The electricity on our ministry compound is supplied by a hydro system which takes advantage of the steep drop of the Canchias River. This system was installed and has been maintained, updated, and repaired largely by ministry teams from Columbus, Ohio under the leadership of Tony Ahern. It produces 12 kilowatts of power – enough to give electricity to the buildings on our compound, and also to the Canchias church, clinic, and public school.

Though to the untrained layman’s eye it appears that we have unlimited electrical power as we are used to in the States, we in fact have to use power conservatively to avoid “blowing the system.” Power outages are a common event in Canchias.

For this reason we do not have hot water heaters and we ask you not to bring hair dryers, electric curling irons or clothing irons since these items are a huge drain on the system. It is much more important that the refrigerators keep our food from spoiling and that the clinic has the power it needs to care for patients than for us to have a hot shower or perfect hair.

However, there is enough electricity to recharge your camera batteries. Please call the Stateside office and talk to our Health Care Coordinator, Cindy Penhorwood, for advice if you require electrically powered medical equipment.