East Timor principal builds on Rotary relationship

Fresh flowing water from drinking fountains is something East Timorese principal Leopoldina Guterres hopes the 13 schools she oversees will one day have.

The 46-year-old walked through the halls of Rockingham Senior High School last month with eyes wide open, as part of a five-week trip to Australia.

Mrs Guterres has developed a relationship with the Rotary Clubs of Kwinana, Palm Beach and Rockingham through their projects to give isolated communities access to clean water.

Life is significantly different for Mrs Guterres who comes from Baguia, a sub-district in the foothills of East Timor's second highest mountain.

In comparison, Mrs Guterres has to walk up to six hours to visit some of the schools she supervises, students walk an average of two hours to attend school, and the river is the main water source in many villages.

"Before students walk to school they need to go to the river to get water to bring to their family and prepare for dinner," Mrs Guterres said.

"At my schools we have no access to the internet and there is no technology, we use blackboards, chalk and exercise books.

"Some students don't even have breakfast or lunch, because they walk a long way and they can't carry water, books and everything else because it is too heavy for them."

Rotary Club of Kwinana president Max Bird said he and other Rotarians travelled to East Timor in January to install a rainwater harvesting system at the Baguia orphanage and had entrusted Mrs Guterres to help look after it.

"Giving them clean probable water then reduces the mortality rate among the infants," he said.

Mrs Guterres said Rotary's support and the water tank made the community feel happy and relieved some of the daily pressures from students.

"It is still hard for us in the dry season because there are so many kids, but we hope with the presence and support of Rotary clubs the water tank will help us to stay strong and healthy," she said.

Having lived through the turmoil of the Indonesian invasion, Mrs Guterres said she was able to look to the future with happiness, because "the hardest times had passed".