Our Story
Founded in 2004 by Ted van der Zalm and his wife Miriam, Wells of Hope is a team of numerous volunteers with its roots in the Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada.
From very simple beginnings, Wells of Hope has grown into a living statement of the Body of Christ at work.
Volunteers from all walks of life bring their gifts and talents to the table. They allow Wells of Hope to become a testimony to what is possible when people come together to love their neighbour as themselves.
“When digging our first eighty foot deep well by hand, with only a pick head as a digging instrument, we realized that if we were truly serious about helping our less fortunate sisters and brothers, a greater commitment was necessary, both in time and finances. Our history has proven over and over again that with God, the seemingly impossible becomes possible!”
On September 22nd, 2024, Wells of Hope celebrated it’s 20th Anniversary.
Our accomplishments in the first 20 years include:
Drilling Wells
More than 96,500 people in Jalapa and Jutiapa are benefitting today from the 39 wells that have been completed since Wells of Hope initiated the quest of helping those who thirst.
Three of the wells in operation today were drilled with the original equipment driven from Canada to Jalapa (Chaguite well, Laguna El Pito and the well at Campo Esperanza). While fundraising for the new drilling rig, Wells of Hope sub-contracted the drilling of 5 wells, 3 of which are in operation today (Guacamayas, Laguneta and Comapa-Ixcanal). Laguneta well was the stepping stone to a major change in the mountains of Jalapa: 4 communities joined efforts to pay for the feasibility study to build a pipeline for the distribution of water to more than 780 households from the well completed by Wells of Hope. That initiative inspired the communities around Las Brisas area to seek government funding to build their distribution system as well.
With the new drilling rig, Wells of Hope has been able to complete 31 wells in the communities of Las Brisas, Comapa San Antonio, Los Laureles, HDF Greenhouse, San Ixtan, Sanyuyo, Anshigua, Hierbabuena and La Estrella; Los Izotes, Sashico, La Aurora, San Paquisoy, Los Cruces, Los Cebollines, La Tejera, Paraíso and Los González were drilled between 2014 and 2019. Since 2020, San José Carrizal, Palo Verde, La Lagunilla, Valle Lindo, Lagna El Sapo, Sansupo, Laguneta 2 and La Paz were added to the list of beneficiaries. Two wells are also providing water to the Health Clinic in San Antonio Las Flores and San Luis Jilotepeque.
Building Schools and Providing School Supplies
In the two year period of 2004 to 2006, 6 schools of 3 classrooms each had been built (Matazanos, Los Cruces de la Fuente, El Roblar, Tierra Blanca, La Cuchilla and La Puerta), which started the discussion of what a Wells of Hope School should include in addition to the basic 3 classrooms: a kitchen, at least 3 bathrooms, school furniture and school supplies. The next 2 years were spent in bringing all the schools to the new standard and a few modalities of school supplies were tested: a library program as a reward for the best up-kept school the first year, then a school supplies program for grades 1 to 3, which was meant to be a cohort test, by adding to the following year learning material increased yearly by one grade to all the schools. It was in operation until grade 5 of the original group, but due to funding and lack of cooperation in providing statistics by the schools, it was halted.
In 2012 a new modality of building schools started, as Wells of Hope partnered with Miracles in Action (a US based charity focused in schools for Guatemala) to build 4 more schools (Los Laureles, Laguna Seca, Los Cebollines and Sashico). Los Laureles was the biggest school built yet with 9 classrooms. In November 2012, the Eco School Program was launched by introducing the eco-brick system using recycled plastic bottles filled with inorganic material for the walls of the schools. In February 2013, the first Eco School was inaugurated at Laguna Seca community. In 2016, Wells of Hope finished its 19th school. Fast forwarding to 2025, a total of 31 schools have been built. In total, more than 6,000 children attend these schools.
Relieving poverty by collecting, transporting and distributing donated goods
The program Packs of Hope has been an integral part of our education / community program. More than 18,000 backpacks donated by schools of the Niagara region and by enthusiastic volunteers have made this a successful way of helping out families in Jalapa not only with school supplies but clothes, shoes, toys, and other items. A very important partnership has been established with the Niagara Christian Gleaners, who have donated millions of servings of dehydrated vegetables and fruit. In addition to Packs of Hope, we ship medical equipment, blankets, linens, shoes, soccer uniforms, computer equipment, sewing machines and many other useful items thanks to the partnership with the Niagara Warehouse of Hope.
Organizing Medical/Dental Clinics
For 7 consecutive years, Wells of Hope has partnered with Kindness in Action to organize and provide dental clinics to the people in Jalapa. More than 4,000 children and adults have been checked up by the various teams of Kindness in Action dentists and dental hygienists. In addition, different teams of medical doctors have visited camp to provide basic health care and opinion on specific medical cases. This has been tied up with making improvements in their homes with smokeless stoves as well as part of our community aid program of building homes for widows or single moms wit