Kostal reaching out to the MMaasaii ABBEYFEALE AND MALLOW WORKERS SUPPORT VITAL PROJECT SPEARHEADED BY KERRY MAN

KOSTAL’S 1,000-strong workforce between its Abbeyfeale and Mallow plants are being warmly thanked by one African community from the bottom of its heart this week.

Thanks to the support of the car-electronic manufacturer the Maasai people of an expansive rural community will no longer be forced to undertake pain-staking journeys for hours to collect noxious water.

The Kostal Water Project 2017 will instead see scores of villages equipped with their own water tanks, each complete with its own filtration unit and bathing area in what’s set to transform their lives. And it’s all thanks to Kostal Abbeyfeale employee Billy Keane and his father Willie; Listowel men who who had travelled to Ireland have been actively raising funds for petitioning the government here for the work of the Medical Missionaries help for his people. That help was of Mary in the area for over ten years. proferred and so, too, was Willie’s

“I’m a trainer with Kostal and as the Listowel man launched into through my work have gotten to an incredible charity drive that has know many of the Mallow workers to date raised over €250,000 and as well and the support of everyone, built an entire hospital and school including the company has been in Arusha. nothing short of amazing the last Billy became impassioned by his few years for the work in Tanzania,” father’s work when he travelled Billy said. out with him for the opening of the

It’s a charity link that was initially clinic and school in 2013. “That’s forged by Willie after he became when we got the idea for the water friendly with the now deceased cleric project. I met one woman who used Fr Louis Sisti, a native of the communityto leave her home at 4.30am to collect water. She wouldn’t get back until 6.30 in the evening, with filthy water at that,” Billy explained.

He lost no time when he got back galvanising co-workers to action. Now, on March 9, he heads back with five Kostal colleagues - his brothers Paddy and Don, Tralee man Des Martin and Abbeyfeale men Michael Herlihy and Seamus Heffernan - to represent the company at the opening of the Water Project.

“A drill attempted before never got a drop and while we considered running a pipeline hundreds of miles from a nearest source felt this would only be tapped into by others before it ever got to the people. That’s why we came up with the water tank idea.

“It only rains once or twice a year there, but when it does it rains hard. It helps grow the corn they farm but most is lost.

“These 5,000 litre tanks will help catch it so it can be used over months and the design is such that there will be a bathing area around each of the 20 tanks we’re establishing in the area so people can bathe in clean water too,” Billy told The Kerryman.