There are 33 families in Gengcaigou Village of Weichang County, a village located at t a remote mountain 1100 meters above sea level. The special geological structure has led to lack of water for over a hundred years. The only shallow well can only sustain everyday life during the rain seasons. In the dry seasons, it takes one or two days to settle the muddy water. 64 years old Guo Zhigang has to get up 3am in the morning to get relatively clean water. The whole family washes faces from the same basin. The water used for washing vegetables is also used for washing clothes or feeding cows afterwards.

This poor village received help from Heifer at the end of 2006, which has been improving the farmers' income and the community as a whole. With mutual help and common development, these families are implementing Heifer's 12 Cornerstones.

However, lack of water has been an obstacle on their way. Zhang Zhi, the community representative, organized many discussions in the Xiaoguangdingzi SHG. They tried every way to obtain a drinking water project from the local Water Bureau. With joint efforts of all aspects, SHG invested 600 working hours and 21,100 Yuan for electric equipments. Relevant officials and workers from the Water Bureau, moved by the farmers' persistence, offered great support by sending technicians to field investigation and implementing the drinking water project.

June 28th 2009, the construction team arrived in the village with their drilling equipments. The drilling started on July 3rd. 25 days later, in the noon of 28th, clean water ran out from the new well. "Water! Water!" the message spread among all villagers. Tears emerged in the eyes of the farmers who had suffered from drought for a hundred years. 79 years old Han Shuyun, who married into this village at the age of 19 and lived most of her life in this lack of water, said excitedly, "Heifer has brought so many changes and I can drink clean water from now on." Zhang Dianwen, leader of SHG said gratefully, "our village has been poor for many years due to the water problem. It is Heifer who helped us to set up SGH, gave us cattle, and taught us new techniques. Now we have clean water. Our life will surely be better and better."

(Editor: During the drilling of the new well, Ms. Song Jinping, consultant from the Beijing Regional Office, got sick from drinking the water from the old well and had to stay in hospital. Hearing the success of the new well, she said, "It's worth it.")