Diaspora Liberian Identifies with Alma Maters

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Diaspora Liberian Identifies with Alma Maters
Promises Christmas Parcels for Teachers
Alaskai Moore Johnson from Sanniquellie
May 13, 2009

SANIQUELLIE,A Liberian residing in the United States of America (USA) has identified with her alma mater, Sanniquellie Central High, by donating six boxes of reams of sheets and other stationery materials to that institution.

Presenting the items to the school's principal, Mrs. Estalla Flomo-Wehye said the institution had impacted her life and she felt the need to give back to it 'though it be little.'
Mrs. Flomo-Wehye, who buried her mother and uncle, former Chief Justice, Cllr. Emmanuel Gbalazeh, about two weeks ago in Sanniquellie City, Nimba County, told our Education Desk that she had not really made a plan for the donation this month but felt the need to assist owing to numerous appeals from the principal that the school was in dire need of stationery materials.

She matriculated as a 6th grader from St. Mary Catholic School High School to Sanniquellie Central High, where she rose to become president of the seventh grade class in 1978 but left, after completing her ninth grade, to complete her high school education at Dolo Memorial High School in the same city.

Speaking further, the New Jersey Cooper Hospital Laboratory technician reminisced her days at the institution. “Students, competition was part of our quest for better education; we put more time to studying our notes in order for us to always be duxes. You can do the same, too. All you need to do is put time to your lesson and from among you can become president and ministers of this great country,” she urged the students.

Besides the 48 reams of A4 papers, she also gave the school of nearly 1,000 students, boxes of pen and pencil. Mrs. Wehye also asked Sanniquellie Central High principal to pass on two of the six boxes to St. Mary Catholic High School, where she said she had dreamed of completing her high school education but owing to financial difficulties on the part of her mother she had to move on to the city's Central High.

She disclosed to the Daily Observer that she had planned to provide Christmas parcels for the teachers, whom she said were making sacrifices to impact knowledge, discipline and other societal norms into the students. She also mentioned that other schools, including Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) and Baptist High Schools would benefit from her next gestures in September 2009.

For his part, Principal Edwin G. Dehmie, who expressed his gratitude to his institution's alumna, narrated how his administration mimeographed about 24 reams of paper every week and added: “A ream of paper here in Sanniquellie is sold for L$350. Imagine how much we spent every time,” he told Mrs. Flomo-Wehye, who had lived with her family in the U.S. for 26 years.

He told her not to look at her donation as small but a significant gesture that would help reduce their costs and promised to use the paper and other materials for their intended purposes.