By Tokpa M. Tarnue- tarnue82@gmail.com
Zorzor, Liberia- Health facilities in two districts in Liberia’s northwestern Lofa Counties have received a donation of assorted medical supplies from a Liberian health specialist and humanitarian residing in the United States of America.
The LiberianMadam Garmai Tokpa, who is commonly known as Garmai Nuta, has been distributing essential hospital supplies including patient gowns, patient gowns, mask, syringes, scrubs and crushes among others to health centers in Salayea and Zorzor districts.
In Zorzor and Salayea districts, the donations were made in the following towns and clinics including, Zorzor Curran Lutheran Hospital, Sucromu clinic, Kpaiyea clinic, Gbanway clinic, Yarpuah clinic, Salayea health center, Gbonyea clinic, Kparyaquelleh community clinic, Gorlu clinic, Ganglota clinic and Beyan town Clinic respectively.
Madam Tokpa explained that she encountered two missionaries name Dr. Richard Ross Higgs and Frank Hullken when she was a sixth (6) grade dropout student because of financial support.
The missionaries helped her to enroll at the A. M. E Zion Academy, where she completed her high school studies and subsequently entered the University of Liberia where her studies were disrupted due to the civil war.
According to Madam Tokpa, the War forced her to Sierra Leone in order to seek refuge, where she got reconnected with her sponsors in the US. Her connection with the missionaries’ afforded her the opportunity to the US. There, she studied and obtained her first and second degrees in mental science.
“One day while driving with her Sponsor Dr. Higgs in the US she asked him how can I appreciate you for all you have done for me and his response to her was Garmai as I have done to you go and do for your people and from that day it became a serious assignment for her,” the U S based Liberian health practitioner.
According to her, the latest donations are not in any way politically motivated or driven. Instead, Madam Tokpa said she is doing so for the sake of her people, as she was instructed to pay back by her sponsor Dr. Richard Ross Higgs.
The medical supplies were not her first offer since she returned home from America few years back. Initially, she decided to surprise her mother’s home town by donating assorted educational materials to Yarpuah school back in 2016.
She however called on other Liberian in the diaspora to follow her path.
She then promised to do more in other sectors of life, in order to help improve the living conditions and well-being of her people, urging them to continue to pray for her.