Janet O'Shea has sent us updates from her trip to Sierra Leone, with Kwai and Martin. Magnus has been keeping them all very busy.

Kwai has been working at the Health Centre in Brama each morning to provide staff with encouragement and instruction.

On Saturday Janet and the team led a four-hour conference for Headteachers.

In addition they have been running zonal training sessions in the evening for teaching staff.

On Sunday Martin preached at the church in Foo Foo Water, also known as Hailsham.

During the week they took part in the dedication of the new Huntingdon Primary School at Foo Foo Water.

Kwai, Janet and Martin, pictured below with Magnus - and taking a well-earned break!

The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, has been declared a public health emergency of international concern, by the World Health Organization (WHO).

This latest outbreak has so far killed 131 people and is challenging because it involves a rare strain of Ebola for which there is no vaccine. In addition, WHO are warning the virus may be spreading faster than previously thought. They are currently evaluating whether alternative drugs might be used to provide protection.

Ebola viruses normally infect animals, typically fruit bats, but outbreaks among humans can sometimes start when people eat or handle infected animals.

It takes two to 21 days for symptoms to appear. They come on suddenly and start like the flu, with fever, headache and tiredness.

As the disease progresses, vomiting and diarrhoea develop and it can lead to organ failure. Some, but not all, patients develop internal and external bleeding.

It spreads among humans by contact with infected bodily fluids, eg blood or vomit. Burial practices that involve direct contact with the body or body fluids of an infected person can also contribute to transmission.

Between 2014 and 2016 the disease spread to a number of countries in West Africa and beyond, including Guinea, Sierra Leone, the US, UK and Italy, claiming more than 11,000 lives.

We ask you to join us in prayer for the affected areas and the families of those who have died from the disease. We ask God for His protection over previously impacted countries, including our communities in Sierra Leone.

Fear will be spreading as memories of the 2014 -2016 outbreak are still fresh in the minds of many African people. We pray that this new outbreak will be contained as quickly as possible.

Sources include BBC News,  WHO and Gov.UK

(Micrograph - an Ebola virus: Source: F A Murphy, University of Texas Medical Branch)

We are delighted to report that Janet, Kwai and Martin have arrived safely in Sierra Leone. Pictured here with Magnus!

During their stay, Magnus has put together a busy schedule for the team, working with Connexion schools and churches, plus the health centre at Brama. They are due to return to the UK on 25 May.

We would be grateful if you would continue to pray for the team - and a hugely successful trip.

We look forward to receiving some more updates and pics from the visit - if and when they have a spare minute!

Click the link below for their full itinerary: 

Sierra Leone Trip Itinerary

 

Magnus Trip to the UK

We are also pleased to report that Magnus and his wife Rugie have been granted visas to visit the UK on 23 June. They plan to stay for three weeks.

We thank God for the success in gaining visas, which is not an easy process!

Please pray for their safe journey - in particular for Rugie who has never travelled outside of Sierra Leone.

More about their forthcoming visit will follow. Watch this space...

 

We’re pleased to share the itinerary with you for the forthcoming Sierra Leone trip - which promises to be a full and action-packed visit!

Janet, Kwai and Martin will depart for Sierra Leone on Monday 11 May, a day earlier than originally planned. No doubt Magnus will make excellent use of the extra time with even more worthwhile activities. They are due to return to the UK on Wednesday 27 May.

During their time there, the team will be visiting Bethesda Orphanage, the new Health Centre, and a number of Connexion schools and churches across the region.

For those who would like to follow the trip more closely, a full day-by-day itinerary is available via the link below.

We would greatly value your prayers for the team - for safe travel and a visit that is fruitful, encouraging, and a blessing to all involved.

Sierra Leone Trip Itinerary

 

Over the past couple of years Janet O’Shea, Chair of the Sierra Leone Mission (SLM), has been knitting ‘fisherman style smocks’ for children. 

Profits are being used to raise funds to cover the shipment costs of sending goods and donations to our communities in Sierra Leone.

Janet has been using an easy-to-follow pattern and the jumpers are becoming increasingly popular. So much so that she is now struggling to keep up with demand. Janet is currently knitting her 12th jumper this year, having sold 10 already!

Being in the tourist destination of St Ives, visitors flock to the area throughout the summer, and the sweaters are being sold from the ‘Bookshop’ at Zion Community Church.

An appeal for help!

Are there some knitters out there who would like to use their skills for a very good cause? Janet will supply the wool and easy-to-follow pattern, she just needs people to join in.

Please contact Janet via Zion Community Church or directly by This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Let's get knitting!

Janet O’Shea, Chair of Sierra Leone Mission (SLM), is preparing for a return visit to Sierra Leone this May. This time, she will be joined by Kwai Moon from Turners Hill Free Church and Martin Brown from Hailsham Gospel Mission.

An exciting and full itinerary has been mapped out by Magnus, with visits planned to a number of schools and churches across the region. The trip promises to be both busy and impactful.

Key objectives include delivering training programmes for head teachers and classroom teachers, painting educational murals at the new Brama Nursery School, officially opening the new school at Foo Foo Water, and visiting the Health Centre at Brama.

Each member of the team will also bring their own focus to the visit. Janet will spend dedicated time supporting and encouraging the development of head teachers and staff. Kwai will work closely with the Health Centre and lead First Aid training for teaching staff during zonal visits.

Meanwhile, Martin will preach at St. Mark’s Cathedral, which serves the Foo Foo Water community, and take part in important church ceremonies, including inductions, receptions, and ordinations.

There will also be a special highlight for the children of Bethesda Orphanage, as Janet, Kwai and Martin plan to take them on a trip to the beach for a time of fun and relaxation amid the busy schedule!

As preparations continue, Janet, Kwai and Martin would greatly value your prayers for a safe, fruitful, and encouraging visit.

