Kudos to John=O Ranch

[dragonpilot]

I have to give a big shout out to the John=O Ranch in Cedarville, CA. The John=O Ranch is listed in the JRS Burner Resources edition as providing water for Burners coming down from the Northwest through Cedarville. I have been tanking up at the ranch for the last 4-5 years. As usual I call ahead a week or so to make sure the ranch is going to be offering the artesian well water. This time John answered the phone...he's usually out somewhere on the ranch. I asked him if his water hoses were going to be out this year and he stated "Absolutely, but almost not."

Apparently the well pump for this particular system broke down last week. Pumps are not cheap. This well is not essential to ranch or household use so he could have very well just put it low on his list of priorities of things to maintain. Not John. He did whatever he had to do to make sure there was going to be an operational pump. Within days of getting the pump up and operational, the pressure tank blew. He replaced the pressure tank. This all took time and money...probably all the money he has received in donations over the years he's been offering the water.

I'm pretty sure John has never been to Burning Man. His contact with the event is limited to all the Northwest Burners pouring through Cedarville. He's just the kind of person (as well as his wife) who loves helping travelers along their way. The only thing he asks is to be treated equally...hence the ranch's brand: =O with the "O" representing his last name, Osterman.

Burning Man has been a transformative experience for many folks attending the event. John and his wife have always imbued the best qualities associated with our event. They add to that transformative experience. Out in the middle of practically nowhere is a veritable oasis offering cool, clear, clean artesian well water to the soon-to-be-thirsty. Hat's off and a big Burner howdy to the John=O Ranch!

[Raoul]

A slight change of plan will have us passing through Cedarville during the day instead of the wee hours, so we might just pay John=O a visit and will most definitely contribute to the cause if we do.