As we near the end of our time at the Koidu Clinic in the Kono District, I have been trying to reflect on our experience here and have found it difficult. I’m struggling to find the words to describe the beauty, strength, and joy I see in the people of this country and these communities. Yet there is also obvious pain, grief, and struggle in this place as it continues the long process of recovering from the devastating effects of a civil war that ended more than 20 years ago.
Despite this truth, the people of Sierra Leone are such an inspiration. Rarely have I encountered someone—whether at the clinics or in the streets—who does not greet you with a smile and a warm welcome. Watching them move through the grind of daily life, often with far fewer resources at their disposal than even our poorest patients, with their heads held high, reveals their resolve and the strength of the human spirit to survive amid great adversity.
Many people here—if not most—subscribe to a faith in a God who sees them, cares for them regardless of their circumstances, and calls them to trust Him to provide. This does not mean that God simply drops provisions into their laps, although that does sometimes happen through generous and faithful people. More often, God empowers them with strength and ingenuity to push through each day and work very hard to feed, clothe, shelter, educate, and protect their families.
Many live hand to mouth, day by day, and there are no sick days without consequences. Mama Phebian once described the weight of daily life here as that of a “beast of burden”—a reflection of how much responsibility and hardship people are asked to carry. And you see it expressed physically, mentally, and emotionally. They carry heavy loads—whether on their heads in large baskets (stronger necks than mine, that’s for sure), through the mental gymnastics and anxiety of parents lying awake at night worrying about how they will feed their children or pay for medicine, or in the deep scars and trauma left by the war and the atrocities they witnessed years ago.
Many have become skilled at burying these scars and trauma, pushing them down so they can focus on the daily struggles of life. Very often, counseling is simply not accessible, and I wonder if many would even utilize it if it were. There are just too many immediate priorities each day to attend to mental health and emotional well-being.
I pray that in time, the people of Sierra Leone will gain access to more of these resources, along with greater security for their basic needs and the ability to look to the future with confidence—knowing that their children will not always have to wage this daily fight for survival.
Jericho Road Community Health Center, with its beautiful and diverse people around the world and its faithful donors, stands in the gap through sacrificial giving of time, energy, prayers, and financial resources. This helps ensure that all the people we serve—created in the image of God—have greater access to medical care, food, and wellness resources, and are empowered to change their futures, their communities, their country, and the world around them.
May God continue to bless the people of Sierra Leone, granting them healing and strength day by day, and raising up leaders who will help transform this place into one that is as equitable as it is beautiful.
“Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed.”
Psalm 82:3 (NIV)
A reflection by Timothy Schoch, RN at Jericho Road.
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