RISE – a new film by Mary’s Meals – The Way
Mary’s Meals is known in Liberia as “the one who never stopped”. A new documentary tells the story of Mary’s Meals in Liberia, beyond war, Ebola and trauma.
Providing consistent daily meals for school children since 2006, global charity Mary’s Meals is known in Liberia as “the one who never stopped” – never interrupting its school feeding delivery in 20 years. A new documentary (click box above to watch the film) tells the unlikely story of Mary’s Meals in Liberia, beyond war, Ebola and trauma.
Twenty years ago, two civil wars had devastated Liberia. More than a quarter of a million people were killed and a further 1.3 million were displaced. Utilities, roads, businesses, schools and homes were destroyed. During the 14-year-long conflict, it is estimated that there were 20,000 children recruited as soldiers.
Father Garry Jenkins, a British missionary working in Liberia since the 1970s, was determined to reopen Saint Dominic Catholic School to provide a safe place for hundreds of young people, including those returning from displaced camps and former child soldiers. He knew that school meals were essential to encourage them into the classroom and contacted several aid agencies for support. He was told it would take months.
Father Jenkins recalls, “I said, I’m sorry, I’ve got no time for process. There are kids who have had their guns taken off them and children from IDP camps whose homes have been ruined. I just need food.’”
Having already buried 300 children who died of hunger, he was unwilling to be held back by red tape, “I phoned [Mary’s Meals’ founder] Magnus, and he said, ‘Father, go to Monrovia, buy some rice and I’ll reimburse you.’ So that’s how it started.”
Mary’s Meals’ school feeding programme in Liberia officially began in 2006. Today, Mary’s Meals is one of the largest school feeding providers in the country, reaching more than 95,000 children with a plate of rice and beans every school day, often cooked with vegetables from the school gardens. Its community-led programme operates in over 600 places of education across five (out of 15) counties.
To learn more about Mary’s Meals visit https://www.marysmeals.ie/
Source: Mary’s Meals
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