Brookhaven business aids college reclamation effort
Friday, March 5, 2010
In the fourth chapter of Nehemiah, the Jews rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem with haste because "the people had a mind to work."
In the second chapter of a Christian school on the west coast of Africa, a war-torn campus is being rebuilt with help from Brookhaven because a few workers here were of the same mind.
To put the finishing touches on a project to reclaim African Bible Colleges University Liberia from the jungle after 16 years of abandonment, local metal manufacturing industry Reed's Metals, Inc., is providing an expansive metal building to serve as the college's new gymnasium. The company sold the building at a far reduced price after a chance meeting with three local ABC supporters that must have taken place, they say, due to the guidance of God.
"Sometimes we try to force things to happen, but God makes it happen for us," said Brookhaven's Johnny Lynch, who helped close the deal on the building. "There was a lot of prayer involved."
ABCUL was built in 1976, the first of three colleges - ABC University Malawi was built in 1988, and ABC University Uganda was added in 2005. Dr. Del Chinchen founded the school after years of mission work in Liberia, and it soon began to turn out classes of Christian-educated leaders.
The school operated successfully until 1992, when it was abandoned during the First Liberian Civil War.
The war began in 1989 in Nimba County, where ABCUL is located, when the infamous future dictator Charles Taylor staged a rebellion against the government. The war would end with Taylor's election as president in 1997, by which time around 200,000 Liberians were dead and hundreds of thousands more had fled the country.
After ABCUL was abandoned, Taylor's rebels looted the school, stripping away anything valuable and leaving the shells of buildings to be taken by the jungle. In 2005, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf was elected president and peace was finally attained. Taylor has since faced trial in The Hague for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
ABC leaders returned to Liberia in 2005 to inspect ABCUL. The sight was overgrown and barely recognizable. But rebuilding began with Johnson-Sirleaf's support.
By the time Brookhaven's Ed Williford, ABC's director of development, visited the campus last November, rebuilding was nearing completion and the first class in 16 years was well into its sophomore year.
Only one building remained unrestored - the gymnasium, the pride of the campus and at one time likely the only gymnasium in Liberia. Williford received instructions from Chinchen.
"He said we're going to rebuild our gymnasium. Y'all go back and find someone to help us," Williford said.
Williford returned to his home at The Inez, wondering what to do, until he picked up an October edition of The DAILY LEADER and read a story about the success of Reed's Metals, which was then undergoing its third expansion. Here was the answer, he thought.
"I figured that was the Lord's message to me, to find some way to see that guy," Williford said.
Williford tried to arrange a meeting with Reed's Metals owner Bernie Reed. He enlisted the help of his son-in-law - Johnny Lynch - and his friend and former mayor Bob Massengill. The three called on Reed numerous times, but was unable to track him down.
Then, as they see it, God took over the negotiations.
"Two weeks later, Johnny called and said, 'Guess who just walked into my office?'" Williford said.
Reed came into Lynch's office by mistake, looking for another office. The two businessmen talked shop, and Lynch brought up ABCUL. A meeting was planned for the following Monday.
At that meeting, Reed sealed the deal by selling ABCUL a 125x95-foot metal building at cost, generating no profit for his own company and saving ABC $8,000 to $10,000 on the project. He also agreed to ship the material to the port, where Firestone - which manages a rubber plantation in Liberia and has a good relationship with ABC - will deliver the parts to Liberia.
To Williford, it was a relief and a message from God.
"We knew none of what (Reed) was made of when we read that article, but I think the Lord just put it on his heart," he said.
For Reed, charity is nothing new.
"We always try to help churches, colleges and that sort of thing. Every church we give a discount to, help them with fees or just throw something in there to help them out," Reed said. "It's just what I feel like I should do. I'm just glad we could be a part of it."
