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 Work was paused on the construction of the new ICM building in April due to COVID-19 and its restrictions. In addition to health risk, because the government imposed a 3:00 PM curfew, workers had to start making their way back home by 1 PM which meant the work day was cut short.
 In 2017 EMAUSA helped complete renovations on ELWA’s Oceanview Guesthouse. Since then, the guesthouse has provided safe, comfortable, beautiful accommodations for about 1500 people serving in Liberia!
Unfortunately, Oceanview has been closed since the last of March due to the COVID pandemic. In September, SIM will reevaluate the situation and make decisions about the future. Besides the obvious practical issues involved in re-opening the guesthouse, SIM policies and Liberia’s governmental restrictions must be considered. It is possible that two flights each week into Liberia’s Robertsfield airport are expected to begin the end of June. However, all passengers arriving in Liberia must be isolated for 14 days on arrival and the Oceanview Guesthouse is not approved by the government for quarantine. The challenge is to prayerfully consider how to accomplish the purpose of the Guesthouse without unnecessarily threatening the lives of those we serve and our workers. Anyone planning a trip to Liberia to serve can inquire about lodging at the Oceanview Guesthouse or the nearby Trinity Guesthouse by sending an email to trinityguesthouse.liberia@sim.org.  Many buildings have a history, but few buildings have a personality. The ELWA Missionary Guesthouse has both. It wasn't a consulate, but international dignitaries often visited. It wasn't a school, but life lessons were taught and learned there every day. It wasn't a church, but Jesus dwelled there.
Originally constructed by ELWA's founding missionaries in the 1950's, the Guesthouse was the gathering place for an entire generation of children, who still lovingly refer to themselves as "ELWA Kids" though many are now in their 40's, 50's and 60's. And its door was always open. Foreign leaders from around the world were welcomed and entertained. Local people walked in any time of the day or night to get a drink, or something to eat, or a kind word in the name of Jesus. Over the years, the ELWA Guesthouse also served as a barber shop, a movie theater, a roller-skating rink, a funeral parlor, and a dining hall. It hosted barbecues, babysitting classes, piano recitals, wedding showers, skit nights, Saturday baking parties, and farewell gatherings for departing missionary families after decades of service. It was home to all and a haven for those in need. |
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ELWA Ministries Association USA