Rainwater Catchment: a Path Back to Traditional Farming

The recently articulated vision of the Honoring Water Group, an informal citizen’s group meeting at Zuni, Vanderwagen and Gallup is: “Abundant water, respected and treated ethically.  When water is honored as sacred, mutual flourishing is possible.”  This citizen’s group, with much organizational support from James and Joyce Skeet of Vanderwagen, seeks to honor and protect water in many ways, including addressing the water scarcity many people experience in the NW region of the state.

     James and Joyce Skeet embraced water scarcity directly by establishing Spirit Farm, their working farm in Vanderwagen, south of Gallup, in the high desert of the Navajo reservation with no water well on their farm.  Their vision of “healing the soil, healing the soul” is fully realized as their working experiential farm draws people from all parts of the U.S. and the world to experience their living example of how we can recover and reclaim traditional farming and spiritual practices, along with modern practices, to establish resiliency in our way of life. The Skeets collect rainwater of building rooftops into tanks for their drip irrigation and haul water as needed from Gallup for themselves, their animals, and plants. Established in 2015, on Spirit Farm the Skeets have applied ancient indigenous wisdom, integrating new solutions energized by nature. Their farming practices, including microbiological compost and rotational grazing, have enhanced soil quality, increased nutrient density in their crops, and reduced their water use while fostering environmental resilience and community integrity.  

            Beyond and through Spirit Farm, the Skeets, with other community members in the Gallup area, have undertaken to do something more about water scarcity and nutrition needs with a vision of native people growing their own food.  In collaboration with the Little Sisters of the Poor, an international congregation of Roman Catholic women who run an elder care center- Villa Guadalupe- in Gallup, the Skeets have installed a rain water catchment system on the Villa Guadalupe roof, setting up tanks for holding the rainwater to be delivered to other native growers who, like the Skeets, have limited or no access to water to grow their own food.

            Their project aims to save the rainwater from urban rooftops to share with Native growers who have no access to water.  Funds have been raised to purchase and install the gutters and the tanks at Villa Guadalupe.  The next hurdle is the purchase of a water truck to transport the water to growers.  To that end, the Skeets have raised more than $11,000 towards the $32,000 price and have a GoFundMe, Sharing Rain from Urban Rooftops with Native Growers, for raising more funds. Donations are welcome and needed. The Skeets are living the group’s vision: “When water is honored as sacred, mutual flourishing is possible.”