The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is working to improve child nutrition, strengthen families, provide disaster relief and bring safe water to communities in West African nation of Sierra Leone.
Through various donations, events and meetings over the past few months, Church leaders and members have strived to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ to care for those in need.
Disaster relief
The Church donated relief items to the National Disaster Management Agency in Freetown on July 29 in response to flooding in the area. Early and unexpected torrential rains caused the flooding that destroyed properties and claimed lives.
Supplies from the Church included mattresses, cartons of canned fish and other food, bags of rice and cooking oil, explained the Church’s Africa Newsroom.
lder Kenneth Pambu, Area Seventy and a Welfare and Self-Reliance Services manager for the Church, spoke of how grateful he was to work with the agency to quickly help those in need.
Elder Pambu said The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is dedicated to helping disaster-affected individuals, and the donation exemplifies a commitment to service and compassion.
“We believe it is our duty to help those who are suffering. Our faith teaches us to care for one another, and we hope these donations will bring comfort to those in need,” he said.
New water boreholes
The Church prioritizes access to safe water, and several communities in Sierra Leone have received donated wells and boreholes in recent months as part of this effort.
For example, on March 30, the Church donated solar-powered boreholes and 5,000 liter water tanks to the villages of Tanenihum and Mokaba in Moyamba District. Each well had a solar-powered pump and community spigots, the Church’s Africa Newsroom reported.
Elder Locke Ettinger and Sister Carol Sue Ettinger, missionaries in the Sierra Leone Freetown Mission, attended the ceremonies.
“We received a warm welcome of dancing and singing when we arrived,” Elder Ettinger said. He explained that before the wells, villagers traveled to a swamp area to get water. Women and children in particular had to travel great distances to get water for drinking, cooking and household use.
“It was not clean. Now they have a source of clean water,” he said. “The members of the village were instructed to take good care of the wells, and they were given full responsibility of their new water source. They were happy, with beautiful smiles and songs of thanks.”
Last November, the Church took part in a project to drill and build a solar-powered motorized borehole in Grafton in the Western Rural District of the country.
At first, project managers proposed deepening an existing community hand-dug water well. But after an assessment, they decided drilling a motorized borehole would provide a greater delivery of water — in terms of quantity and flow rate — for the school, mosque and community.
The new infrastructure is managed and maintained by trained community members — with leaders of the school and mosque taking responsibility for any future repairs and maintenance.
Child nutrition event
On July 27, more than 200 people from different communities brought their young children to the Kissy Sierra Leone Stake Center for nutrition screenings and support, the Church’s Africa Newsroom reported.
The event and other similar screenings around the world are part of the Church’s global initiative for women and children, led by the Relief Society.
Nurses and trained volunteers did checkups and evaluated the children. Then, the parents received instructions on medical care and nutrition for their children. As needed, parents were given supplies to help meet short-term issues. Follow-up visits will occur as well.
Adama Kargbo, who brought her young son to the event, was worried after his medical checkup, because his condition seemed worse than the other children.
“Speaking with my local women’s leader, I was relieved, from her counseling. It really is a blessing for us as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” she said. “Having this opportunity has opened my mind to see how loving and caring our Heavenly Father is for his children.”
Meeting with Sierra Leone’s first lady
On July 19, local Church leaders met with the first lady of Sierra Leone, Dr. Fatima Jabbe Maada Bio, to discuss the 2025 Strengthening Families Conference — which will be held in Freetown next June, reported the Church’s Africa Newsroom.
The Strengthening Families Conference is an international, interfaith event sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — bringing together experts, panelists, speakers and performers to discuss how to support marriage and the family. This year’s conference was in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Last year’s conference was in Abuja, Nigeria.
Bio said it will be a great honor for Sierra Leone to host the event.
“The Strengthening Families Conference comes at a critical time for our nation,” she said. “Raising up strong children is not just the responsibility of the families but is a community responsibility. I pledge our every effort to make this conference successful.”
Editor’s note: This has been updated to reflect that it was this year’s Strengthening Families Conference was in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Last year’s conference was in Abuja, Nigeria.