 

Last month concluded with the graduation ceremony of one of our Bethesda youths, Abdul Mansaray, who has completed four years of study for a BA (Hons) degree in Mass Communication from the Canadian University.

Abdul is pictured below with Mariatu who graduated in December with a BSc degree in nursing.

 

Currently we have eight Bethesda children attending University, which is a huge achievement, and Magnus is keen to provide further education for three more boys, who are hoping to gain university entrance at the end of this year.

This means we are looking for sponsors to help the boys to realise their dream of university. Each of their four year degree courses would cost an average of £1,000 per year, which covers all expenses.

The Sierra Leone Mission (SLM ) has been greatly blessed by the generosity of sponsors who have helped to fund the Bethesda children currently attending university, particularly in light of the rising costs over the past four years. We are now praying hard for new sponsors to come forward and make it possible for Magnus to fund these Bethesda boys.

All of these children have been blessed beyond measure in answer to our prayers. Rescued by Magnus from trying to survive on the streets, they have been released from a place of no hope, into a future which has provided opportunities they would never have believed possible! 

Thanks be to God!

SIERRA LEONE DONATIONS

If you would like to make a donation, to help SLM's work in Sierra Leone, just click on the Donations button, located at the top of each website page. Please also state if you would like your donation to go towards a particular project.

Donating by Bank Transfer

Barclays Bank

Sort code: 20-16-08, Account number: 30799076, Account name: Sierra Leone Mission 

(NB We are very grateful to receive anonymous donations, but when making a bank transfer donation, the donor's name is needed for auditing purposes. Please be assured this information will remain private.)

Donating by cheque

Please send cheques to: Sierra Leone Mission. Postal address: Janet Foord, c/o Sheppey Evangelical Church, Warden Bay Road, Leysdown on Sea, Isle of Sheppey, Kent ME12 4NA

 

Over the past couple of years the Sierra Leone Mission (SLM) have been aware of the dire situation of the school buildings at Foo Foo Water (also known as Hailsham).

We'd been advised that the primary school was very near to collapse, causing much concern within the SLM committee for the safety of the children.

We are now pleased to advise you that in February, by the grace of God, we have been able to send out funds to build a new school, which will be named Huntingdon Primary School, Foo Foo Water.

External artist's impression (with variant spelling..)

Proposed Floorplan

We expect to be able to post photographs of the school’s construction in March, so watch this space for the actual school - with correct spelling!

 

From Wednesday 11  to Friday 13 February, members of the Sierra Leone Mission (SLM) committee came together at the Sheldon Retreat Centre in Devon, accompanied by Ben Quant, Trustee and Minister of Wormley Free Church, who kindly joined the group as a facilitator. 

Our reason for organising this retreat is that since 2020, the committee has been unable to meet up in person. We’ve held monthly catch ups and quarterly formal meetings using Zoom, but in addition, we each felt it would be hugely beneficial to organise a ‘face to face’ session for prayer, discussion and the sharing of ideas.

Our main purpose was to seek God’s guidance for the work that we do in partnership with our community leaders in Sierra Leone.  Looking afresh at our SLM Vision and discussing the many aspects of our involvement in that country.

The evenings were very special times as we focused totally on worshipping God.  We prayed, sang and read scriptures together, sharing in a special and spiritual time where time was forgotten. 

I would like to extend my thanks to everyone who invested their time and money in attending the retreat, enabling us as a Christ-led group to share such a productive and valuable experience. 

We ask for continued prayer for the work of SLM and look forward to sharing more about our deliberations with you in the coming weeks. 

We thank you also for the continued concern and support you give to our communities in Sierra Leone, which in turn helps them to spread the gospel among others.

Janet O'Shea
Chair of SLM

Abdul Mansaray graduates from university in February with a degree in Mass Communication. In addition to his academic studies, during a two-month internment at Bo, he gained first-hand experience of news editing and presenting, camera work, investigative journalism and script writing. He has also spent time working at the television station, Classic Media.

Abdul (pictured centre with fellow students Ibrahim, Issa and Andrew) was rescued from the streets of Freetown as a young boy by Magnus. He was brought to live at Bethesda Orphanage, where he received a good education and new possibilities for future opportunity.

Throughout his time at Bethesda, Abdul proved himself to be hard-working and able: he achieved good grades and was also appointed Head Boy.

His entrance into university was made possible by Sierra Leone Mission (SLM) supporters, who made generous donations needed to cover his tuition fees.

Now, as he approaches the next stage of his life, Abdul hopes to set up a media business, drawing on his learning, experience and strong work ethic. In order to help him with this start-up, SLM are making an appeal on Abdul’s behalf for the provision of equipment he needs – or financial donations to enable him to buy some (or all) of the items!

Equipment needed

Camera

Tripod

Lavalier Microphones

Mafi (Audio recorder)

Studio lights

WiFi

Drone

Computer

If you are able to supply Abdul with any of the items on his list or make a donation towards their purchase, please follow the guidelines below or contact Janet O'Shea, Chair of SLM.

SIERRA LEONE DONATIONS

If you would like to make a donation, to help SLM's work in Sierra Leone, just click on the Donations button, located at the top of each website page. Please also state if you would like your donation to go towards a particular project.

Donating by Bank Transfer

Barclays Bank

Sort code: 20-16-08, Account number: 30799076, Account name: Sierra Leone Mission 

(NB We are very grateful to receive anonymous donations, but when making a bank transfer donation, the donor's name is needed for auditing purposes. Please be assured this information will remain private.)

Donating by cheque

Please send cheques to: Sierra Leone Mission. Postal address: Janet Foord, Sheppey Evangelical Church, Warden Bay Road, Leysdown on Sea, Isle of Sheppey, Kent ME12 4NA