Salesian missionaries, already living and working in the country, are part of the National Catholic Task Force which has been responding to Ebola since it began with the first Liberian case in March 2014. By October, the virus had spread to all 15 counties of Liberia and since then, the number of cases reported have overwhelmed health facilities and workers forcing many hospitals to close down. According to WHO, Liberia has been hard-hit with more than 3,500 confirmed deaths of Ebola.

The Salesian-run Mother Patern College of Health Sciences, one of five colleges that make up the Stella Maris Polytechnic University in Monrovia, the capital city of Liberia, has been on the front lines of the Ebola crisis with all 63 of its staff reassigned to address the Ebola outbreak. The college administers programs in health education and HIV/AIDS, offers courses in primary health care and degrees in nursing, social work, laboratory technology and biology.

Salesian missionaries have been providing education about Ebola and preventative measures through various programs throughout Liberia. In addition, fortified rice-meals and boxes of hand soap have been donated to Salesian programs in the country thanks to an ongoing partnership between Salesian Missions and Stop Hunger Now, an international relief organization that provides food and life‐saving aid to the world’s most vulnerable.

The shipments of food aid and boxes of hand soap helped to provide emergency assistance to those affected by Ebola, particularly the young and the poor. The contents of the shipment are being shared among organizations that make up the National Catholic Task Force, including Salesian missionaries.

“Because of the Ebola epidemic, shops have closed, rice production is down and the price of food has risen in the affected countries leaving many at risk of starvation,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “The partnership with Stop Hunger Now allows us to feed those most in need while providing us necessary supplies to help prevent the further spread of Ebola. The donation also provided us with another avenue to reach people to educate them about Ebola, the risk factors and preventative measures, to help stop the spread of the disease.”

Now that the transmission of Ebola has slowed, Salesian missionaries are turning their attention to educating and preparing teachers for the re-opening of schools. School buildings and classrooms are being thoroughly cleaned and disinfected and educators are taking part in training about Ebola. So far, a team of educators with the National Catholic Task Force led by Sister Evelina of the St. Teresa’s Convent school, in collaboration with the Catholic Education Secretariat, has conducted two separate trainings for 528 teachers from 28 Catholic schools located in Montserrado, Bomi, Gbarpolu, Margibi and Grand Bassa Counties.

The first training, conducted during the emergency phase of the response, focused on basic facts and awareness surrounding Ebola prevention. The second training, happening now, is for select groups of teachers to become Ebola trainers who, once schools re-open in February, will provide Ebola prevention workshops and awareness programs for teachers and students. A guide on Ebola prevention will be circulated among Catholic schools, including Salesian schools, and will serve as a reference for Ebola prevention in schools.

Salesian missionaries have also turned their attention to helping Ebola orphans. Missionaries in Liberia report close to 530 children who have lost both of their parents to Ebola and another 153 who have lost either their father or mother to the virus across the three West African countries affected. Salesian programs are working to connect orphans with other relatives or with educational programs and orphanages that will help to provide ongoing care and education. Other Salesian programs are already in the process of providing for the basic needs of Ebola orphans including food, medical care and education.

Headquartered in New Rochelle, New York, Salesian Missions has launched an Ebola Emergency Fund to assist Salesian missionaries in Ghana, Liberia and Sierra Leone who are working to help contain the deadly outbreak of the Ebola virus in West Africa. To raise money for the fund, the Catholic nonprofit aid organization has launched an emergency fundraising campaign and is issuing an urgent appeal for donations. Go to www.SalesianMissions.org/ebola to give.

Sources

Reuters – Liberia aims to be Ebola-free by end-February as cases fall to 10

Salesians Response to Ebola (Video)

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Those living in rural areas make up for close to 75 percent of the country’s poor and the World Bank classifies Liberia as a low-income, food-deficit country, reporting that half of the population is food-insecure or highly vulnerable to food insecurity. Orphans, street children and adolescent ex-combatants often find themselves on their own facing adult responsibilities with little support and no education.

Salesians have been working in Liberia since starting a vocational institute there in 1979. Since then, Salesians in the country have been developing programs with a focus on providing youth with the education and skills necessary to transform their lives and their country.

Recently, four Salesian programs in the capital city of Monrovia received donations from individuals, Salesian volunteer programs and Catholic schools that have helped more than 2,300 students and their families. The donations ranged from carpentry tools, clothing, textbooks and school supplies, including school desks and chairs.

“Salesian Missions accepts donations from individuals, businesses and other organizations and our donors work hard to provide donations that best fit the needs of youth in Salesian programs around the globe,” says Jessica O’Connor, property and logistics officer at the Salesian Missions Office for International Programs. “These particular donations came from many sources but we were able to coordinate all the items and send one large container to the Salesian programs in Liberia to help enhance the learning environment for students there.”

One recipient of a donation of student textbooks was the Salesian-run Mother Patern College of Health Sciences at Stella Maris Polytechnic. The college provides degrees in several disciplines in the health and science fields and graduates go on to be lab technicians, nurses, physician’s assistants, social workers and nursing educators. More than 400 students received the donated textbooks to assist them in their studies.

Another recipient was the St. Theresa Convent School where 1,100 students benefited from donated school desks, chairs and textbooks. A sander, table saw, wood planters and other carpentry materials were donated to a third recipient, the Don Bosco Technical High School, where more than 500 students benefited. These two Salesian-run educational facilities provide poor youth with secondary education and training, enabling them to join the workforce or go on to college.

A Salesian-run HIV/AIDS program was the recipient of a fourth donation. The program is designed to increase awareness of HIV/AIDS and the its risks through training and outreach actives. People living with HIV/AIDS can access the program for treatment that includes home based care and support groups for emotional and social support. The donation provided clothing to 300 people living with the disease and their families.

“Our partnerships with donors are very important to us,” says O’Connor. “The carpentry materials, textbooks and schools supplies help to enrich the educational experience for youth in Salesian schools who are there to learn skills that will enable them to gain the education they need to find and retain stable employment.”

Whether working to provide rehabilitation to former child soldiers or assisting young women overcome barriers to education, Salesian programs in Liberia are providing youth the opportunity to live up to their potential through both academic and social programs.

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Sources:

Stella Maris Polytechnic/ Mother Patern College of Health Sciences

Salesian Missions – Liberia

World Bank – Poverty in Liberia

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