An appeal to resettle a refugee family
BUDUBURAM REFUGEE CAMP
ACCRA, GHANA, WEST AFRICA
August 4, 2003
My name is Daniel F. Poawalio and I am originally from the northern rainforest of Liberia, West Africa. Presently, I am in exile as a refugee in Ghana. My birth date is uncertain, probably am in my late-30s; my parents were subsistence farmers. I have been seeking a way to enter the United States as a university student for over twenty years.
Throughout my country’s political and economic history, Liberia has had many American ties. American freed slaves founded Liberia in the 1800s. U. S. Peace Corps has sent many volunteers to my country. Since 1980, civil unrest plagued my country. I had to leave my farm in the north to adjust to turbulent city life in the capital, Monrovia. During the civil war of 1989-1996, I witnessed the trauma of harassment, rape, intimidation, brutal killings, ethnic tension, and terror. I survived, but not without a deep desire to leave my country.
Education is my dream and purpose in life. We are religious people who practice the Christian faith. I was fortunate to seek out higher education in Monrovia and after many trials earned my B.Sc. degree in Economics from the University of Liberia. My wife is working on her Accounting degree. I worked for our Civil Service Agency from 1989 up to the departure for exile, often not getting paid for months. I earned $25/month. A bag of rice in Monrovia costs $25, so there was no chance to save school monies. After more than ten years with the government, I thought I could secure a scholarship for graduate studies in Public Finance or Money and Banking, but to no avail. This is still my goal, higher education.
I had one Peace Corps Volunteer, who was my high school teacher, and I excelled throughout my high school years, being either first or second in my class. However, I was always struggling financially. Ms. Nancy Vorkink, of Denver, Colorado influenced my future dreams, my hope and persistent desire of an education in the US. I was her houseboy for two years, so I came to know her commitment to learning and helping others. We’ve kept in touch now for 22 years, without seeing one another, and try to email when possible. She calls us her ‘African children.’ At a senior, Nancy lives on a fixed income and can’t help us as host family in order to pursue our higher education goals. She established a small group, the Friends of Daniel, to help us with living expenses. We love her very much.
In 2002, Ms. Vorkink asked her Friends of Daniel for contributions to help my family flee Liberia to Ghana, due to the dangerous situation in Monrovia. We left our homeland for exile in Ghana. We arrived in Ghana on July 19, 2002 at the Buduburam Refugee Camp; it was a shock to us. At the refugee camp, which suppose to be under the auspices of the United Nations, we found that we had to pay for everything including food, water, housing, etc.
We are concerned about our 3-year old daughter, Patience-Sia who is missing day care schooling. I do not want her to learn the language of war as we had to. I want her to hear the words of peace and prosperity. My family is suffering now. I wish to provide for them, but can’t. I need to sustain my family now in exile, and my dream remains to reach the shores of America. I seek a host family who can help sponsor me while I attend university; even if it means I must retake some of my undergraduate education. On the internet, I came across an organization that grants loan to international students (International Education Finance Corporation,IEFC on website www.iefc.com but it requires an American citizen or resident with good credit records and income level as co-signer.
If you can assist us in any way as a host family,sponsor or university scholarship, contact me at my email, Daniel F. Poawalio,(danpoawalio@yahoo.com). I have waited a long time to fulfill my dream of higher education in America. I am getting older. I promise I will not disappoint you. You may contact my former Peace Corps teacher, Ms. Nancy Vorkink of Denver, Colorado for a reference. Her phone is 303-399-5057 in Denver. Her e-mail address is n.vorkink@att.net. We both seek a reunion of teacher and former student from Africa. I am open to attend university anywhere in the United States, but I will need a family to host me and sponsor me for just one year.
Best regards.
Daniel F. Poawalio |
Solidarity
