Life in Brigitte Village is simple. There are no televisions. No internet. No running water or electricity in most homes. There's maybe an occasional cell phone signal.
Unlike in the city (Freetown), there is an obvious lack of resources and organizations that offer handouts. The people here, they have historically taken care of one another. "The people in the village, they work hard because if you don't work hard, you don't eat," said Paula Miller, missionary with Lifegate International.
Unemployment is high. Very high. Those who do work probably don't earn a living wage. They might be happy with the equivalent of one American dollar per day. That, of course, leads to other challenges -- including lack of transportation, inability to pay the small fee to send children to school and absence of general healthcare.
It's not for lack of trying. There is certainly the bustle of business activity here.
Some women walk miles alongside the main highway that divides Brigitte Village, selling homemade items or more than likely fish, to neighboring villages that are scattered every few miles on this modern road where motorcycles offer inexpensive rides and an occasional truck or car passes by. Some women spend all day walking and selling, leaving their children behind in the village to attend school or be cared for by neighbors.
Fish is the main commodity in Brigitte Village. It's the sole income provider for numerous families. Men go out daily in fishing boats, many without motors, and bring in their catches to the beach where other men and women negotiate for their purchase. The fish are then often smoked and resold or simply resold in neighboring villages.
Fish drying out on the side of the highway.
Fish laid out in a smoke house.
A woman with a few fish in her tub is waiting for another boat of fishermen to come ashore so she can buy more fish.
Young men mend nets on the beach.
Oftentimes, the fishing boats have no motor.
But there's also the concern for overfishing, something that is of great concern to the village chief, as more fishermen have smaller and smaller catches. Not only would the depletion of fish be bad for the local economy, it could have social and nutritional consequences, too.
Like the deforestation occurring in this area, there doesn't seem to be a solution. "Even though the government tries to stop these woodcutters, they turn a blind eye on it because it's their way of life," noted Pastor Justus Koroma.
That's why Lifegate is working alongside the village chief to create more opportunities for other types of reliable income, for more jobs for Brigitte. Will you pray that the Bible Telling School can offer HOPE in this way? Will you pray about the issue of overfishing in Brigitte Village?
