The students are showing up and rainy season is almost over. Just like when school starts in America, the students in Liberia are excited to start their new school year too; time to meet a new teacher and make new friends. Unlike American students, however, only those students who can pay for school get the opportunity to go to school. There is no such thing as free public school.  That is why in 2009 EMAUSA started school scholarships, and have always made them a priority. During the EBOLA crisis many children lost both parents, so EMA made the decision to increase their support for the scholarship program.
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In Liberia more than 20% of children do not have access to a school; the literacy rate is less than 50%. Only 28% of women are able to read. You can see why the EMAUSA scholarship program is so important. Getting a job or starting a business without a basic education is almost impossible. 

JESTINA GRADUATES!Jestina Wesseh, whom EMAUSA has supported in recent years, graduated from the College of Health Sciences at Monrovia Bible College in 2022. Jestina is now working at a health clinic in Monrovia.

Thank you for your continued prayers and financial support for EMA. 

Some exciting have things happened in the past two months, and we know that our God will continue to pour out His wisdom, love, and resources as we seek His guidance in all things.  We rejoice with Meanu Kayea, EMA Board Member, who accompanied a group from his church to Liberia where they were able to see first-hand the work they support. We rejoice that Steve Ackley, EMA Board Member, also had the opportunity to spend three weeks in Liberia checking on technology projects.  We also weep with those who weep. Clip Kiffen, a founding member of EMA, had to say goodbye to his wife of 51 years. We ask that you keep Clip in your prayers as he learns to walk this new road with God.
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This month we come to you with a critical need. The ELWA campus has historically relied on generating most of its own electricity.  The Liberian Electric Company (LEC) generates power, but service is inconsistent and expensive.  There have been many many occasions when a life altering procedure at the hospital is interrupted by a power outage. The doctors and nurses cannot see to continue. When there is no power, there is no water as pumps and water filtration systems shut down. Keep in mind that temperatures at ELWA, being close to the equator, are consistently between 80* and 100* with 100% humidity. No power means no fans to move the air.  As we prepare this newsletter the ELWA campus has had intermittent to no power for four days. 

​We are prayerfully asking you to consider helping us raise funds to build a new powerhouse.  The current structure was built in the 1950’s. At that time ELWA consisted of a small radio station, and a few employees, so the building was constructed to house one, or two generators. The current ELWA campus includes many houses -- homes for SIM, Mission Aviation Fellowship, and Samaritans' Purse personnel-- as well as a large hospital (thank you to Samaritan's Purse), a radio station, high school, elementary school, a church, and a large office complex for Samaritan’s Purse employees.  To provide power for the ELWA campus, four generators now live in the powerhouse resulting in very little room to work on or repair the generators when they go down, which is frequent. A new building is desperately needed to protect generators from the weather and to create room for the mechanics to work on and maintain the equipment. The building also needs a set of security cameras. 
 
Do you know of a skilled diesel mechanic with a heart to serve God on the mission field? ELWA mechanics need additional diesel training so they can keep the generators operational. If you, or someone you know is interested in finding out more about this opportunity, please reach out to, Steve Kejr at [email protected]

We cannot thank you enough for your willingness to give to our Medical Outreach fund.  Because of your generosity, 86 lives are forever changed to the Glory of God.  A Muslim Imam came to ELWA to be baptized this week. Meanu Kayea, an EMA board member, had the privilege of being there to witness this wonderful event.   
We have more good news. For those of you who felt led to give to the housing and building project, those efforts kicked off month.  Although rain has been a factor we are excited that two houses are currently being renovated.  

During one of our medical outreaches this year a mother and her child were medivacked to ELWA hospital. The child was suffering from severe malnutrition.  Providing life saving plumpynut, a peanut-based ready-to-use therapeutic food, is another ministry of EMA. Here is an update from Dr. Mikey our "boots on the ground" about the extreme need for plumpynut in Liberia. 

There were 113 admissions to the inpatient feeding unit, primarily from the under five clinic. Once again finding sufficient space for all of the children remains a challenge, as does providing sufficient clinical coverage for this number of children, many of whom are extremely critical. Recruitment of more competent people to treat the most unstable children remains a high priority.

The outpatient feeding unit treated 183 new children during April. 142 were discharged as cured, leaving 164 children currently undergoing treatment on the outpatient feeding program. This was the largest number of new children receiving plumpynut in the program’s history. "

In theses  photos a baby at ELWA hospital receiving plumpynut, and a two-year-old child suffering from  malnutrition and other medical conditions in her mother's arms.
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Is malnutrition the ministry for you to get involved with?
Please click the donate button below. 
To contribute to the malnutrition project choose; "ELWA Hospital & Other Medical Support" from the project list. Then choose or type in "ELWA Hospital Malnutrition Program."

​Look at what the Lord has done because you gave to the EMA medical outreach fund.

​9 new Churches – 7 in Muslim communities
 
February – 1,107 people served. 21 came to Christ. 2 babies were born.
 
March – 800 people served, and new church was started among the Muslim Gola people.
 
March different village– 927 people served, 45 people came to Christ. 
 
May – 600 people served in one day, 19 came to Christ.

Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
John 15:4-5

But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 1 Corith 12:18
 
These two verses are the best way to describe your part in what EMA is doing. Without you we could do nothing. You are an intricate part of this ministry. It is because you are willing to give and pray that people's lives have been changed for eternity, nine new churches have been planted, and physical needs have been met which would have never happened.  Thank you for your prayers. Thank you for your giving. Thank you for your heart for Christ and work HE is doing through EMA. 

​Are you finally experiencing some warm days where you are?
As we are heading out of Spring and moving into Summer, Liberia is preparing for rainy season. 

According to the web site Climates to Travel, rainfall along the coast of Liberia “is very abundant and exceeds 3,000 mm or 118 inches per year.” That's almost 10 feet of rain per year.  However, “the real monsoon arrives in May and lasts until October.”

Imagine the damage all that rain will do to a house. Add to that the salt air that blows in from the ocean mixing with the rain. The houses in Liberia have windows that are  permanently open because the average temperature is 90 degrees outside, and there is no air conditioning in most of the homes. You can see from the photos that eves are extra wide so rain doesn't blow into the house, but the moisture still pours in.   

​During our February visit we saw first-hand the amount of work that is needed on these homes.
 
Would you prayerfully consider helping us with the cost of the repairs to these homes?  As Darryl mentioned, more help is needed, and some missionaries are already on their way. We need to get the ELWA staff into repaired homes of their own.