Girls Club World Map: Part 1

"Dey na able."

Translation from Liberian English:  "They are not able."

That was the response of my fellow (male) colleagues when I presented them with my plan to do the World Map Project with my Girls Club. We were in a staff meeting in February of last year when I told them I would embark on this project with "my girls" later on in the semester. I mentioned that I would apply for a Peace Corps grant to fund the materials but that the members of Girls Club would do all of the labor. These girls would be involved in the majority of the steps of the process.

My colleagues at Gbarma Central Junior and Senior High School (GCS) weren't so sure my girls could handle the project. I explained that students from schools and youth from organizations had been involved in this map-making project for a number of years, all over the world, and I was sure these students would be up for the task as well. I was met with muffled laughs, sighs of doubt, and raised-eyebrows. I knew what they were thinking:  most of these girls are only good for bearing children and doing domestic duties. Commentary from some---not all---of my colleagues that had been frequenting the campus lately echoed in my mind. "Da female students here can like man business too much. Dey na responsible. Dey not serious students. Dey na even able to write in correct English so dey will na be able to draw and paint a map. No way."

"Wrong," I thought. "More fuel to the fire."

The GCS Girls Club was a newly-created organization last year during the second semester of the 2012-2013 school year. We had a lot of work to do and not much time to do it, as my project timeframe for my grant was only 2 months (May and June), but my girls were determined to be a part of something larger than themselves and dove into the project. I proposed meeting once a week; they proposed meeting twice. I told them they each had to do 3 hours of work on the map; some members far surpassed the 180 minute requirement. Some members even doubled the amount of time they had to log in! And they don't have a ton of free time. These hard-working female youth have other responsibilities:  cook food from scratch for their families over a coal pot (imagine: mini-bbq pit), do wash (laundry), haul water, care for their children, etc. However, they still came to do their part. Some even brought their young children to our work days. Little Marshall, an 8-year-old peking, lifted his head up towards the map as his mother, Felicia (GCS Girls Club Treasurer), stood atop a rickety desk that was on top of a table. Felicia wasn't scared; she was ready to work on the map! And her son watched in admiration.

These young women, having had virtually no training in drawing or painting, still tried their best to help with the WMP. Under the guidance of myself and my Liberian Counterpart and Girls Club Co-Sponsor, Massa, they got to work. They observed, practiced, and eventually learned how to draw the lines within the grid boxes to form the countries of the world. They worked, standing on a makeshift scaffolding under the hot, West African sun to paint. Sometimes we worked in the early evenings on the weekends, after the temperature had dropped to a bearable level. A couple afternoons each week, we'd also work after school...during the peak heat of the day...in the middle of the dry season. But they never complained. Instead, they worried about me, that my "bright skin will spoil in the sun"! These girls were the definition of dedication.

Yes, I was left with a lot of the prep-work. Yes, I was constantly tired from planning agendas and conducting meetings. Yes, I was struggling to stay chipper during the duration of the project so as to motivate them. Yes, I suffered from a terrible heat rash on my back for nearly 8 weeks from working anywhere from 2-8 hours at a time on the map! However, it was completely and totally worth it. All of it.

The devoted members of the GCS Girls Club (aka, "The Golden Girls"), surpassed not only my expectations but those of most people in the community. They created a much-needed geographical resource for students and non-students alike in Gbarma. And it looks GOOD. I've only been met with positive remarks for our project. We have the satisfaction and support of the community now because of our community contribution.

Our town is the head town of our district, so many elementary schools are nearby and can benefit from using a map like the one my girls helped create. Immediately after we completed the project, I had children AND adults ask questions about the map. I heard, "Where's America? Where's China? Barca can play for Spain...where is dat?" When I ask young primary school students "Where's Liberia?" they eagerly jump up in attempts to point to their country on the map. It's such a great feeling knowing that we're already helping the people of Gbarma Town to learn about the world outside of Gbarpolu County "small small". And I know my girls have increased pride and self-confidence knowing that they are the cause.

In Liberia, we have the saying "Knowledge is the Light". Everyone knows it and everybody refers to it. I am so incredibly proud that my Golden Girls have helped to kindle that light. They contributed to the development of education in their community, even if it was in a small way. “We need more light for the future,” you say? “Well,” I say, “here’s more fuel to the fire!”

Before

Drawing the Countries on the Grid

Painting!

Done...Well, Almost.

After