3 '84.'55'3friends of sierra leone - newsletter - december 2017 page 3...

Friends of Sierra Leone - Newsletter - December 2017

December 2017 Newsletter

Remembering Daphne10th Anniversary Luncheon &Fundraiser for the Late Daphne

Sawyerr-Dunn, Sunday Oct. 15, 2017

By Sylvia Lengor

On that beautiful Sundayafternoon, the friends and family ofthe late Daphne Sawyerr-Dunn gottogether to celebrate the 10thanniversary of her home-call.Fortunately, I had just learned fromPeggy that the funds in the DaphneSawyerr-Dunn Memorial Fund wererunning low. We decided that sincethis event was to honor her memory,we would ask for donations toward

Kenema Blango HealthClinic

by Peggy Murrah

Friends of Sierra Leone spentseveral years building the firstprimary school in Kenema Blango, asmall remote village in the ValuniaChiefdom in Bo District. In theprocess, a friend of mine became amajor donor of the school. He andhis wife visited the school severalyears ago for the dedication andopening of the new classroom blockthat completed the school. Whilethere, he committed to building achurch in Taiama. This was not aFoSL project, but was part of hisplan to give back to the world andhonor his parents at the same time.Before leaving Sierra Leone afterthe church dedication a few yearslater, he had already promised thepeople of Kenema Blango during abrief visit to the school andcommunity there that he wouldundertake raising the moneyneeded to build the village’s firsthealth clinic. Our good friendEmmanuel Gborie already had a

(conti nued on page 8, Daphne)(conti nued on page 3, Cl i ni c)


Year End Appeal &Thanks

by Peggy Murrah

When I left Freetown to go toKenema Blango for the clinicopening last October, it was almostimpossible not to drive within viewof the remains of the Augustmudslide that killed so many peopleand wreaked so much havoc. It wasa horrible sight and I can’t fathomwhat it must have been likeimmediately after it happened.Board member Gary Schulze and I

visited the Freetown office of StreetChild, the nonprofit that Friends ofSierra Leone sent our members’donations to. We raised over $8000dollars in about three weeks. Ourmembers, and friends of ourmembers, reacted quickly and,according to Street Child, were ableto provide much needed assistance.

Friends of Sierra Leone’smembers are kind, generous peopleas evidenced by the response to themudslide. I would like to askmembers to step up one more time.At the December board conferencecall, we emptied the projectsaccount by funding three projects.Our next funding will be next May.Unless we are able to replenish ourproject account, we will not be ableto fund one project, much lessthree. No amount is too small. Ihave made donations of smallamounts as a way of saying thankyou to friends or as birthday andChristmas gifts. Those donationsadd up and if enough of us do thatwe will be able to fund the nextselected project applications.

Thank you to everyone who hascontributed this past year. Becauseof you, we have been able to make adifference in several communitiesaround Sierra Leone. Well doneFoSL!


signed agreement with the Ministryof Health regarding the plans andstaffing before we ever went backto Freetown.

That took place in January 2016.On October 3rd, 2017 Iaccompanied our donor and his wifeto Kenema Blango again, but thistime was for the official openingand dedication of a brand newmaternal and pediatric health clinic.In addition to my friends, HolyCross Lutheran Church in Athens,Georgia, their place of worship, alsocontributed to the clinic. TheMinistry of Health gave it itshighest rating for a communityhealth clinic facility.

Also integral in getting the clinicbuilt properly and on time was ourlong time friend, Emmanuel Gborie.He volunteered his time andexpertise in the many details thatgo into a building project in theprovinces. He handled everythingfrom Ministry coordination, tohiring work crews for skilled work,to insuring the villagers contributedin-kind materials and unskilledwork, and to procuring andtransporting materials to KenemaBlango. Given the deterioratingroad conditions after several yearsof hauling building materials on abush road, he also encouraged thevillage to repair the road before theopening. He was very successful inall aspects of his work in seeing thisproject through. And as always, hevolunteered his time and efforts.

Making the opening even more

special were our honored guests.Lonny Born, the Associate PeaceCorps Director for Health and twocurrent health volunteers joined us.It was satisfying to be able to showthe current volunteers how theycould look forward to continuingtheir connection to and with SierraLeone in the years to come. Lonnyspoke to the crowd and helpedmake the connection between PeaceCorps service and the currentproject as well.

Also attending were localdignitaries including the paramountchief, the Minister of Health andvarious other District, Chiefdomand village leaders.

Bestowing a special honor toFriends of Sierra Leone,Ambassador Bockarie Stevens tooktime from his busy schedule duringhis trip home to come fromFreetown to Bo to meet us and gowith us to Kenema Blango. Hisattendance was very muchappreciated by everyone and meespecially. I think it is just one moreexample of how he has done somuch personally to support theefforts that Friends of Sierra Leone

(Cl i ni c, cont. from page 1 )


makes to help our friends, familiesand loved ones in Salone. He spoketo the people of Kenema Blango andpromised his support once hereturned to the Embassy inWashington, DC.

