Blog post courtesy of USACF

Our friends and partners, US-Africa Children’s Fellowship (USACF), recently formed an important partnership with Hands On Sierra Leone. The head of HOSL is Sheku Mansaray, pictured above, and below. Sheku first came to America as a teenager to receive prosthetics to replace his lower arms which were cut off during the civil war in Sierra Leone. Sheku did not go back to Sierra Leone immediately after his surgery. He began a new life in Staten Island. He became a Legal Technology Specialist and now works for Paul Weiss.

Over the last few years, Sheku has turned his attention back to Sierra Leone. He is building a home in Freetown and is working to help the people of Sierra Leone in every way he can.

The focus of HOSL has been to help children of amputees. For the last ten years, HOSL has been paying the school fees for 53 children. The children attend 15 schools around the towns of Makeni, Kono, Luing and Masiaka. But much more needs to be done. None of their schools have libraries. We are all working together and have recently filled a container with children’s books and other needed donations. This 40-foot HC container is now on its way to Sierra Leone. The container has been purchased and will be converted into a library/learning center once it is put down in the town of Makeni.

The Book Fairies in Freeport, Long Island donated 600 boxes of children’s books.

We, from Wonderland BookSavers, donated 125 boxes of books, numerous bags of clothing, and a case of French-language children’s picture books handmade by the students of the Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center in Chicago.

USACF donated 300 boxes of books, schools supplies, soccer gear and clothing for this shipment. Crutches and soccer uniforms have also been collected for a one-legged soccer league. This shipment will change thousands of lives.

There are exciting plans to convert the shipping container into both a library and a learning center. Teachers will attend workshops to learn to use the digital Bridge Pi library which will greatly enhance their student’s access to information.

Sheku’s dream of helping the people of Sierra Leone is taking shape. With your support, we will turn his dream into reality.