BIRMINGHAM, Ala.—Grants totaling $44,000 from national Woman’s Missionary Union and the WMU Foundation will help re-open Liberian schools closed since the Ebola crisis.
Olu Menjay“Schools have been shut down for seven months. This gift ignites renewed hope in a seemingly hopeless situation,” said Olu Menjay, principal of Ricks Institute, a Baptist school in Liberia that serves more than 600 children in kindergarten through high school.
Ricks Institute will receive $35,000 to provide meals for its boarding-school students. Since about $5 per day will feed a student at Ricks, the grant will cover meals for the first month school is in session, Menjay explained.
The Marla Corts School and the Dellanna O’Brien School, both located in rural Liberian villages, will receive $9,000 to help them comply with new safety protocols designed to control the spread of disease. All schools will be required to use chlorinatedwater and soap, monitor temperatures and wear uniforms that leave less skin exposed.
The number of Ebola cases has declined significantly in recent weeks, leading the Liberian government to re-open schools. More than 3,500 Liberians have died from Ebola since the outbreak began last year. Many families faced unemployment and a desperate hunger crisis.
“Although returning to school is a great sign of improvement, many Liberians have been unemployed for months,” said David George, president of the WMU Foundation. “There will be a number of financial needs, and these grants will help meet some of those needs.”
At the height of the Ebola crisis last fall, the WMU Foundation partnered with LIBA—Liberians in Birmingham Alabama—to pack a shipping container with rice, beans and other dry goods to send to Liberia. The food arrived in Monrovia in December, and an emergency response team from the Liberia Baptist Missionary and Educational Convention began distributing the food to families in need.
“We opened our hearts and our arms to our friends in Liberia. We want to send our prayers but also provide something tangible,” said Judith Edwards, a WMU Foundation board member.
The WMU Foundation will continue to collect funds to provide food for children at Ricks Institute. Gifts to help feed students at Ricks Institute can be made online at wmufoundation.com or mailed to the WMU Foundation, 100 Missionary Ridge, Birmingham, AL 35242.
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“We’ve had a great partnership with Liberian Baptists for many years, and we remain committed to helping in meaningful ways,” George said.
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