We woke up early and finished packing our suitcases. We had one less because one of the smaller ones went inside a larger one. We got our packs organized with what we would need on the planes and what we wanted with us. We put everything out in the dining area. The Ivorians had left the day before. This morning Duane and I went to missionary Nancy Carew’s house for breakfast. She lives across the way from Princess and Sam. It was another great breakfast.
We had thought we were going downtown with our luggage around 8 am. Turns out we didn’t have to go until later. So we talked with Nancy for a while. Soon all the luggage got loaded in Sam’s car.
First we went to the conference office so we could turn in the money we were donating to the Administrative Center in Kakata-Farmington District. We also gave money toward the hospitality we had received at the Annual Conference. There was some confusion about getting receipts so we had to wait for the treasurer to get them. Meanwhile our friend Frances brought Duane and I presents of shirts from Mother Irene Innis. They were a different kind and very stylish. Then Princess Jusu came looking for me to take me back to the UMW sponsored training center. I said that I hadn’t gotten a picture with Rose Farhat so Princess took me back to the Women’s Center to see her again. We got pictures taken. Then we went back to the car. The receipts came and Tom came back from having breakfast with George Wilson.
Sam drove Tom, Bill and us downtown to the Brussels Airlines office. We had to wait a half hour until they opened at 10 am. We were the first ones in. We got temporary boarding passes and turned in our luggage. While I was checking in ours, Duane passed out from the heat. Some men helped him to a chair. He came to almost immediately. One of the airline women brought him a glass of sugar water and another glass of regular water. He was also moved closer to the air conditioner. Sam and Bill went and brought the car closer to the office. He walked with us to the car. He was feeling much better.
We had one more place to go before going back to the mission compound. Sam took us into West Point which was a poorer area of Monrovia. Fishing is a primary part of their economy. As we went down the streets, we saw lots of smoked fish that vendors were selling. Sam attended the John Kofi Asmah United Methodist Church. When we got there, older students were taking exams in the sanctuary. Duane stayed in the car with the air on.
We began walking beside then behind the church following a narrow path between various buildings. We went past a large area where there were fish drying tubs. Soon we got to another building – the John Kofi Asmah United Methodist Elementary and Junior High School. It was built by the church with funding from the Illinois Great Rivers Conference. There was a large plaque on the wall indicating all the persons represented from both the Liberia conference and the Illinois Great Rivers Conference when it was dedicated to the glory of God: February 27, 2012. We had been asked by IGRC to visit this project so we could tell them how it was doing. The younger children were on holiday so there wasn’t anyone in the classrooms.
We went back to the car and began to drive out of the area. Sam told us about West Point’s experiences during the Ebola outbreak. We went back to the Mission Compound where Duane rested for the afternoon. Tom, Bill and I had some lunch. Duane ate some of our snack food.