We brought donations of babyclothes that family members,faculty and staff from Social CirclePrimary School in Social Circle,Georgia and Hightower TrailElementary School in Conyers,Georgia donated to the clinic. Whilethere, we had teachers from theschool submit classroom needs and,

using donations from Holy Crossand friends, Emmanuel Gborie gotthe supplies from stores in Bo. Hewas able to get textbooks from abookstore there.

My friend who has donated somuch of his personal resources tothe people of Sierra Leone was alsohonored at the opening. Besidesbuilding a school, a church and ahealth clinic, he is currently fundingfour teachers selected by thecommunity in their efforts tobecome certified teachers. Friendsof Sierra Leone presented him withour humanitarian award inrecognition of his continuedassistance in education and nowhealth. This award was overdue andhe exemplifies what a humanitarianis.

To everyone that helped makethis project a success, thank you!

Report on Cassava &Potato Farming Support

by FoSL in 2017

Minah Agricultural DevelopmentFarmer's Association

1 . Background Implementation

This project was set up toestablish a cassava and potatocooperative farm for processinggarie, foo-foo and potato flours forincome generation and runningcommunity savings and loanassociations. The project broughttogether a group of women andyouth farmers into a communitycooperative, so as to increase

income generation and improvelivelihoods in poor and hard to eachcommunities in the Tonko LimbaChiefdom.

Upon approval and receipt offunds from the Friends of SierraLeone based in the U S, MADFA wasable to cultivate 10 acres of cassavafarm and 1 acre of potato farm (seepicture on page 10). Sixcommunities benefited from thisproject as was indicated in theproject plan. The implementation ofactivities started in January andcompleted in September, 2017. Theproject was a continuation of an

(conti nued on page 1 0, M ADFA)


It has been another good year forFoSL projects, thanks to all of youwho have suported us in 2017.Besides the outpouring of supportafter the mudslides in Freetown,the Board of Directors has grantedover $10,000 to small projects.Three of those projects were justapproved at our December meeting.

The Kissy Youth Organization wasawarded $1004 to rehabilitate fivewells in their community. They willconstruct aprons and fences, andadd ropes and pulleys to keep themsafe from contamination.

The Wounded Camp School inPort Loko received $1353 for schoolfurniture and supplies. Earlier thisyear, FoSL granted that community$2400 to construct two classrooms.A site visit by attendees of the 2017Annual Meeting in Freetownconvinced us of their dedication toeducation for their children.

The Bonthe District Communityof Tihun was granted $2500 forsolar lighting at their communitycentre. This will be used as astudent study space, and for adultliteracy classes and meetings.

The only bad news is that wespent all of our money. Our projectsbudget now stands at only $220.So, if you are planning to makesome tax-deductible donations

before year's end, we have lots ofroom in our bank account to helpyou out. It is easily done from ourwebsite, fosalone.org. Just click on"donate" and enter the amount. Wepledge to put 100% of yourdonations to work on the bestcommunity-based projects we canfind in Sierra Leone.

Your donations make our workpossible, and the projectscommittee would like to thank all ofyou for your donations and wish youall a happy and prosperous newyear.

The Kenema Di stri ct Counci l J uni or Secondary

School i s currentl y tryi ng to fi ni sh the foundati on of

two cl assrooms before the end of thi s school term.

They recei ved $1 500 from FoSL i n M ay.

Projects Report

by Jim Hanson


Promoting the Green,White and Blue in Gullah

Country

By Amadu MassallyIt was that time of the year again.

The second weekend in Novemberand Penn Center was hosting their35th Heritage Days Celebration.After weeks and weeks of planningand negotiating it was time to goand represent the green, white andblue.

By the time we got there, after along drive from Maryland it was inthe wee hours. But breakfast wasgoing to be served in a few minutes.So we stayed up for it. I went tobed at 7 a.m., and was up again by9 a.m. as I had to get someadministrative things out of the way.Whew… What a start!

The John Kizell Symposiumstarted at 11 a.m. Kevin Lowther,the author of the book entitled TheAfrican American Odyssey of JohnKizell; Ron Daise, a native of St.Helena Island, and also actor, poet,

singer, activist, plusmore; Joseph Opala,the man chieflyresponsible forpopularizing theGullah Connectionto Sierra Leone;Akindele Decker, ayoung SierraLeonean publichistorian; and I,Amadu Massally,formed the panel.We talked about the

book, its context to both AfricanAmericans (Gullahs) and Africans(Sierra Leoneans).

