Welcome the 81^st and final weekly post for Mission: Agua-Possible. Our goal was 1300 USD (in STEEM and HIVE) for a well pump to bring water to the family farm of @EdgarGonzalez.

Background

Severe economic and political crisis over the past few years in the South American country of Venezuela intensified in recent years, as president Maduro doubled down on his currency manipulation, price-fixing, propaganda, and suppressing resistance. You've heard about the country's recent turmoil, but the world's media isn't showing us even half the reality! In 2018 began to see more and more Steem users from Venezuela, I started to hear their interesting stories - and ask questions. I discovered some dark truths about the economic and political situation there. Most shops are empty, the currency is collapsing, people are hungry - the economy is at a standstill. Theft, corruption, and violence escalate as society breaks down. Those who can are fleeing on foot - 8 million already. The harsh socialist government attempts to control/fix the economy, and blames problems on the people. Most government services (like running water) work only in certain areas - or not at all. The people are desperate for any change and protests sometimes fill the streets for miles. Maduro announced that Venezuela will no longer accept US Dollars for oil exports, then tried to get his country's gold back from Bank of England, who refused. The Russian military has become involved, supporting Maduro. The Americans back a man called Guaidó, who also has little public support. Electrical and internet blackouts happen regularly. Stability for the people appears out of reach.

Edgar

In mid-2018 I found @edgargonzalez, the blog of Edgar, a Venezuelan man about my age. He's a father of young children, and a professional whose job disappeared because of the crisis. He feeds his family by fishing, harvesting fruits, and growing cassava on his late-father's plantation. He uses the Steem blockchain to share his stories and earn cryptocurrency to buy food. Shortly after I met Edgar, a power outage caused a failure of the pump used to bring water up to the farm. A repairman confirmed the pump is beyond fixing. Edgar had been using his well to water his crops, and to provide drinking water to his children and nearby families. Without a pump to bring water up from the aquifer, his harvests are reduced - and the neighborhood must forage for water elsewhere. Without government water services, and now without water from his well, Edgar and a few other families are in a tough situation. I wondered what a poor Canadian man could do to help. After using the Steem blockchain to learn about the problems, I realized that it could also be the SOLUTION! That's when I first began Mission Agua-possible, to gather 1300 USD worth of Steem and transfer it to Edgar, to be converted to cash to buy the pump!

( Edgar has become a minor celebrity on the blockchain, in part because of [MAP], but also because he regularly produces content that is appreciated by the community. His posts are simple, but honest, and show what a regular man's life in Venezuela during economic collapse looks like. Through his phone camera photos and Spanish-English text translated through an online service, I've learned about economics, life, and myself. Posts like this one from last week are typical for Edgar, each earning a significant payout that will go a long way for him locally. So in that regard, Edgar has already found some success via the blockchain, regardless of this project's outcome! ) Water is life! We've done everything we could to get this pump for the farm.

Hive presented an opportunity

After deciding to close the project and get Edgar whatever funds we could, last week was going to be the final post. But with the recent splitting of blockchains (Steem and Hive) and currencies, there was an unexpected chance to turn what looked to be a failure into a success. I extended the project for an extra 7 days, as most participants (and the community itself) were still in flux with the sudden upheaval, and to allow anyone who wanted to contribute some HIVE to do so. _{NOTE: When the blockchain (and currencies) split, some people were excluded (due to actions they had performed which others saw as "centralizing") from receiving access to forked (also called "airdropped") tokens on Hive. This has become a heated political discussion, which I'm not completely familiar with. I did happen to receive forked tokens, and chose to take actions/risk to claim them. While they don't belong to anyone but myself, I recognize that I would have received less if not for the project. The value of both currencies has been wildly fluctuating since the split. For example, Hive was initially more valuable, but since then STEEM took the lead, and at the time of writing they are tied. It changes dramatically by the hour right now. Many users (including myself) can't properly post, comment, and curate on multiple chains, and will have to drop one in favour of the other. On top of that, the split has caused animosity and anger with various people and factions, leading to attempts to freeze funds on each blockchain in various ways. New forks and witness changes happen almost daily and many are worried of losing their tokens, or having the value plunge toward zero. Censorship and central control are rising. The split offers opportunities, but also liabilities and risks. See below for how I decided to handle the unexpected turn of events.} The final donations and payouts are in, and added to the calculations! After the better part of 2 years (during a brutal bear market for cryptos), let's see how we did!

Thank you for helping us make the water flow!

Much appreciation to those who upvoted last week:

Week 81 - Conclusion

week 80 funds: 4777.7 STEEM and 100.0 HIVE new funds: - week 80 Steem post payout 1.435 SBD, 2.450 STEEM and 10.651 STEEM POWER = 21.302 STEEM - week 80 Hive post payout 0.306 HBD, 1.066 HIVE and 2.733 HIVE POWER = 5.466 HIVE - 35.0 STEEM direct donation from @Xpilar and Sultan-aceh - 100.0 HIVE direct donation from @longsilver (and @fishyculture) - Public donations are now closed. Total funds: 4834.002 STEEM x 0.186 USD/STEEM = 899.12 USD 205.466 HIVE x 0.186 USD/HIVE = 38.22 USD FINAL progress: 937.34 / 1300 USD (72%)

72% means........ Success!

