Our teachers in Liberia are dedicated to the children that they serve. We pay
them $65 each month for 10 months. The average Liberian earns less than a $1 per
day. Many of our teachers have large extended families. So what does it cost to
live in Liberia?
A bag of rice costs $25; a tin of oil costs $15. Add $25 per month for fish,
chicken and vegetables and you pretty much use up your salary. Most Liberians do
not own a car as they cannot afford one. Gas is currently selling for $6 per
gallon. Our teachers walk to school or ride one of the many bikes that we have
shipped to Liberia for them. Many of our children walk several miles to come to
our schools each day.
The May mission team leaves on May 17th and returns to the US on June 2nd. They
will be at both schools playing with the kids, working on our sponsorship
program and making an impact in the community by providing free tooth
extractions like we did last year (there are no dentists in Liberia). If you are
currently sponsoring a child or a staff member and want to send them a letter or
a small package, please get that to me soon and we can send it in May or June.
The June mission team leaves on June 23rd and returns on July 7th. We will have
teacher workshops, HIV/Aids workshops and teach our staff how to use computers.
Computers and generators were recently shipped to Liberia on the container we
sent.
In July, Tricia Joos leaves St. Louis for her one year stay in Liberia as our
Education Director. She will be evaluating our staff and looking into expansion
opportunities and new program start-ups. We have recently purchased land near
our 15 Gate school and want to raise $10,000 to build a school that can
accommodate 500 children. Because we have so many more students, the building we
now use is very overcrowded. Tricia will also be helping with this project. She
is still raising support for her in-country costs. I will be visiting her later
in May to help with her fundraising.
Our operations in India continue. We are still raising funds to acquire
additional land to expand our water system so that we can have a year round
source of water. We are also looking into building more dormitories to house
additional children.
Your continued support for our ministries to the people of Liberia and India is
greatly appreciated. We are honored by your financial commitment to this cause.
Feel free to contact us if you have any questions, want to sponsor a child or a
staff person, would like to volunteer for one of our committees or would like to
come to Liberia in 2006 with us.
Doug Collier
May 2005