We agreed that we have notconfronted the legacy of slavery andthe slave trade enough in bothAmerica and Africa. We werepleased with the turnout and thereception. In fact, Kevin Lowthertold us he sold the most books hehad ever sold at one speakingevent. Now that’s how you measuresuccess! When you hit the bottom-line. A great first event.

After we dwindled down and thecrowd finally dispersed from DarrahHall at Penn Center, we strolledacross the street and over to thenext event at the Cafeteria dininghall. Our signature event, theTransAtlantic Red Rice Luncheon.The Gullahs and Sierra Leoneansfaced off in a friendly red ricecompetition. What we know inSierra Leone as “Jolof rice.” OurJolof rice was cooked by Mrs.Olayinka Massally and Mrs. ZainabWurie. Auntie Pearlie-Sue, my co-


host at the event, led the cooking ofthe Gullah dishes. We appreciateall of them and the food was quitetasty.

But before we ate we wereentertained by some soul-soothingsinging from Auntie Pearlie-Sue andthe Gullah Kinfolk. And inspontaneous order, Sierra Leoneansjoined and sang along to some ofthe familiar spiritual songs. Inaddition we had our own session ofsongs, up to and including theSierra Leone national anthem. TheMayors of both Beaufort and PortRoyal were there along with severalGullah leaders in the community.We also had an opportunity to shareproject ideas and network. Inaudience also was Peggy Murrahwho presides over the Friends ofSierra Leone. We had a blast!

The next agenda item was theFriday night’s Fish Fry. Oysters intheir shells, shrimp, and lots of fish,and sides that were finger lickinggood were all available to beconsumed. It was cold though andwe did not spend too much time

gallivanting. Especially being thatthe next morning, we had thebiggest event of the event… theHeritage Days Parade!

Bright and early, we were up inpreparation for the parade thatstarts at St. Helena’s Middle Schooland ends on Penn Center Grounds.About a mile or so walk, but it waseffortless as singing and ‘chipping’on a brisk November morning wasmore fun than anything else. Wewere boisterous along the streets ofSt. Helena, singing songs like“Home Again… when shall I see myhome! ” or “Tel Am Tenki, Tel Am…tel Papa God Tenki! ” We madeenough noise (the most passionatesome of CNN’s crew told us) andeven got to interview with W.Kamau Bell for his show “DifferentShades of America” that will beaired in the Spring of 2018. Notbad for small town people, yes?

The rest of the day we spent onthe grounds or back and forth fromthe hotel to the village. And inclosing, after a long two days ofhustle and bustle we spent some

A l ocal eatery, the Gul l ah Grub, i s i coni c to

the area.

M erchandi se from Si erra Leone proudl y

di spl ayed.


the memorial fund.

The large room at the LosAlamitos Community Center wasnicely decorated with fresh flowersin vases as center pieces, togetherwith lavender table cloth and purplenapkins - Daphne’s favorite colors.Two display boards of Daphne’spictures and a good collection ofFosalone newsletter articles (overthe years) that talked about TheDaphne Sawyerr-Dunn memorialFund were put on display.

There was the usual ‘Awujoh’food - beans, bitters and bologi,crain crain, jollof rice and plentymore. There were also threedifferent vendors who displayedEssential Oils, and African clothing.The event opened with prayers byChaplain Barbara Robinson who

had flown in from NorthernCalifornia to celebrate with us. Thiswas followed by the rendition ofNicole Mullen’s ‘I know MyRedeemer Lives, ’ by GlennaMoseray. Glenna ministered insongs at a remembrance serviceheld for Daphne the Sunday afterher burial. It was now time to eat,and eat we did.

The chairperson for the event, Dr.Sylvia King (nee Ojukutu–Macauley), was introduced by herhusband, Mr. Emmanuel King.Sylvia read messages ofremembrance from the lateDaphne’s husband (Wynford) andher friend (Agatha Wellington). Shestarted by telling guests about herrelationship with Daphne, whichstemmed as far back as Daphne’steenage years. Sylvia’s older sister,Gloria, was Daphne’s best friend.When Sylvia came to the U S,

time with a Gullah family. The Atkins familyof St. Helena Island had sent a familymember to Sierra Leone in 1989 when we hadthe First Gullah Homecoming. ErnestineAtkins’ house was full of her family membersand we introduced each other, ate and dancedto some serious Sierra Leonean music withsome of the latest hip-hop.

I want to acknowledge some special peoplewho made the event a success because oftheir hands-on participation and making theevent as silent contributors in their own ways.They know themselves. We look forward tothe next time we go to Gullah country for anycelebration.

(Daphne, cont. from page 1 )

Gul l ah farmers di spl ayi ng thei r produce

si mi l ar to those found i n Si erra Leone.


