Cross-country jog

by LAREIGN WARD, Press Argus-Courier Staff
Friday, December 26, 2008 3:21 PM CST

Last month, two locals ran from one end of Nicaragua to another in an attempt to raise awareness about the need for clean water in remote villages populated by indigenous people.

Manuel Centeno and Chuck Dale, both of Van Buren, ran 377 miles through the Central American country last month. The run lasted nine days.

Joining them on the run were two Miskito Indians, who live mostly along the Coco River along the eastern coast of the country. Centeno, a native Nicaraguan, said he had long been troubled by the lack of drinkable water available to the more than 200,000 Indians who are spread out amongst 151 villages.

So he and Dale collaborated to plan the run. They didn't go at it alone, though, as they received support from a crew headed by Leanna Centeno, Manuel's wife.

The inaugural run focused more on building awareness than raising money.

"That was phase one of the project," Centeno said. "Now phase two is raising funds for the first well itself, which is going to be about $10,000."

Centeno said the cost is so high largely because of the remoteness of the Miskito communities.

"Nicaragua is a poor country, so the Coco River County is the poorest county in Nicaragua," Centeno said. "And literally, other than maybe two or three of the villages on the river, there are no roads to get to these villages. So you have to either fly by helicopter, or you can get on the river and get as close as possible to (a) village, then from there walk."

Because of that, 70 percent of costs associated with building a well are related to transporting the necessary machinery.

About $600 has been raised for the first well through Agua Nicaragua, the non-profit group founded last year to facilitate the building of wells.

"Financially, we are not where we wanted to be at this point," Centeno said. "Mainly because of all that is happening financially in the country and worldwide. ... People's disposable income is pretty much reduced to nothing, so it's really hard to raise money in this economy."

Centeno would love to give all 151 Miskito villages a well, but knows that may not be possible and said helping just two or three villages would make a huge difference.

Centeno first came to the United States in 1989 after receiving a scholarship to study at Harding University in Searcy. For more than a decade, the 40-year-old Centeno has worked to help the citizens of his native country, actively coordinating and leading numerous medical brigades and home building crews to the eastern region of the country. He also coordinated and managed a relief effort in the aftermath of Hurricane Felix.

Centeno and Dale are planning another run for next year, and the organization is also trying to set up a marathon in the country's capital of Managua.

While he trained extensively leading up to last month's run, Centeno said training in Arkansas couldn't replicate the conditions in Nicaragua: at 5 a.m. the day the run started, he said temperatures were already up to 80 degrees.

"Personally, it's kind of funny how day by day your body keeps getting stronger and stronger and stronger so by the end of the run I was in awesome shape," he said. "I wasn't hurting anywhere.

"I told my friend jokingly, I said, 'Hey I think I can turn around and go back to the other side of the country now.'"

To donate to Agua Nicaragua, visit www.aguanicaragua.org, or send money to: Agua Nicaragua, 6604 Parks Road, Van Buren, AR 72956.

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