In 2000, Canadians Wayne McRann and Dan Miller were in the jungles of Guatemala, installing water systems and building houses on a Rotary International trip. They felt people other than Rotary members should have the same chance do something to make others’ lives better.
Four years later, the first Developing World Connections meeting was held in Kamloops, B.C., but getting up and running took a while longer.
Then, on Dec. 26, 2004, a massive tsunami pounded 14 countries in the Indian Ocean, killing 230,000 and destroying the lives of hundreds of thousands more. The horror of the devastation sparked DWC to life, with the first teams rushing to Sri Lanka to rebuild homes and community buildings. The fledgling group got itself organized, got teams over to Sri Lanka, and McRann took the helm as executive director.
DWC has been on the ground ever since, first in Sri Lanka, then spreading to other parts of Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin/South America. Marking one decade in 2015, DWC had organized 200 trips and sent more than 2,000 volunteers to build homes, schools, training centres, latrines, water systems, computer labs and other projects.
In 2014, McRann retired as executive director and handed the leadership over to Joshua Molsberry.
Our Vision: We envision a globally engaged, poverty free and socially just world.
Our Mission: Our mission is to connect people and resources through international community development.