Plumbing Students Applying Their Skills

Plumbing Students Applying Their Skills

One of your key investments is buying needed equipment, materials, and supplies to give your students practical experience. Without these essentials items, your students would sit in a classroom doing nothing. UDS aspires to give young men and women over 80% hands-on training either as field experience or in their respective learning labs.

Almost two years ago, you made our Plumbing Learning Lab possible. It now serves the third group of plumbing students. As you see in the photos, our students practice laying pipe in their lab. They learn how to connect various types of pipes with fittings. Soon they will be connecting the pipes to fixtures like commodes and tubs. 

Thanking donors for supporting plumbing students. They are practicing their skills in their learning lab.
Your Plumbing Students practicing laying pipe and connecting the fittings.

Thank you so much for supporting your plumbing students in learning this much-needed trade!

Graduate Reflection

Graduate Reflection

by Abel Bijan Kabba, Plumbing Graduate

Abel Bijan Kabba, Plumbing Graduate

At the Uniting Distant Stars, we believe that your positive action combined with positive thinking, your results will definitely be a success.

Ooooh yeah, it’s remarkable to think that our past year in UDS has come to an end. But let’s take a moment to think about the time we spent together. It was full of twists and turns and also marked by countless challenges to overcome whether they were academic, sports, politics or personal.

It is a fantastic achievement for each and every one of us to have made it, and I am proud to share this moment with all of you. The truth is that we haven’t made it here on our own effort alone.

On behalf of the class of 2018/2019, I’d like to take a moment to acknowledge those who help us through to where we are today. First, to our hardworking administration here and our Godly Board Members of UDS in the U.S. for their dedication to the vulnerable youth, children and the needy to ensure that we become successful, and live a good life through the tradition of excellence and hard work that we may have a brighter future.

In this regard, we say thanks and appreciation again to the UDS Family all around the world for their relentless humanitarian support towards the development of our vulnerable youth in Africa. We also thank them again for training hundreds of youth, adults, and children in Liberia for them to be part of nation-building.

To my fellow graduates! We must be patient and be sincere to our masters and clients so we can enjoy the next phase of our lives in order for us to achieve our dreams. Special thanks to our hardworking Instructors for they taught us the values that we need in order for us to face our future without fear.

Abel (bottom center) among some of his fellow graduates and friends. 

I will be remiss if I don’t recognize the best humanitarians of our time, they are also the twin founders of the UDS, they have done a lot to change the negative face and mindset of Africans into positivity. These legends are Mr. Kelvin S. Fomba and Miss Heather Cannon. We say thank you!

Information about Abel: He is 22 years old and dropped out of high school at grade 11 due to no financial support. He lived in Southern Sierra Leone before coming to Liberia. He graduated from UDS Vocational Training Center on April 13 with a Diploma in Plumbing. His long term goals include starting his own company. In the short term, he plans to gain experience through contract jobs. He currently received a plumbing opportunity in Paynesville, Liberia. 

You empowered Able to put his skills to work for his first post-graduate contract. 
Plumbing Can Be Fun

Plumbing Can Be Fun

Our 16 new plumbing students started March 20, and we are grateful to have one young woman enrolled in this course for the second consecutive year. The students’ learning is mixed with classroom time and practical experience. Their instructor Emmanuel Somah finds different ways for them to apply their skills.

For example, in April, our instructor asked if he could have the students clean our center’s four commodes. He worked with our students in removing, cleaning, and replacing each commode. This lesson helped our students learn how this important piece of sanitation hardware works and what could cause it to malfunction.
 
In May, one of the classroom sessions involved learning to identify the different types of tools and materials, such as pipes and fittings, that the students would be using in this trade. In the video below, you can watch a brief interaction with the instructor and his students during this class lesson. Mr. Somah, like all our instructors, provides a fun learning environment, and our students enjoy receiving their knowledge. 
You made it possible for this young woman to learn how to be a plumber!

[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84rKUuwbHYg[/embedyt]
“Education is Better Than Silver & Gold”

“Education is Better Than Silver & Gold”

Enoch Daniel Tarr wrote the song, “Education is Better Than Silver & Gold” for UDS.

One of our computer students, Enoch Daniel Tarr, from 2016 wrote a song to promote Uniting Distant Stars Vocational Training Center. Enoch is 16 years old and wanted to express his gratitude for our programs through music.

Our creative and talented board member, Anna Bertch, created a music video of Enoch’s song with photos of all our courses. Please enjoy listening to this uplifting song that will get you moving with the music.

[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wb_5NsSsR_o[/embedyt]

Your Students are Hard at Work as Graduation Nears

Your Students are Hard at Work as Graduation Nears

“Uniting Distant Stars believes in practical experience. Our students are so happy when they can do their practicals daily. They know graduation is nearing and learning everything they need to know before they receive their diploma. Good Luck students, you have UDS blessing already.” by Kelvin Fomba, USD Co-Founder & Director.

Your cosmetology students continue to apply their knowledge like pedicures to volunteers.

Can you believe it has been a year since our students started their vocational training journey? As you have seen throughout the year, our students are showing up to class daily and working hard to polish their skills in the given they field they embarked on. You made this quality learning opportunity possible by being their Classroom Hero and supplying the practical learning materials needed for them to successfully complete their course. You have witnessed their commitment and dedication to changing their lives for the better.

Your plumbing students learn how to install a tub and commode in our learning lab. 

You Made Our "Plumbing Learning Lab" Possible!

You Made Our "Plumbing Learning Lab" Possible!

Your superpowers as a Classroom Hero, allowed Uniting Distant Stars to build a Plumbing Learning Lab for our students. This lab is adjacent to our main building and gives our students that opportunity to lay pipe and install commodes, sinks, and tubs as they would for a home or office building. Your generosity has empowered these students to gain the practical experience they need to establish a career in Plumbing. Liberia is still rebuilding their water and sanitation system, so there is tremendous opportunity in this field.

Our co-founder Kelvin Fomba in Liberia has this message to share with you: “To all our supporters, volunteers, donors, board members, etc. Please just take a look at what your generosity is doing for our youth in Liberia. I am so happy to come across people like you for contributing towards the development of our Nation. May God continue to bless you and your entire family.”

As you will see in our photos, our students went to work immediately once this lab opened. You will notice our one female student working just as hard as her male peers. We hope more young women will consider this essential trade for the health and well-being of all Liberian people.

You are the inspiration behind these hardworking Plumbing Students

Plumbing students connecting pipe in our learning lab you helped build.

You made it possible for these students to know how to measure and fit pipes together.

You provided the tools such as this level to ensure our students know how to properly install pipes.

We celebrate you for giving our Plumbing Students the tools and equipment to apply what they have learned in this 12-month course. Our students will be graduating soon and are ready to join any plumbing business to put their skills to work. Thank you for being Classroom Heroes to our Plumbing students!