Daphne adopted her as her‘younger’ sister. Gloria had writtena beautiful story about Daphne thatSylvia read during her laying outceremony 10 years ago. I askedSylvia to read it again because itwas so well written. She continuedby speaking at length about thework Daphne did for Sierra Leone.She tied it all beautifully byinforming guests about The DaphneSawyerr-Dunn Memorial Fund whileencouraging them to donate.

Tiffany Persons (CEO, Shine onSierra Leone) read a preparedreport from Jim Hanson, about TheDaphne Sawyerr-Dunn MemorialFund. Following this, Dr. Kingopened the floor for Daphne’sfriends to share some memorablethings about her. Christianarecalled a time when Daphne wentto her home and volunteered towash her 4-year-old daughter’s hair.

This little girl hated getting her hairwet and would put up a fight ifanyone tried to do so. Daphnethought she could get that jobsuccessfully, but ended up comingout of the bathroom soaking wet.Some spoke of how she broughtthem closer to God and encouragedthem to pay tithes regularly. Othersspoke of how she would go helpthem clean their homes on theweekends and had even planned awedding party for one of herfriends. Overall, it was a fun daywith plenty to eat, drink and carrysome home, as friends and relativesremembered the late DaphneSawyerr-Dunn. Indeed, she is gonebut not forgotten. Our sincerethanks go to Friends of SierraLeone for keeping her memory aliveafter all these years. May shecontinue to rest in peace.

Call for Annual MeetingSite and Coordinator

For the last decade or so annualmeetings have been either on theeast coast or in Sierra Leone. Thismakes it difficult for many toparticipate. If you would like tosuggest a location not on the eastcoast and you can take an activerole in coordinating the meeting,please contact Peggy [email protected]. Given theamount of time necessary to plan ameeting, a venue needs to beselected and booked within the nextcouple of months. Now is yourchance to get involved!


action that was already on course.Before now, members of MADFA hadorganized several groups of womenand youths in six villages and townsinto a group of cooperativescomprising of 50 per group, and thefunding added value into the alreadyplanned activity process. The fundingrequested covered the followingactivities: payment for cassavacuttings, potato vines, food for workand land arrangement, tools, caretaker for six months, sign board,stakeholders meetings andtransportation of materials.

2. Achievements

- 10 acres of cassava and one acreof potato farm cultivated.

- Six community women and youthcooperative groups formed andstrengthened in six villages in theTonko Limba Chiefdoms.

- Out of this project, a cooperativecalled Tonko Limba Co-operativeGrowers & Marketing AssociationLimited has been formed andregistered.

- The production of garie and foo-foo processing is ongoing.

- Garie processing is currently inprogress, since the cassava tubes arenow mature.

3. Challenges

- There is a high community interestshown by other community membersto participate in this project, but wehave limited funding to expand theproject

- The project lacks support of aprocessing machine to process thegarie and food products. There isindication that the project will succeedif processing machines are available.

4. Conclusion

The project was successful and theharvesting of the cassava tubes are onprogress as indicated in the picturebellow. It is the intention of theAssociation to extend the cassava farmto more than 10 acres of land site bythe end of this year. We will continueto update Friends of Sierra Leone onthe progress of this venture as we areanticipating additional support topurchase the processing machines toexpand the production and marketingof garie product in the Chiefdom andbeyond.

(M ADFA, cont. from page 4)

Cassava harvest, ready for

foo-foo processi ng.


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Address Service Requested

Friends of Sierra LeoneP. O. Box 15875Washington, DC 20003-0875

Web: fosalone.org

Board Officers President Peggy Murrah (Social Circle, Georgia)

Vice President Aiah Fanday (Upper Marlboro, Maryland)

Secretary Patty Bruzek (Lombard, Illinois)

Treasurer Mark Hager (Phoenix, Arizona)

Public Affairs Amadu Massally (Sachse, Texas)

Public Affairs Jim Sheahan (Atlanta, Georgia)

At Large Peter Andersen (Elk River, Minnesota)

At Large Mohammed Barrie (Massachusetts)

At Large Judy Figi (Janesville, Wisconsin)

At Large Michael Lee (Tinton Falls, NJ)

At Large Anthony McMillon (Fort Washington, Maryland)

At Large Gary Schulze (New York, New York)

At Large Mary Hawa Sesay (Maryland)

Committee Chairs Advocacy Judy Figi (Janesville, Wisconsin)

Annual Meeting Etta Toure (Fairfax, Virginia)

Education Kalyca Thomas (Orlando, Florida)

Fundraising Patty Bruzek (Lombard, Illinois)

Membership Meghan Welsh (Denver, Colorado)

Membership Hannah Benga (Rhinebeck, New York)

Projects Jim Hanson (Social Circle, Georgia)

Web Site Jamie Brown (Kaneohe, Hawaii)

3 '84.'55'3friends of sierra leone - newsletter - december 2017 page 3...

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