Monday 3/29 The Last Day
Departure Day. We had been so focused on gaining accreditation that we had not even considered how close it was until our departure. We had called our last board meeting for 9am and had invited our extended advisory board to attend. We wanted to bring everyone up to date on the accomplishments we achieved on this trip as well as to identify the areas where we did not hit the mark. We also wanted to focus on the things that needed to be done in the near term both in Liberia and in the US. Robert and Deddeh Browne, and Nyamah are an the Liberian Board of Directors but will be included as advisors also. Dr. McKinley Teah was there along with Yvonne Blamoh (Registered Nurse), Elizabeth Bimba (Trained Midwive), and Deddeh Browne (Nursing Assistant). These four represent the medical portion of the board. Arthur Zarmapoe, Thomas Smith, Robert Browne and Robert Bimba are all pastors and educators. The Honorable Wesseh Blamoh will serve as overall advisor. Robert Bimba, his Father and Sylvester Mulbah make up the agricultural team while Nyamah Dunbar is our International Liaison and coordinator of interchurch efforts. All in all, the board of advisors is a great cross section of talent; they have each presented a profile of their educational qualifications and other accomplishments, and will become part of the foundation for future initiatives in Liberia. The boards were obviously designated by the Lord.
As we were approaching Capitol Hill for our 1pm meeting with the VP Patrick Broh suddenly appeared. We hadn’t seen him since the first week. He immediately began offering excuses why he had been absent but we had called him repeatedly and sent messages through his brother, Pastor Lawrence Broh, his boss, Senator Blamoh Nelson among others. We had been worried about him until the senator assured us he was in Grand Kru. I told Patrick how badly we had needed his help on this trip but that we had been forced to proceed without him. He seemed to understand and we were out of time, so pray for Patrick and for his church.
The meeting with VP Boakai was warm and friendly. We talked about many things, bringing him the news of all the happenings including the great victories accomplished on this trip. He promised to share our blessings with the president and asked us to visit on Independence Day (July 26) with him and his family. When we showed him the radio he was thoroughly impressed and when we gave it to him it was gratefully received, almost as if we were family. Isela and I really love him and want to meet Mrs. Boakai. We saw her at the Baptist Seminary but did not get to speak with her. Ignatius, their son, was arranging a dinner but that never materialized.
Leaving Capitol Hill we were out of time and we flew to Bill’s, said our goodbyes, loaded up and headed to the airport. Unfortunately, internet check in is unavailable for Roberts Field so early arrival was necessary. When we arrived, our hosts were there with the apostless, prophetess and evangeless, all women from North Carolina, who were invited to speak at the Missions Conference in which we were also speaking. We were on the same Brussels flight out of Liberia. We had come to know them during our cooperation in the conference and this was their first trip to Africa. They were not prepared for some of the hardships and as we waited for our flight they were shocked at some of our stories. We have exchanged contact info and promised to reconnect when we visit N.C.
The woman we sat next to on the flight to DC gave us some key insight into Liberia .Korto and her family had left for the US years ago and only return periodically, this time to bury her sister. According to her the Delta flight to Monrovia (which we had reserved in Jun 09) was cancelled because after a year and a half of planning, Delta had sent undercover fliers to buy tickets and fly out of Roberts Field. The undercover agents secretly smuggled weapons onto the plane by showing them to the airport personnel then offering them bribes to overlook them. They were able to bring weapons on the plane with the full knowledge of the airport personnel who had been bribed. This all occurred in May 2009 and when Homeland Security in the US was informed all flights from Roberts Field to the US were cancelled. When we went through the airport this time everything was different. Security cameras were installed and the security guards were very strict, wanding every passenger repeatedly. The previous security breakdowns had no doubt cost Liberia dearly; for even the Brussels flights would not refuel in Monrovia but flew all the way to Abidjan in Ivory Coast to refuel before landing at Roberts on the way down and then after we took off from Roberts we flew to Abidjan to refuel. We can only hope that the breaches will be corrected because it is very expensive for every passenger to pay for all the extra stops and starts.
While on the way to DC, we discovered the husband of the US Ambassador, Linda Thomas Greenfield was on our flight and within a few moments he came back to our seats in economy to chat with us. He is a happy, polite gentleman and invited us to their home on our next visit.
40 days and 40 nights in Liberia have been productive beyond our greatest expectations. The fact that we were able to achieve International Accreditation and Certification as an NGO is more than we imagined. None of this would have been possible without the power of God at every step.
Awaiting our return,
Fred and Isela