Update from Kokeh Kotee of LEADLiberia

Thanks for being so quick to understand and to begin responding to our hearts. We remain hopeful in part because we trust that you are seeking ways to answer our call and to help us meet life sustaining needs in our country.

I don't know to how to make this any clearer, but this is a desperate situation. People are virtually frozen by fear. Many refuse to leave their homes and to fend for their daily meal. They are paralyzed that they may contract the virus. It is going to get worse if this outbreak is not contained in the next six months.

The fragile economy of our country is already affected by this state of emergency. A lot of companies and foreign businesses have sent their foreign staff home until the current state of affairs improves. There are hardly any flights coming in, but a lot going out. It is us Liberians, who have nowhere to run, but to God. And, as so many of you know, He has called us to be here for this very event. We are called to stick it out until He calms the storm. And we know He will in His time.

We hope and pray that you see this crisis as an opportunity to serve God today and that He may not find your hearts resistant to help us. Please know this asking of you does not come easy for us either. We’d rather not be asking. Yet, we trust that God through these times is working something far greater in all of us than we may even imagine.

Join us in shining light and ministry into this desperate situation. Pray for us that we may stand strong.

Rich blessings!

Kokeh

SEED Farms Update

We were able to reach the farm yesterday. It was a tough trip with the vehicle losing pressure and overheating on two occasions. In spite of our late arrival, we were able to accomplish a couple of tasks. We framed the two room warehouse and sufficiently cleared the building site and made a car path from the main road to the building site. The power saw was really helpful in felling trees from the road and building site. Thank God for this gift to the farm.

Our major challenge is road. A small team worked on the road, but there are still a lot of clearing and log bridges to construct to make the road passable. We are planning to spend at least two days after we complete the warehouse on the road work. We will return on Saturday to complete the warehouse to serve as a tent for the work team. This road is needed in order to truck in materials for the farmhouse construction.

The Cassava we planted on the portion in growing well. We are sending in a power saw guy to crosscut logs on the other portion. The logs will be used to process charcoal we can sell as a cost recovery scheme. We got Palm seedling yesterday for the planting. The person who is going to help us do the planting is an agriculturist who has offered to help us do the planting. He is also offering his services to build our seedling nursery for Pepper and Bitter balls in August. That would mean clearing lowland portions in preparation for vegetable planting.

Thanks for your encouragement and support for SEED!

Kokeh

Important Update on Land Acquistion for SEED

LEADLiberia’s 125 acre Land Title Deed is probated and finally registered by law. The property is now ours! All thanks to the Lord and to the friends who made it possible!

Without haste, we decided to begin preparing our land for building and planting. It was three days of rigorous work from our volunteer Land Clearing Team and a great start on the initial portion of the property. We plan to use that portion for a farm house and to plant some crops. Our main objective is to keep clearing the property for proper landscaping and to make site planning easier.

The villagers are really excited that an organization will be involved in their community. They are asking if we are going to build a school for their kids and church. Kids walk about 2 miles to the nearest school. Folks walk 3 miles to the nearest town to charge their mobile phones and clinic as well. Trekking on foot with their goods is a normal routine for everyone including young kids. We will be open to how the Lord will "lead" and provide in the future.

Thanks for standing alongside and praying for us.

Rich blessings!

Kokeh