L’aura bids farewell to the BWA after 32 years

After being involved with the Borehole Water Association for 32 years, L’aura James has earned a well-deserved retirement from 1 January 2021. 

L’aura, on behalf of the EXCO and BWA members, we wish you a happy retirement.

During her time as the administrator of the BWA, she assisted many people looking for advice on boreholes and the use of groundwater. Nothing was too much trouble as she searched for information and the right person to assist both members and end users.

She made many friends and took a keen interest in the work that was being carried out by BWA members. She spent time with members in the field learning more about the industry in order to pass on knowledge. Some still remember her birthday!

L’aura was also the editor of the Borehole Water Journal (BWJ) from 1990 to 2015 and published volumes 19 to 99. In 2016, she saw the need to move to an online platform and so the Borehole Water Journal Online (BWJO) replaced the printed version.

And so, I’d like to let L’aura have the last say by quoting from her first Editor’s Note published in 1990, as it seems as appropriate now as it was then.

On the inside looking out, I see a great thirst. Drought comes about when less rain than is the norm falls over an area for a long period of time. We have all seen, heard and lived through the disaster of drought, and some people, in some places in the world, know nothing of a life without it.

However, there is another great thirst, certainly not for water, but just as important – the thirst for knowledge. Without it, human life as we know it must surely suffer the same fate as being the victim of a drought.

You, who earn your living in this industry are very lucky indeed, as you are in the unique position of being able to quench both of these great thirsts, substantially, if not entirely.

L’aura, thank you for everything you’ve done for the groundwater industry … you will be missed!

John Tonkin