(Guy Selinski, Dan Ringstad, Matthew Selinski, Craig Manson)
 
Dan Ringstad introduced our speakers Matthew and Guy Selinske.  The Selinske family launched WAVE (West African Village & Environment Project) in 2008. This non-profit 501(c)3 organization focuses on water and agriculture projects in The Gambia.
 
The Gambia is a country in West Africa mostly surrounded by Senegal with a short strip of its coastline bordered with the Atlantic Ocean at its western end. It is the smallest country on mainland Africa with a population of approximately 2 million.
 
WAVE’s mission is improving lives, the economy, and the environment in West Africa. Specifically projects at this time will be centered around the area of the Central River Region, The Gambia.
 
WAVE started while Matthew served as a Peace Corp volunteer in The Gambia and noticed the need for clean water. Working along with his mother and father, Mary and Guy Selinske of Prior Lake Rotary, they developed a Global Grant for bore hole wells that when completed allowed clean water into the communities.
 
WAVE’s goal is to have sustainable community projects that enable community members, mainly the women, to form gardens near the wells.  Currently, with the help of Rotary, WAVE has seen the direct impact to 14 communities with benefits that include:
 
  • Access to clean water allowing for better hygiene
  • Improved nutrition and availability of food
  • Income generating for the men and women involved in the projects.
 
 
 For more information visit their Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/WestAfricanWAVE/info?tab=page_info