Family via Liberia

In addition to this undertaking, I’ve been preparing myself for another service mission. Over the summer, I’ll be spending a few weeks in Liberia, Africa, with a group of students from my college. Partnered with the Teach Peace Foundation, our group of students will be working at a mission to assist in any way that we can to break the cycle of poverty in the country through education and support. 

Our projects there have a wide range; from a medical clinic to construction to education and livestock gifting among local villages.

Liberia Mission, Inc., the base of our operations, is an interesting institution. It’s a Catholic establishment that also functions as a K-12 school. Some of the children at the mission are orphans of the war that tore the country apart, while others have families. 

It is these children that I have been thinking of quite a bit as of late.

Family is incredibly important to the people of Liberia; every individual is important to every one else. When a young boy who attends the mission was lost to an unknown disease over their summer break last year, his entire village and all of the mission felt the impact. With such tight knit social structure, I find it interesting that parents are willing to send their children away for nine months out of the year, often with no means to visit throughout these times. It definitely highlights the commitment that these people have to bettering not only their society but the lives of their children in anyway possible.

Family is important because of the support it provides, support that is provided at any sacrifice. It cannot be easy on these mothers and fathers to send their babies off for the majority of the year—but the love that they for their children, and the understanding of the importance of education is something that keeps them going. Family is a support system, and an integral part of life.

This is why family is important. This is why we are working to keep families together; everyone deserves to feel this support and love.