Northern New Jersey and Monrovia, Liberia are 4,500 miles apart, but a Lenten initiative undertaken by the eleven congregations that comprise District 9 of the Diocese of Newark brought young Episcopalians from both parts of world into an amazing new relationship.
The idea began in December 2014 when leaders from the eleven churches in the northeast corner of the diocese met to consider what type of outreach program the congregations might jointly undertake during Lent 2015. While serving on the Episcopal Church’s Liberian Covenant Committee, the Rev. Canon Bruce Woodcock (St. Matthews, Paramus) had visited the West African nation in 2014, along with the committee’s chair, Bishop Mark Beckwith. Woodcock told District 9 representatives about St. Peter Episcopal School in Monrovia, a church-run elementary school whose operation had been severely challenged by the ravages of civil war and, more recently, by the outbreak of the Ebola virus. Given that the epidemic was subsiding, the school hoped to reopen by Easter 2015 but was in desperate need of funds to buy chair-desks. The other District 9 representatives, including co-conveners the Rev. Diane Rhodes (St. Andrew’s, Harrington Park) and Marc Hembree (St. Paul’s, Montvale), quickly embraced the idea of raising funds for the school.
After sharing the idea of the Lenten appeal with the Bishop and after contact had been made with the rector and headmaster of the school, District 9 representatives committed to raising $5,000 (about $500 per congregation) for the purchase of 200 chair-desks. The money would be raised through a district-wide Lenten appeal among the District’s eleven churches: All Saints Episcopal Korean, Bergenfield; St. Paul’s, Englewood; St. Andrew’s, Harrington Park; St. Luke’s, Haworth; Holy Trinity, Hillsdale; St. Paul’s, Montvale; Holy Communion, Norwood; Annunciation, Oradell; St. Matthew’s, Paramus; Atonement, Tenafly; and Grace, Westwood.
A number of congregations followed the suggestion found in District 9’s promotional brochure of staging a Youth Group “Penny Challenge.” Young people in these churches, realizing their efforts would ultimately help other school kids like themselves, enthusiastically undertook campaigns throughout Lent to collect sizable amounts of loose change in glass jars large and small. Lots and lots of jars! To kick off the appeal in one church, a youth group of mostly 7th, 8th, and 9th graders, made an informational presentation to the whole congregation about the need in Liberia. In other congregations, church leaders made the appeal through announcements during services and in e-newsletters, and funds were collected in more traditional but equally effective ways – through loose plate offerings and generous individuals writing checks. In one congregation when the appeal was announced during the Mardi Gras celebration, more than half the goal was raised before the evening even ended. In some congregations matching funds were also received from Discretionary and ECW budgets.
The beneficiary, St. Peter Episcopal School, serves 200 students just outside Monrovia and is operated by the parish of the same name. The ten-acre church property contains eight classroom buildings with 25 students in each classroom. They are taught farming skills along with traditional academic subjects. Most come from low-income families. Opened four years ago, the school was closed for six months during the Ebola epidemic that has ravaged the country. With the situation now largely stabilized, the school has reopened, bringing renewed hope for the future.
Liberia is a West African country founded in 1822 by free people of color from the United States. Independence was declared in 1847 and the capital, Monrovia, was named after U.S. president James Monroe. According to a 2008 census, Christians comprise 85% of the population. Adult literacy is estimated at 60% with children, on average, attaining 10 years of education. The country’s official language is English. It has six colleges, including medical and law schools. The country’s oldest college, Cuttington University, was established with the help of the Episcopal Church USA in 1889. The Episcopal Church of Liberia, since its establishment in 1836, has played a major role in the nation’s education system, opening elementary and high schools in ten counties.
From 1990 to 2003, Liberia suffered a brutal civil war that sent much of the population into refugee camps and destroyed 95% of its health care system. The war was followed a decade later, in March 2014, by another devastating scourge, the outbreak of the virus known as Ebola which causes an often fatal hemorrhagic fever. Until recently, the epidemic had closed numerous schools like St. Peter’s.
District 9’s appeal brochure read, “When is a desk much more than just a desk? When it’s a symbol of hope, a commitment to the future, and a sign of God’s enduring love.” The message warmed the heart of the Rev. Canon Edward K. Gbe, rector and headmaster of St. Peter School. Speaking by phone from Liberia, Fr. Ed, as he is called, expressed sincere gratitude for the work of District 9, explaining that the tuition paid by the children at the school is so low and government support so little that it is sometimes difficult even to make the payroll of the seven teachers employed by the school, never mind upgrade its facilities.
“These chair-desks will mean so much to us. And to think that a group of fellow Christians from so far away, so many of them children, would care so much about our small school is simply wonderful,” said Fr. Ed. “Because this is an investment in education, it is really an investment in the entire future of Liberia.”
The culmination of the District 9’s efforts took place the evening of April 10, 2015 at the opening Eucharist of the 10th annual convention of the Liberian Episcopal Community USA. A sizable number of Liberian nationals relocated to the U.S. during the civil war and now live mostly on the East Coast. This year the Diocese of Newark hosted their convention at Trinity & St. Philip’s Cathedral and at Cathedral House. Bishop Beckwith was an honoree at the Community’s banquet on the evening of April 11 and Canon Gregory Jacobs was the celebrant at the closing Eucharist the following morning. At the opening Eucharist, the funds raised by District 9’s appeal were presented to the Liberian Episcopal Community USA to be forwarded directly to St. Peter School for new chair-desks and, happily, even other improvements since the original goal of $5,000 had been exceeded by nearly 50%.
“There is no better example of small groups, and yes, kids, coming together to make a big difference in the world,” said Bishop Beckwith following the presentation. “We can do great things as a national church and as a diocese, but great things happen too when a group of eleven churches find out what God is up to in another part of the world and then commit to partnering with them to further that mission.”
