F O C U S O N . . . L I B E R I A
DebbIe KwAShIe A SALvATIOn Army officer for just one year, Lieutenant Debbie kwashie was appointed, with her husband Emanuel, to the remote outpost of Arthington, Liberia, in September 2009. Arthington is approximately two hours’ drive from the Liberian capital, Monrovia, but for some months of the year the road conditions are such that the journey can take two or three times as long. The Salvation Army buildings in Arthington comprise a simple mud-brick hall and adjacent living quarters on an open plot surrounded by tropical rain forest. A few hundred metres away are a cluster of other huts that make up the village. It is not an easy place to live. The officers are the only ones in the congregation who receive an income. Just a handful of their congregation can read or write, and there are no schools, facilities, shops or amenities within a considerable radius. The congregation members at Arthington Outpost all have a story to tell about their experiences during the long-running recent civil war. Most fled the area, living in the woods and constantly on the move to keep away from the rebel soldiers. They returned to their village to face a life with no work, few prospects and little hope.
of project funding from the Army’s Canada and Bermuda Territory, she has been supplied with some basic emergency aid provisions. People living nearby can now receive treatment for minor ailments. The lieutenant was also recently called upon to deliver a baby. The community’s only supply of water has been from a nearby muddy creek or by making a two-hour walk to the nearest well. During the past few months, again funded through the Canada and Bermuda Territory, a new water well has been dug a few metres from the officers’ quarters. More recently, through project funding from Australia, the kwashies have been given a bicycle. ‘Life is much easier now,’ Lieutenant Debbie explains. ‘The clean water, medicines and bicycle mean that we ourselves are no longer sick as often and are able to concentrate more on our ministry as officers. And people in the community see that Salvationists in other countries are interested in them. It’s a small start, but it gives us all hope.’ Below: the hall at Arthington outpost; bottom left: Lieutenant Debbie Kwashie checks a patient’s medication; bottom right: Lieutenant Emanuel Kwashie uses the new water pump
The Salvation Army’s mobile clinic used to visit Arthington once a month, providing a much-needed medical service. Regrettably, due to the lack of a roadworthy ambulance and the road conditions, the visits were recently curtailed. fortunately, Lieutenant Debbie trained as a midwife nurse before entering the officer training college and, with the help
respect and recognition is a tribute to those pioneering officers and soldiers who braved considerable deprivations to remain at their post and fly the flag – even while the expatriate officers were on occasions evacuated for their own safety. Having a Salvation Army red shield on the side of a car guarantees a cheery wave through check-points, and the uniform is frequently a passport through what would otherwise be a melee of confusion. Liberian Salvationists are today determined to demonstrate their national
identity and coming of age, striving to attain the criteria that would elevate their Salvation Army status from a command to that of a territory. The recent expansion into neighbouring Sierra Leone will, justifiably, add credibility to that claim. The consolidation of the command’s school system, currently encompassing nine schools and soon to incorporate a further five, has been a priority during recent days. The establishment of a sevenperson education secretariat has sought to provide structure and accountability to
every aspect of the school system administration after some years of fiscal uncertainty. The ministry of the mobile medical clinic has additionally been secured for a further period of five years, with funding for staff and resources being provided by The Salvation Army’s Norway, Iceland and The Faeroes Territory, and a new ambulance is on its way thanks to project funding from the Australia Southern Territory. The static clinic, within the William
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