Dignity:Liberia’s NGO Office Manager, Matthew Walters, delivered some bags of rice to Varney Goyah Town, the village helping with the construction of the maternity waiting home.  He told them, “On behalf of Dignity:Liberia, this is our way of giving back to the village.  They sent some money to buy a few bags of rice.  So, on behalf of Kathi and the Board…we wish you a Merry Christmas and a happy, prosperous 2022. 

In her response, the village spokesperson told him, “We are grateful that you delivered this.  We say thank you on behalf of the town chief who is not here.  Thank you very much.  God bless you.  Happy new year to them [the board] and you people on the ground.” 

Today Charlie, Erin, Becky, Nicole, and Caroline went to ELWA Hospital.  Nicole demonstrated her newborn physical assessment skills.  The rest of the team did burn and wound care and assisted with a patient in crisis.

In the morning, Anne-Marie, Kathi, and Kathy Beth met with Emma Katakpah, Clinical Assistant to the Fistula Project, Sametta D.G. George, Fistula Coordinator, and Sualaho M. Koon, UNFPA Accountant to the Liberia Fistula Project.  In the afternoon, they met with Juliette and Dr. John Mulbah who own and manage the Family Clinic in Jacobtown, Monrovia and  discussed Dignity:Liberia's future Maternity Waiting Home.

Later they visited the Dignity:Liberia in Liberia office housed on Dr. Mulbah's compound and met with Office Manager Matthew Walters.

We have posted many trip updates directly on our Facebook page.  Please be sure to visit it daily.  For more on about the team members, see last month's blog.  Thank you for your interest and support!

The palava hut at the Fistula Rehab Center is completed.  It looks wonderful!  We are looking forward to sitting in its shade and visiting with our friends.

Kerri and I had a wonderful time at the Medical Missions 101 Gathering.  We met many wonderful people who have served on medical missions to different countries and learned about how their organizations provide direct help or provide assistance to organizations such as Dignity:Liberia.  We attended presentations on various topics which included discussions on making sure well-intended efforts don't cause harm.  We were pleased to note that Dignity:Liberia already follows much of the advice we heard.  We picked up a couple of copies of a Health Education handbook that stresses health promotion and prevention.  We shared with others what we have accomplished over the last six years, and the news that our maternity waiting home is getting closer to becoming a reality.  It was a very worthwhile way to spend the day.

Dignity:Liberia’s president, Kathi Park-Gutierrez, and board members Anne-Marie Mueller and Becky Mueller Huner returned to the United States this week after a busy and successful trip to Liberia.  Some of their activities are highlighted below:
 
Container Supplies
They spent the first few days unpacking the container that we shipped to Liberia last fall.  They sorted supplies and material for delivery to our following friends and partners:

• Phebe Hospital
• Phebe Training Program
• Phebe Rehab Center
• The Liberia Fistula Project
• Dr. Jallah's clinic
• Dr. Mulbah's clinic
• Eternal Love Winning Africa (ELWA)
• Bomi Hospital (left for later pick-up)

 
They also discussed how to use the materials with the staff at the Phebe Training Program and spent two days interacting with the women and girls at Rehab.
 
Accommodations for Future Trips
They met with Karen Ackley Kern, ELWA Guest House Manager, to discuss our possibly using their guesthouse on future trips to Liberia.
 
They also looked into accommodations at the Passion Hotel in Gbarnga to use on out trips up country to Phebe.
 
Dignity House
They met with Dr. Wilhelmina Jallah M.D., who made several suggestions regarding waiting home construction and resources for building plans. 
 
Additionally, they met with Russ, a general contractor at ELWA to get an idea of construction costs for estimation purposes, and planned for sustainability.  Russ will serve as a source for materials purchases.
 
Dignity:Liberia Office Manager
Following discussions with Rev. Emile Sam-Peal, Director of our NGO Office in Liberia, the Board voted to hire Matthew Walters to serve as office manager.  Walter works out of our office located in Dr. John Mulbah's clinic. 
 
Thank you for taking the time to read this brief update.  I will be sharing more in the Let’s Palava blog in the weeks ahead.