Dear Friends of Hope,

The Hope International campus, through the generosity shared by so many, has undergone a significant transformation over the last 15 years.

In 2007, the Liberian team found a piece of land with old school buildings, many having been severely damaged during the civil war(s) in Liberia. You can read more about this here.

To be honest, it wasn’t the type of place you would walk through and think to oneself “it’s a bit rough, but it’s got good bones.” It was chosen because it existed in a community that needed a school, and it was affordable. There was little dreaming or imagining of what this campus would or could become at that point.

The Hope Project entered into a lease agreement with the landowners in 2008. At that time, we were paying $2,800 per year for the school. That sounds like a screaming deal, and it was, but keep in mind, we had very little money. Remembering that we were renting someone else’s space, we made modest capital improvements as funds were available.

Hope International opened its tuition-free doors in the community of Gardnersville that same year. During the first 5 years of operation additional classrooms and a medical clinic were added, and clean drinking water was provided for the school and surrounding community.

We were now a central part of the community. Little did we know then that this one school would become the heart of it.