Fatmata Wanzam, who serves as Westminster’s representative in Freetown, Sierra Leone presenting food items to Mr. Minah (owner and Principal of the school), school staff, and students.
Westminster’s partnership program and mission work at the Minah Academy Mission School in Sierra Leone is the smallest of those in the three West African nations where we address children’s health and education needs, however, it is no less critical to the many children who benefit.
The heart of Westminster’s partnership with the Minah Academy Mission School is quarterly assistance, $900.00 each quarter, that purchases essential food supplies nourishing approximately 200 children who have been orphaned and are cared for by Minah staffers. The food supplies also help support the lunch program available for the entire school population – which, for some students, is their only meal of the day.
In one of the world’s poorest countries, government financial support to schools is limited and this nutrition program supplements the regular diet which too often is lacking. The most recent quarterly food distribution event was held on July 28, 2022. Food items typically delivered include:
- a variety of vegetables
- cases of powdered milk
- sacks of parboiled rice
- gallons of cooking oil
- salt and sugar
- small treats for the children
Sierra Leone shares many similarities to its neighbor to the east, Liberia – where Westminster also works closely with a mission partner serving children in need. Both are coastal nations with diverse geographies that include lush rain forests which give way to Savannah lands in their northern regions. Ebola ravaged both countries between 2014 and 2016 and both countries endured long and devastating civil wars more than two decades ago. Although those conflicts are over, the extensive damage to both nations’ infrastructures, and their economies, remains a significant barrier to their development. Weak, poorly staffed health and education systems plague both countries.
Support beyond nutrition programs
Westminster’s support in Sierra Leone has extended beyond assistance with food purchases. In the past, we have sent laptop computers, MoonCatcher menstrual supplies, and also provided relief during difficult times such as the Ebola epidemic and following a devastating mudslide in the rural eastern section of the country.
Your support is essential to continue this critical mission work for West African children. All donations directly benefit children and providing a better chance to grow into healthy and productive adults. We thank you.
Please join us! Donations are gratefully accepted.
Our current fundraising campaign honors Lois Wilson’s many years of extraordinary leadership of the African Mission Committee. We hope to expand this effort to serve more students and are committed to finding additional ways to address our committee’s ongoing efforts to transform the lives of children in Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. Your support of this campaign allows us to continue this work.
We hope you will join us in honoring Lois with your generous support. Our goal is to raise $25,000 through this special campaign. Contributions are most gratefully accepted online (wpcalbany.org/give) or by sending your check to Westminster Presbyterian Church, 85 Chestnut St. Albany, NY 12210 (“West African Mission” on the memo line).
Stay tuned! During this campaign we will be sharing a series of focused West African Mission emails along with providing updates on our website (wpcalbany.org). Please help us keep you up-to-date by making sure we have your most current and preferred email address by notifying the Church Office at office@wpcalbany.org or calling 518-436-8544.
See the following blog updates to learn more about our West African mission work and this fundraising campaign:
- Honoring Lois Wilson: A Legacy of West African Mission Work
- Update: Mission Work in Liberia
- Mission Work in Ghana: Mama Alice Health Clinic to Open Soon
