A Child's Story: Jacob Tower of Sierra Leone
POSTED ON Jan 19, 2010
Jacob Tower of Sierra Leone is shy, but very friendly.
Akey, Jacob, Aminata (mother), Henry ,and Christiana take a family portrait when Akey comes to visit.
Jacob surveys the playground, imagining the next soccer match.
Jacob is a very intelligent boy.
Sacrifice is a word known all too well to the people of Sierra Leone. Eleven-year-old Jacob Tower is certainly no exception.
Recently, Jacob’s parents, Solomon and Aminata, decided that they could no longer afford to send all four of their children to school without Jacob’s mother working. So twelve months ago, Aminata took a job in Banta Mokelleh as the Aunty of Children of the Nations' "House Two" in our Banta Children's Village. This meant that Jacob, his brother Henry, and his sister Christiana all had to move to Banta Mokelleh with Aminata and begin attending school there at COTN’s Mallory Jansen Memorial School. Jacob’s father and his oldest sister, Akey, remained in Freetown.
Jacob had a nice life in Freetown, where his entire family lived under one roof, and he could play soccer with his best friend, Joshua. But in order to continue his education, Jacob had to leave this life and move to Ngolala Junction, the small roadside village near COTN’s Banta Ministry Center.
When asked how he felt about the move, Jacob replied, “I was sad because there was no one for me to play with.” Most of all, he misses his father and sister, whom he has been able to visit only three times in the last year.
Over time Jacob is learning to adjust to his new life. He has made lots of new friends, particularly Kebbie Kargbo and Karim and Eddie Kamara from COTN’s Banta Children’s Home. When asked what he likes to do with his new friends, Jacob responds with a smile, “Make fun and sing and dance.”
As Jacob has become more comfortable in his new home, he has come out of his shell. Despite his shy disposition, Jacob is a very friendly, engaging young man. He is an extremely intelligent boy who really enjoys attending school, English class in particular. This year he even took the National Exam. When he is not in school, he likes to sing and dance, jump rope, and play balance ball and soccer. When he grows up, Jacob aspires to be a commercial airline pilot so that he can fly to England, South Africa, and the United States. Whatever he becomes, he seeks to be successful in his career so that his family will not need to make the same sacrifices he has had to make.