Meet Zeliya Yohane
This past week, we had the privilege of meeting Zeliya Yohane (37) and her husband Sakondwela Chimangeni (45) from the village of Zakaliya Chadzama, Malawi. They are farmers who grow maize and beans. They are also leaders in their community.
Zeliya has been the village head for the last 11 years, and she also serves on the Water Point Committee with her husband. They have five children and are also caring for their 2-year-old niece.
The hardest part of her job, Zeliya told us, is seeing her neighbors suffer. “When I see my people very poor and have a hard time having money to feed themselves, I don’t feel good seeing people going through that.”
Before the MaxLife™ Centralizer was installed in December 2025, the village was suffering. When the Afridev hand pump broke down every two to three months, the community had to travel a long distance to find water from another source. And every time, Zeliya had to gather the village, talk about contributions, collect the money, and travel to a shop to buy the parts.The cost was not only financial.
Families drinking unsafe water suffered from diarrhea and other illnesses. In a single week, multiple members of one family might be sick at the same time. They would take turns going to the hospital. Children missed school. Mothers lost work.
Then, in December 2025, the MaxLife Centralizer arrived. Since then, the community hasn’t had to make a single repair to their pump.
“Now, since water is life—we believe water is life—we are now able to do each and every household chore more easily,” Zeliya told us. “Now the money which was being used for maintenance can buy children’s school books and relish for the household. (With the money saved, we are) able now to eat meat.”
Zeliya told us that since the upgrade, not only are families healthier, but they have the water they need to bathe and keep their homes clean. One family has even started a vegetable garden using the pump. And in the mornings, she said, the children run to the pump to prepare themselves for school. “The children play more because they are happy,” she says.
Zeliya is doing what every great leader does—she is telling other local leaders about the MaxLife Centralizer in hopes that they too will see the benefit of more reliable water access.
When we asked Sakondwela how he felt as the husband and advisor to the village head now that they have found a solution to the breakdowns, he answered, “I feel good because we are no longer contributing much money.” What do they do with the saved money? “Buy school necessities.”
And his last words were just two: “Very grateful.”
This is what your generosity makes possible—thank you for empowering Zeliya, Sakondwela, and the people of Zakaliya Chadzama.