As I hinted at last week, I've decided to make the pump happen for Edgar. When I conceived of this whole thing, I envisioned it only taking a few weeks, and the community quickly rallying together with 1300 bucks for a fellow Steemian who needed water. Things didn't happen as quickly as I'd hoped, and a brutal bear market in cryptos (especially STEEM) wiped out my personal savings. More importantly, the continued collapse in prices ensured the project could never reach 100%, regardless of the support it received. After more than a year of desperation, cryptos hit rock bottom, and our holdings finally began to appreciate. When the coronavirus outbreak toppled world markets and sent STEEM tumbling back to all-time lows, the urgent decision was made to end the project and get Edgar whatever funds we were able to. But thanks to the Hive split, a slight recovery in our funds has combined with further help from @Xpilar and other big supporters, to bring us within striking distance of the goal! And with that, I'd like to announce the final addition Mission: Agua-Possible... _{I'm going to put my final donation in the name of my beautiful and brilliant wife @MediKatie, who supported me through the project even when it seemed futile, sometimes nudging me out of bed on Saturdays with the phrase "hang in there, Edgar". Each week she took care of household chores, shopping, and the baby, while I ran the numbers, wrote up posts, edited images, and promoted the project here and on other platforms. Thank you for helping make it happen, MediKatie <3} ---

2000 STEEM direct donation from @MediKatie

--- Final total: 4834.002 STEEM 205.466 HIVE (I will transfer to STEEM & cover the conversion fee) 2000.0 from MediKatie =========================== 7039.468 STEEM (1309.34 USD) [ To the 1300 USD, I'm adding an extra 9+ USD to the payment, to offset any possible exchange fee Edgar may pay (depending how he moves the funds). I want to be sure he ends up with the full amount in case he needs every dollar for the pump, parts, and installation. ]

We did it! Rounding the total up to 7040 STEEM, I'm going to break it into 2 equal transfers of 3520 STEEM. The first has just been sent:

The second half will be sent later this week as my powerdowns and transfers finish coming in. I'll make a short post showing the final transfer, some stats, and any unfinished business, in about a week.

Upvoting this post is appreciated! 100% will go to Edgar (over and above the 1300) to cover any fees or conversion rates he may incur to receive the funds.

Mission Agua-Possible inspired dozens of regular contributors and supporters over the months and years. We promoted positive change, cooperation, international brotherhood, peace, charity, goodwill, generosity, and kindness. We used free market forces and voluntary pooling of resources, harnessing the power of blockchain and community, to manifest a significant positive change in a part of the world that really needed it. Thank you SO much to everybody who became a part of Mission Agua Possible! It really was YOU who made this happen!

And lastly, a note to Edgar: Thank you for your friendship, grace, and patience. I'm sorry I haven't learned Spanish as well as you have learned English. I respect you as a person, a man, and a father. You do what you need to in order for your family to thrive during a very hard situation. I have learned from you. As a poor man in my own country, that is now headed for economic ruin like your own, I see myself in your sandals. This project has been a lesson for me and I'll never forget it. When the world is healthy and happy again, I insist, you will visit me in Canada, and I will visit you in Venezuela. We will show each other and our families our wonderful countries. You are my first and only true blockchain friend - someone I have known ONLY on the blockchain and not in person or by any other platform or method of communication. We met here, became friends here, I started the project here, almost 2 years went by, and now we're completing the project, right here on the blockchain. Again, thank you. You have a friend in me.

Y por último, una nota a Edgar: Gracias por tu amistad, gracia, y paciencia. Siento no haber aprendido español tan bien como tú has aprendido inglés. Te respeto como persona, como hombre, y como padre. Haces lo que necesitas para que tu familia prospere durante una situación muy difícil. He aprendido de ti. Como un pobre hombre en mi propio país, que ahora se dirige a la ruina económica como la suya, me veo en sus sandalias. Este proyecto ha sido una lección para mí y nunca lo olvidaré. Cuando el mundo esté sano y feliz de nuevo, insisto, me visitarás en Canadá, y te visitaré en Venezuela. Nos mostraremos el uno al otro y a nuestras familias nuestros maravillosos países. Usted es mi primer y único verdadero amigo blockchain - alguien que he conocido SOLAMENTE en la cadena de bloques y no en persona o por cualquier otra plataforma o método de comunicación. Nos conocimos aquí, nos hicimos amigos aquí, comencé el proyecto aquí, pasaron casi 2 años, y ahora estamos completando el proyecto, justo aquí en la cadena de bloques. De nuevo, gracias. Tienes un amigo en mí.

I'm happy to present you with this 1300 USD (in STEEM), on behalf of myself and everybody who contributed to Mission: Agua-Possible, to purchase and install an aquifer pump on your land, and/or otherwise upgrade your family's water and food security. Be well, mi amigo.

Me complace presentarles este 1300 USD (en STEEM), en nombre mío y de todos los que contribuyeron a Mission: Agua-Posible, para comprar e instalar una bomba de acuífero en su tierra, y/o mejorar de otra manera el agua y la seguridad alimentaria de su familia. Estar bien, my friend.

DRutter