In 1997, two young full-time missionaries from Nigeria knocked on doors in the Doe Community of Monrovia, Liberia. They were simply doing what tens of thousands of Latter-day Saint missionaries do every day: sharing the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.
What those two young elders could not have known was the ripple effect their service would set in motion across an entire nation and, eventually, around the globe.
Among those impacted was a 10-year-old boy named Konrad Barjuah. Inspired by the example of the missionaries and by his testimony of the Book of Mormon, Barjuah was baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at age 15 in March 2002. Nine years later, following Barjuah’s full-time mission in Nigeria, his younger brother, Adolphus S. Togbah, was baptized in 2011.
Today, the two brothers have devoted much of their lives to serving their fellow Liberians, bringing together people of different faiths and backgrounds to help families in need.
Prompted by a desire to uplift vulnerable members of their community, Barjuah and Togbah began organizing outreach efforts to provide healthcare, education and basic necessities to people with limited access to these resources. Their efforts eventually grew into an organized humanitarian initiative.
“I had a sincere desire to give back to my vulnerable brothers and sisters who never had access to healthcare, education and opportunities for a better future,” Barjuah said. “Through prayer and service, I felt a clearer prompting from the Lord that I could do more.”
The brothers bring different strengths to their shared work. Barjuah, who earned a business degree from BYU–Idaho and lives in New Jersey with his wife and two children, draws on his experience as a small-business owner to coordinate logistics, volunteer teams and international aid. Togbah, a medical doctor completing a neurosurgery residency at John F. Kennedy Medical Center in Monrovia, directs medical care on the ground.
Kathy Ross, a Utah resident who has led three volunteer teams of dental personnel to Liberia to work alongside the brothers, said their different strengths complement one another.
“Adolphus likes to be behind the scenes, but he is so service-driven to the point of exhaustion,” Ross said. “And then Konrad is the one directing the ship to equal levels of exhaustion. But they are both on the same path. They are a great team.”
That shared path is rooted in faith.
Togbah said he deliberately tries to carry principles of the gospel into his service, even when working alongside volunteers from different backgrounds.
“I strive every day to integrate gospel principles such as charity, honesty, stewardship and caring for one another even though there are diverse groups of people volunteering within the organization,” he said.
Visiting medical teams and working alongside local volunteers of many faiths and nonprofit groups, the brothers have helped provide free healthcare, mobile dental clinics, eyeglasses, clean drinking water, school supplies and maternal hygiene kits. When the local Comfort K. Toe Orphanage faced closure due to poor infrastructure and sanitation, the brothers worked with humanitarian partners to rebuild the facilities, helping to keep the home open for dozens of children.
During mobile medical outreaches, Togbah frequently encounters life-threatening conditions, including hypertensive crises, severe malaria and emergency surgical cases.
“I feel guided by the Holy Spirit whenever I am in surgery, and I make it a habit to always begin with prayers,” Togbah said. “Being a medical doctor has provided me with the opportunity to preserve the lives of others.”
For Togbah, serving alongside people from different faith traditions has also deepened his understanding of God’s children.
“Serving alongside people from different faith traditions has strengthened my understanding that we are all children of Heavenly Father,” he said. “I have seen that love, compassion and a desire to help others can unite us beyond our religious differences.”
Those relationships have sometimes opened unexpected doors.
During one mobile outreach, medical volunteers urgently needed additional space for dental procedures. A local pastor offered his church building, allowing the volunteers to provide care for hundreds of residents. On other occasions, Latter-day Saint meetinghouses have hosted one-day clinics.
Barjuah sees these moments as more than opportunities to provide physical assistance.
“These moments allow us to share that our service is motivated by our love for Jesus Christ and our belief that every person is a child of God,” he said. “I have learned that genuine acts of kindness can soften hearts and create opportunities to testify to the Savior’s love.”
The brothers’ commitment to service extends beyond humanitarian outreaches. Both have consistently answered calls to serve in the Church and their community.
During the height of the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, when full-time missionaries were evacuated, Barjuah served in a three-man presidency appointed by the area presidency to oversee administrative and spiritual affairs across Liberia.
Former Liberia Monrovia Mission President Arvid Carlson served alongside both brothers during a return trip with a humanitarian team to Liberia in 2025. He said their influence extends far beyond the specific projects they organize.
“He is very generous with his money and his time,” Carlson said of Barjuah. “And Dr. Togbah is an amazing man, what he does for his community. There is so much work to do there and so little pay, but he is willing to help out as much as he can. They are the most wonderful two brothers, and they are doing a great work there.”
Paul Hezseltine of Utah first met Barjuah in 2013 in the mission office in Monrovia. Hezseltine and his wife served in Liberia in 2013-14, returning home during the Ebola outbreak before going back in 2015-16 to help reopen the mission.
Through his relationship with the two brothers, Hezseltine said his own understanding of service has grown.
“He has allowed me to give more in a more meaningful way,” Hezseltine said of Barjuah. “So my testimony and faith in charity work has grown. I’ve been permitted to grow through knowing and working with Konrad and Dr. Togbah.”
Hezseltine has also witnessed what he described as the life-changing consequences of the brothers’ generosity.
“There are many stories where both Konrad and Dr. Togbah have actually saved lives because of their generosity and Christlike service and love,” he said.
For Barjuah and Togbah, however, the work is not about recognition. Their motivation reaches back to the testimony planted in Barjuah’s heart when two young missionaries first came to his neighborhood and to the gospel principles the brothers have sought to live ever since.
“In Liberia, I have learned that we do not need to have everything to make a difference — we simply need a willing heart and a desire to follow Jesus Christ,” Togbah said. “When we serve with love, humility and faith, the Lord can multiply our small efforts and use them to bless many lives.”
— Satina Tolman is the Lebanon Oregon Stake communication director.
