Your Next Classroom Hero Experience Begins
Double your impact today by donating to Uniting Distant Stars on Give to the Max Day and unlock the $600 matching gift! Your generous giving invests in Liberian Youth receiving valuable trade skills at our center in Liberia.
Thank you for including UDS in your charitable giving!
by 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.
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.
Your investment in Liberian Youth pays a dividend of marketable talent ready to make a difference in their nation. We’d like to introduce you to two graduates whose lives were transformed because of you.
Viola Blaine is one of six who graduated with a Diploma in Cosmetology on April 13, 2019 at the Uniting Distant Stars Vocational Training Center (UDSVTC) in Liberia. She is 40 years old and a mom of three children: 16-year-old boy (lives in Ghana), 14-year-old boy, and 11-year-old girl (both live with Viola).
She left Liberia during the civil war in 1996 and became a refugee in Ghana. During that time she took advantage of the United Nations educational programs including graduating from high school, receiving a certificate in cosmetology, and attending a one-month business school. This gave her the opportunity to start plaiting hair and giving pedicures to be self-sufficient.
Viola returned to Liberia in 2012 and continued to work as a hairdresser. In 2018, she was praying to God to find a school to gain more knowledge. While listening to her favorite station, Radio Advent, she heard Kelvin Fomba (UDS Co-Founder & Director) and others talk about UDSVTC. She took down the phone numbers and called the school. She was invited to the campus to complete the admissions form and to attend orientation.
She shared how much she appreciated Kelvin’s encouragement and stressed the importance of learning skills that lead to self-employment. She expressed her gratitude for all the support given to her to achieve her goal of graduating from our program.
Viola shared how UDS provided the advanced skills in manicures, pedicures, facials and much more that she was seeking. She now holds a diploma, and she is looking for a small shop where she can launch her salon business. She currently does home visits to plait hair, and she hopes to continue this service once she finds someone to work with her at the shop.
Quote from Viola: “Thanks go to Mr. Kelvin Fomba from the UDSVTC school where I came from with a diploma in cosmetology. This will provide a good opportunity for me to do my own business. Uniting Distant Stars Vocational Training Center is one of the best schools you can go and get good vocational skills. Thanks to all of you for the knowledge I received!“
Anthony Bombo Kpehe Jr. graduated with a Diploma in Computer. He is 27 years old and the father of one young son. He is also a Freshman at the University of Liberia and is focused on an Economic Major and Management Minor.
Anthony’s shares his journey to UDSVTC: “After being a college drop out in 2013 from the A.M.E. Zion University, I struggled with finding financial support to continue my academic sojourn, I was left with no option but to do things that I could sustain myself until the appropriate time came for me to go to school or for me to enter the University of Liberia.
One day in 2017 while I was sitting at home, I received information about a newly opened vocational school located on the Old Road. So, I thought wisely to go and see their information sheet. When I got there, I met my sister Roseline who told me that the school had a scholarship.
Unfortunately, I went late to make an inquiry to the school and was unable to be part of the first graduating class. I was told to wait for the next year which I did. Today, I am proud to be a graduate of the Uniting Distant Stars Vocational Training Center. But before then I was judging myself of what to do when I was given the opportunity to attend the school. So I said to myself since I was studying Economics in college, then I will do computers because it is the future. We in Liberia will depend on them so I will learn computers. This was how my computer studies came about. To my supporters please continue your hard work for UDS and God will richly bless you.”
Anthony hopes to become the Finance Minister or Central Bank Governor and plans to become a computer expert. He will use his skills to create an IT network system that promotes transparency and prevents corruption within Liberia.
You are cordially invited to a fundraising event hosted by Beyan Gonowolo, UDS Board Member & Outreach Coordinator.
Theme: Education is Better than Silver & Gold
Venue: Equinox Apartments Residence Lounge at 2808 Silver Ln, Saint Anthony, MN, 55421
Day & Time: Saturday, May 4, 2019, from 6 PM to 8 PM
Location: St. Anthony, MN
Details: Refreshments & snacks provided along with a short presentation about UDS programs in Liberia
Note: Please bring a friend
We look forward to seeing you there!
Your generous giving changes the lives of young men and women participating in our vocational training program. Marron Zor enrolled in our computer course one year ago with no prior experience. She first connected with me on Messenger in August 2018. The students were learning Microsoft Word at that time, and she explained how she enjoyed working with tables and inserting text. She then shared her excitement after passing the Microsoft word test and looked forward to the next section!
Now, fast forward to March 2019, and Marron messaged me to announce that she is graduating. She then said, “I want to appreciate all of you for giving Liberian youth vocational knowledge. I now know how to work with Excel, Access, Word, Publisher, and PowerPoint. I also thank Mr. Fomba (instructor) for his hard work. I hope to see myself in my own cafe or working at the bank.”
Your impact as a Classroom Hero gives students like Marron a chance to learn a valuable skill and gain the confidence to pursue a better future. Thank you for investing in Liberian Youth, because they are worth it!