GYSD: The Maxson Sahr Kpakio Miracle

Maxson Sahr Kpakio is a Liberian living in the UK. kpakios@yahoo.com. This story is all about his donation and how it changed the life of the youth and all of us in the last minute of 2008 Global Youth Service Day in Liberia.

As you may know by now, Global Youth Service Day just began in Liberia last year. It is about 21 years old in the world and 2 years in Liberia. I helped to pluck Liberia into the process.

You probably know by now. I came to Liberia from the US. I came on my own to help the Reconstruction Process. I know this is a “crazy” thing to do! But you know what? Someone has to do it. And I chose myself to be the “crazy” one. A 14-year generalized anarchy of violence destroyed infrastructure and human resource. So helping is the most patriotic thing one can do!


The month is May. I am two years in Liberia. I’m working as a volunteer. Every help I give to communities, is from my personal pocket. Living in the “Third world” and spending one’s hard-won money to help others is nothing to joke about. It is rather painful. The hardest part is when those whom we help do not understand nor appreciate the work we do. Not because they hate us. But because this idea of independence is new to them. So is volunteerism. As such, it wrenches one’s heart. For one cannot get used to spending his or her money like I do in Liberia without dropping a tear for a minute. Worse of all, when most Liberians with the pocket-power refuse to help us do our work, it adds to the frustration. Such an attitude on the part of those Liberians rips out the heart of a good man.

This is where Mr. Kpakio comes in. He made me believe that there are still few Liberians out there who care, understand and are helping in their weak but noble way. With those kinds of Liberians, I believe Liberia will thrive!

It was few days prior to Global Youth Service Day in 2008. The phone rang. It said, "ring, ring!" I was coming from an interview on Star Radio. On the Radio we talked about the youth of Liberia and the future. We were done. I walked out of the Studio. I was on my way home. It was just around 6pm, Liberian Time. Then I received that phone call. I answered. The person on the other line was very excited. I didn’t know why. But he went on talking. Soon I picked up the idea. He was thanking me. He heard my interview on Global Youth Service Day and my involvement with the youth of Liberia. He heard this all the way in the UK. So he said he was impressed. Under one breathe he told me all his impressions. Soon my spirit was lifted. It was up to the skies. So I was good for another interview. And this because listened to him. Definitely I took heart. So I prayed for him to keep talking. I was getting high on his encouraging words. My spirit was getting lighter. It ran to the next day's interview. I was ready. I could feel myself doing extremely well in the next interview. My dangling spirit was set free and repaired. It was no more entrapped in the lack of funding mindset. Prior to that, the kids and I were wondering what to do to kick off the day. Ambivalence set in. I wanted to work very hard. But at the same time I wasn’t getting the support. So I was falling apart at the hinges. As a result, I wanted to quit. All this was happening before Brother Kpakio in the UK called me. He talked. And he pulled me out of ambivalence. He nicely (with his kind and encouraging words) landed me at a point of positive spirit. At the closing of our phone conversation, he informed me he was instructing his daughter in Barnersville to give us his donation. He made it clear that it wasn’t enough. But it was his “Widow’s might.” The next day his daughter phoned me. She told me that her dad in the UK asked her to give us some money. And she wanted to know where to find me. I told her. And she found me right opposite the Justice Ministry where we went to obtain a Permit to march to a brass band. She gave me $20. From that $20 the miracle began to take shape and form.

Here was the problem: The Planning Committee of Global Youth was stranded. We had an appointment to meet the Minster of Youth & Sports. But we were out of funds to transport ourselves to Paynesville. And we had to get there. Or else, we were done for the Event. It was not going to be hosted for lack of funding. The thing was some Youth Services deputy ministers at the Ministry were giving us problems. They made promises. But never kept them. Minister Tarpeh was informed. When she heard that, she wanted to know what the problem was. But she was about to go out of town. And she wanted to see us immediately. We had no money. So we didn’t know what to do. Then “bang!” something happened. The $20 donation of Maxson Sahr Kpakio came in. Right away it became a Miracle for us. We chattered a taxi cab right away. Every Committee member got on board. Straight to the Ministry we went. As soon as we got there, the Minster was about to leave. But she held on for us. We met with her. After talking she approved $1,500.00 for our Program. Right there the $20 that Maxson sent us gave us $1,480.00. THAT WAS A MIRICLE, WASN’T IT? YEST! IT WAS!

From that $20 we all learned a lesson. I was a Kpakio Miracle. We also learned Miracles are still happening in the world as they were tens and tens of hundreds of years ago. And because of that we also learned that it doesn’t really matter how much one donates to a cause. What matter is how that donation is allocated. Brother Kpakio’s donation wasn’t that big. But it created something much bigger. And what it created solved all our major problems for GYSD 2008.

Maxson Kpakio’s donation made everything easy for us. It changed our reality in no time. It placed us on the track to move Global Youth Service Day forward. Because of that, we attribute our 2008 success of GYSD to Brother Maxson Kpakio of UK and his lovely and kindhearted family.

Thanks a million to Brother Maxson Sahr Kpakio and his family for such a Miracle in 2008! Every time we help each other, we in turn please God; and when He is pleased, He increases our blessings!

May Maxson Sahr Kpakio and his family reap hundredfold, the goodness that they sow! We will honor his name May 3 at GYSD Indoor Program! He deserves it!