privileged to be part of such a project. Thank you all for making it possible. If you would like to help, contact Gary Bartholomew at 509-466-5075 or 509-939-1941 Tim Tim Rasmussen may be contacted via e-mail to michele@ worldwidedrillingresource.com 33 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® NOVEMBER 2017