Gbarnga Mission | Liberia – West Africa

Today we celebrate the many faces of motherhood in Liberia and honor the stories of sacrifice and love sculpted into each. Happy Mother’s Day! “She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue.” Proverbs 31:25

Here’s the latest Gbarnga Mission News … click image to download and enjoy!

Let’s start with some sad news: Life is difficult for mothers in Liberia. The struggles, however, don’t start at pregnancy — they begin when girls eat nutritionally deficient diets, putting their bodies at a developmental disadvantage for surviving the stress of birthing later in life. Insufficient education leads to illiterate young women who cannot read… Continue reading A Mother’s Day Gift

I hate mosquitoes. But fortunately I live in Massachusetts where I’m just annoyed by an occasional bite and unlikely to get a deadly disease like malaria. This is not the case in Liberia where it’s the country’s leading cause of death. Children are particularly vulnerable. 44% of inpatient deaths among children under age five are… Continue reading Bug Off! World Malaria Day

These palm branches painted on the mud home in our village declare “Hosanna! He is Risen!” Despite our social distancing in the US and our geographic distance from Liberia, we celebrate together our victory over death. Happy Easter! “Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live,… Continue reading He is Risen

I arrived safely home to Massachusetts last Wednesday afternoon and the world has changed quickly in a short time. My original itinerary was Monrovia-Brussels-Frankfurt-Boston but the coronavirus had already made its presence known in Germany and my two Lufthansa flights were cancelled. I was rerouted on TAP airlines through Portugal with no delays in my… Continue reading For Each Other

It’s been a busy last few days. Since I shared the story of the Deanville church needing support to reach completion of a roof before the rainy season, donors stepped up and we raised $1,330. Thank you so much for responding so quickly and generously. Here I am presenting the funds to Sumo who is… Continue reading Patrick’s Wedding

The last Friday of the month is the school’s “chapel program”. One 12-year old girl was the emcee and very professionally invited various individuals or small groups to come forward. Some joined everyone in prayers, others recited memorized Bible verses, some either led songs or sang solos, and still others came forward to share a… Continue reading Tough Questions

Portions of the mud block church, or preaching point as they call it, in Deanville has fallen down. The community has been working hard to rebuild before the rainy season, not only to give them a dry place to worship, but if it rains on the new mud block edifice before a coat of cement… Continue reading Church Repairs

Kids of a certain age are easy to entertain. This group gathered after I drew a smiley face on the stomach of one child, using his outie bellybutton for a nose. I immediately had a line wanting the same thing. They proudly pulled up their shirts to pose for this group shot. That was the… Continue reading Jealous Gardens