In an effort to reach out to the underprivileged during the festive season, a local non-governmental Organization called "Dutience Help Foundation International" (DHFI) has distributed school materials and food items to less fortunate kids and their parents in Paynesville.
The parents, some of whom with disabilities, were among the beneficiaries.
More than 100 kids received clothes and backpacks with school materials, while their parents were recipients of 25kg bag of rice (for three adults), and a giveaway of L$500 each.
Presenting the items the chief executive officer of the foundation, Patience Zarwie, reveals that conceiving the dream in October 2020, she prays for more resources to enable her continuously help less fortunate children to grow up and become leaders for tomorrow.
"The best thing in life is to give to less fortunate people, everyone that is needy. The kids we are helping, we are helping them to grow up tomorrow to become leaders," the CEO adds.
According to her, the mission and vision of the foundation is to engage advancement of leadership development and educational programs and to promote and support a global network among service organizations, businesses, the faith-based community, and others for the purpose of forming alliances that would help in fostering spiritual, educational, health and economic growth and broaden service networks in order to meet the needs of more people and provide opportunities through effective programs and service delivery.
She adds: "The dream is to empower rural women, girls and youths through formal education and integrated skills voices on the national platform; help strengthen the capacity of rural communities to minimize poverty and maintain food security through agricultural and entrepreneurial programs."
Madam Zarwie, explains that the vision of DHFI is to conduct research and community-based assessments that would help mitigate or minimize educational challenges; the promotion of human rights and development programs that includes gender equality, women and girls' empowerment programs, child's rights and development addressing issues that are affecting children and adolescent girls, including child labor, sexual abuse and exploitation, commercial sex, domestic violence of all kinds, as well as sexual harassment.
She maintains: "We will deal with neglected issues affecting vulnerable young people, women and girls, and design socially relevant programs that ensure that these activities are intended to reshape the attitudes of young people, unlock the potential of the young, allowing them to acquire politically to serve as "agents of change."
She used the occasion to remind Liberians to improve on peacebuilding and early childhood education, and most importantly reach out to orphanages, widows and people living with disabilities.
In a special message, the USA chairman Mr. Ben G. Gweh, declares that the establishment of the foundation is an opportunity that allows the organization to administer various programs that would address the basic emotional and physical needs of children, including therapeutic and psychosocial services, educational, as well as mentoring.
Mr. Gweh: "The DHFI would provide actions for basic education that will address the challenges of limited support to primary and secondary education affecting poor people and vulnerable children living with disabilities, including adolescent girls; ensure effective adult training and education for rural community development, adequate training for teachers, and intellectual and recreational programs for students and other youths."
The USA chairman encourages everyone that no matter what, all Liberians should work together to ensure that all the programs that are being designed by the foundation become successful.
He adds that the foundation would provide programs and services that prepare and equip children and individuals to face the future with confidence, competence, and appropriate spiritual, social, financial, technological and educational awareness.
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For his part, the country director highlights that the foundation is going to provide technical skills in the implementation of a modern agriculture program to feed children to meet the growing demand for food and other substantial needs.
Mr. Bettrah A Pewee further states that the foundation would promote effective human resource policies in Montserrado County and beyond; organize and conduct conventions, conferences, seminars, consultations, camps, and other social gatherings in harmony with the objective of the. organization.
Commenting on behalf of the invited guest, Dr. Joseph Nyan Gono, vice president for administration, Adventist University of West Africa encouraged the foundation not to be one of the organizations that spring up with big dreams and soon to disappear in thin air.
Elder Gono cautions: "DHFI is not one of the NGOs to soon disappear, but one that can be relied on, and is sustained."
