The School Love Has Built

Dear Friends of Hope,

In 2016, through the generosity of stateside donors (YOU!), we were able to purchase both the land and school building for $65,000 and begin some much-needed improvements on and replacement of existing structures. 

In 2018, we were able to replace the main school building with a 3-story structure that has 15 classrooms, a bathroom on each floor, administrative offices, and a teacher prep room. There remains such pride in this building for both the students and staff. 

In 2021, a second 3-story, 12-classroom building was constructed to replace the “death trap” building.  This is what the Liberian staff called the building, as some ceilings of the classrooms (we stopped using them) were on the verge of collapse.  The new building still needs painting and finishing touches, but isn’t it beautiful? 

The campus continues to improve and provide a comfortable and dignified educational environment for Liberia’s future leaders. 

Good Bones

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. 

Important Conversations at the Kitchen Table

Dear Friends of Hope,

The Hope Project began around a kitchen table in Leavenworth, Washington where Joseph, our founding principal, shared his dream for a community school with us (his friends in the US). Together, we agreed in Hope, that we would work towards this shared vision. It really was that simple. It really was that audacious. 
 
We sent out pleas for support to everyone we knew. You showed up. Together, we all moved forward. 

Every month after was an exercise of Hope. We hoped we would have enough to pay the lease and teachers. We hoped that we weren’t in over our heads (spoiler: we were).  
 
The Hope Project is at its core, a testament to the power of what can happen when Hope is at the center of it all. 

No one around that table knew what was in store and how this one smallish dream would manifest into something so beautiful, Hope International School. 

Together, we are The Hope Project.