Yesterday we went with President & Sister Clawson and the Zone Leaders to Kailahun and then to Tongo Field.  Since both of these communities were at the forefront of the civil war that started on 23 March 1991, we thought it would be a good time to write about the war, what caused it and some … Continue reading War!

“The chieftaincy in Sierra Leone was established in 1896, when [Britain’s Colonial] Governor [Frederic] Cardew transformed society by empowering a set of Paramount Chiefs as the sole authority of local government in the newly created Sierra Leone Protectorate. The chiefs remained effectively the only institution of local government until the World Bank sponsored creation of … Continue reading Chiefdoms

The history of Sierra Leone began when the land became inhabited by indigenous people some 2,500 years ago. The dense tropical rainforest helped isolate the region from other West African cultures, and it became a refuge for West Africans escaping violence in neighboring kingdoms. Portuguese explorer Pedro de Sintra first mapped the region in 1462 and … Continue reading Chronicles of Salone

A few weeks ago in our post titled “Harmattan”, I mentioned that I had gone over to a tire repair shop to get air in my front left tire.  As I feared, the air was only a temporary fix.  A week later, I was again low on air so I filled it up at a different shop, … Continue reading Fix-a-Flat

Sierra Leone’s equatorial climate tends to be an ideal environment for all types of bugs.  In many ways, it is similar to the Houston’s climate from March to October.  Since there is rarely a deep freeze in Houston, bugs tend to thrive.  And so it is here, except for two things.  First, there is no such thing as a … Continue reading Pest Control

One of the more interesting practices here is the burning of the weeds along the roadside.  During the rainy season, some of these weeds will grow to be over 6’ tall.  Since there are no tractors with mowers here, at some point these weeds begin to encroach onto the side of the road as they “hang over” … Continue reading Fire!

The dust in the air is visible as it forms a cloud early in the morning Between the end of November and the middle of March here in West Africa is a season referred to as Harmattan.  It takes its name from the dry and dusty northeasterly trade win which blows dust from the Sahara Desert … Continue reading Harmattan

Sidie and Monjama This week we experienced our first traditional wedding.  Sidie Pumogie and Monjama Keifala were wed on Saturday in a traditional wedding, and then after church on Sunday, in a brief ceremony, their branch president married them in a “white man’s wedding”.  The reception and party were held Saturday night after the traditional ceremony. Their's … Continue reading Traditional Style!

Missionaries in the Zone begin to prepare the curbs for painting Last Saturday the Kenema Zone did a service project as part of the #LightTheWorld campaign.  The project entailed painting the curbs at the Kenema Government Secondary School.  This is the public high school here in Kenema.  The curbs were painted green, white and blue as these are … Continue reading The Colors of Salone

In the US, PVC (polyvinyl chloride) pipes are the most common non-metal pipes used for water supply. However, in much of the rest of the world, PPR (polypropylene random copolymer) is the pipe of choice for water. Instead of PVC cement, PPR joints are heated by a special fusion tool and essentially melted together into a single … Continue reading PPR and Christmas