FAQ's
Frequently Asked Questions
Why me?
As Jackie Frazier--one of our board members and mother of three adopted boys from Liberia--has said: "I believe that small groups of people simply helping other small groups of people is one of the most effective ways to create real change in people's lives." That pretty much sums it up. We're simply inviting people to be part of this thing with us and get involved in bringing about real change in the lives of real people, and all of it occuring through real relationships.
Why now?
Hope International School is in its third year and its operation and impact on the community of Gardnersville has exceeded our expectations. Up until now, most of our funding for the school has been in the form of many generous one-time donations, which have been instrumental in getting things up and running. However, as we look toward the sustainability of the school and its continued success, we realize we need to shift our financial support structure into one that consists primarily of ongoing, monthly support from donors. This will provide us with a much more secure financial foundation from which to continue working.
What for?
Where does your money go? Literally 95% of every dollar goes directly to Hope International School in order to pay teacher salaries, purchase medicine for our nurse to administer, or to provide clean water for the students to drink. The 5% of the money that doesn't go toward these things is used to pay the wire transfer fee from the United States to Liberia and to purchase things such as stamps, printer paper, etc. Our gaol is to keep these costs at a minimum to ensure that as much of your donation as possible goes straight to Hope International School and the amazing work that is being done there.
In 2009 The Hope Project received an extremely generous private donation which has allowed us to fund a couple things, including an assessment trip to Liberia and the opportunity to pay Ron Skylstad, our Communications and Outreach Officer, to work on some of the growing logistical aspects of the Project.
What exactly do you do?
When we first started, we had lots of ideas as to the sorts of things we wanted to do in helping the people of Liberia. However, once we started, we soon realized that the single biggest impact we could make was through a tuition-free school. Some of our early projects consisted of purchasing and distributing rice to families in the Gardnersville area. During our recent trip to Liberia, on seperate occasions we met two different recipients of the rice. They both told us that they thankful for the "aid" that we had sent, but that it wasn't as important as what we were giving them now...a chance for their children to be educated.
We have realized that one of the primary tools in defeating poverty and allowing children a tangible future of hope is education, and we are committed to providing that to them. Therefore, nearly everything we now do revolves around Hope International School and its indefinite continuation.
We harness the resources and gifts of donors here in the states and use them to operate the school, including paying faculty and administrative salaries, providing clean drinking water, hiring a nurse and keeping an adequate stock of medine and medical supplies. Without the support and generosity of donors we would not be able to offset these costs, and therefore would not be able to offer a tuition-free education to those who actually need it.
Where exactly is Hope International School?
The school is located in the community of Gardnersville, approximately 10-15 miles outside Liberia's capital city of Monrovia:
Of all places, why Gardnersville?
The Hope Project was born out of a relationship between people in the states and Joseph Cummings in Liberia. Joseph lives in Gardnersville. In the winter of 2007 a conversation began as to what sorts of challenges the people of Joseph's community faced and how people outside of Liberia might be able to help them overcome some of these challenges. From this conversation was born Hope International School and its various related projects and programs. Since Joseph is a member of this community and understands the needs of its members, it was only logical that we focus our efforts and begin a partnership with the people here. 
