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Edward Sandi was born in Freetown. His dad was Albert Daniel Sandi from Bumpe Chiefdom in Bo District. Edward attended St Edward's Primary School in Freetown from 1975 to 1981 and then Services Secondary School from 1981 to 1986. He was a member of the Sierra Leone Boys Scout Association and a pastor at the St. George's Church, Juba, from 1992 to 1996. He was a scout leader for Services Primary and Services Secondary School and also Emmett Primary School, Lumley. He came to the United States in 1996 and in 1997 he joined the United States Navy. He holds a BS degree in Criminal Justice Management from Columbus University , New Orleans , Louisiana , U.S.A. and BA in Business Administration with concentration in Health Care Management and a and Masters in Business Administration, with concentration in Healthcare Management from American Intercontinental University (AIU) Hoffman Estates, Illinois, USA. Married to Juliana Pedretta Sandi (Renner) also a native of Sierra Leone, and have two children, Sonia Juliette and Cameron Maseray. Currently resides in San Jose California. He is still on Active Duty in the United States Navy and his current rank in the Navy, is Chief Petty Officer of the United States Navy. His personal awards in the Navy are, one Navy and Marine Corp Commendation Medal, five Navy and Marine Corp Achievement medal, three Navy Good Conduct, three Flag Letter of Commendation and Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal, his service awards are three sea service award, Coast Guard Operation award, Navy Unit Commendation, Armed Forces Expedition Service award, Global War on Terrorism Service and Global War on Terrorism Expedition medals. [Mar. 2010]

Osman Alimamy Sankoh (Mallam O.) is the Executive Director of the INDEPTH Network (www.indepth-network.org), a health information international NGO based in Accra, Ghana. Commonly known as Mallam O., he was born at Warima, Koya Chiefdom, Port Loko District - 58 miles from Freetown on the Masiaka-Mile 91 highway. Mallam O. attended Tomlinson High School , Songo, near Waterloo . He holds a B.Sc.Ed. (Division One Distinction in Mathematics) from Njala University College (now Njala University) where he was Student Union President in 1985/86. He did further studies at the University of Dortmund in Germany where he obtained the following degrees in Applied Statistics - B.Sc. Hons., M.Sc. and D.Sc. He was a scientist (biostatistician/epidemiologist) in the Department of Tropical Hygiene and Public Health at the University of Heidelberg, Germany (1999 to 2002). He started work with the INDEPTH Network in July 2002 strangely as a Communications and External Relations Manager, became the Deputy Executive Director in 2006 and in 2007 became the Executive Director. Mallam O. taught at Tomlinson High School (1978 to 1980), Yengema Secondary School (1981 to 1983), and University Secondary School , Njala (1988 to 1989). He was a Research/Teaching Assistant at NUC (1987 to 1989). Osman is founding editor-in-chief of the international African Journal of Environmental Assessment and Management (www.ajeam.com) and co-founder of Africa Positive (www.africa-positive.com), a magazine in Germany that portrays the positive sides of Africa . He has authored several books including "Hybrid Eyes - Reflections of an African in Europe", "Beautiful Colours", "Statistics Without Fear - Descriptive Statistics", "A New Method for the Analysis of Forestry Data", and recently in 2009 "Climate Variability and Malaria Transmission Risk". Mallam O. is founder and publisher of the Sierra Leonean Writers Series (www.sl-writers-series.org), an initiative that gives opportunities to writers of Sierra Leonean origin to publish their books. [Mar. 2010]

Gary Schulze was a member of the first contingent of Peace Corps Volunteers to go to Sierra Leone in 1961. He taught history at the Albert Academy and helped the late Dr. M.C.F. Easmon establish the Sierra Leone National Museum. He served as Secretary to the Sierra Leone Monuments & Relics Commission. The statue of Bai Bureh he commissioned in 1962 appears on the Le 1,000 note. Copies of this statue, which still stands in the museum, are sold throughout the country as tourist souvenirs. He also made the model of the DeRuiter stone which is still on display in the museum. Under the auspices of the State Department and the African-American Institute, Mr. Schulze served as an International Observer at the 1996 Sierra Leone Presidential and Legislative Elections. He is a member of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Interagency Counterterrorism Task Force in New York City. He is on the Board of Advisors of the United African Congress, the Boards of Directors of the Friends of Sierra Leone, the Magic Penny, an organization devoted to improving the lives of schoolchildren in the Sherbro area, and Queensborough Community College. An avid collector of traditional African art, some of his collection of was exhibited at the Queensborough College Art Museum in the fall of 2006. [Mar. 2010]

Susan L. Schwartz was a Peace Corps Volunteer (Agriculture) in Juma and Nitti, Moyamba District, from 1981 to 1983. She subsequently taught English and trained English teachers in China and Indonesia. Susan currently lives in Haverhill, Massachusetts, U.S.A., and teaches English as a Second Language at a public school; she also teaches in-service courses in her school district. In July-August 2007, she participated in a Fulbright-Hays Seminar Abroad program to India and in July 2009, she spent three weeks in Turkey, visiting Cappadocia and archeological sites to create materials for her course in world history. [Mar. 2010]

Malcolm Seisay was born in Bonthe Sherbro. He is an alumnus of Albert Academy (class of 66) and Hampton University, with further studies at George Washington University. He is a U.S. Army vietnam-era veteran currently residing in American Canyon, Northern California.  [Mar. 2010]

Dr. Mohamed B.D. Seisay hails from Bonthe Town and attended the Bo Government Secondary School in Bo and Fourah Bay College in Freetown. He has Msc and PhD degrees in fish population ecology from the University of Wales, United Kingdom. His main professional interest is in evaluation of fish populations and their forecasting methodologies. He is the Head of Fisheries Statistics and Research Unit in the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources in Freetown but currently on a special assignment as National Counterpart Coordinator for an European Union fisheries Project "Institutional Support for Fisheries Management" in Sierra Leone. [Jul. 2009]

Almamy Razak Seray-Wurie was born to Muhammadu Alieu Sie of Foulah Town and Tenneh Goba Bengeh of Moyamba. He trained at Milton Margai Teachers College and City University of New York. Currently, Pre-K Teacher at Grand Street Settlement and Tutor at Bronx Community College. Lives in Queens with wife and two children. [Mar. 2010]

Susan Shepler was a Peace Corps Volunteer at Gbendembu Secondary School from 1987 to 1989. She completed a PhD at the University of California, Berkeley on the reintegration of former child soldiers in Sierra Leone. She is an Assistant Professor at American University in the School of International Service, where she teaches courses on Conflict in Africa and on Youth and Conflict. She is married to Wusu Kargbo of Rogbin, Sierra Leone. They live in Washington D.C. [Mar. 2010]

Dr. Mohamed Abdul Sheriff attended Bo Government Secondary School, Christ the King College, Fourah Bay College and the London School of Economics and Political Science. He taught at St. Joseph's in Freetown and at the Institute of Public Administration and Management (IPAM), Tower Hill, Freetown. He currently lives in London, U.K., where he is Principal Lecturer and Director of Postgraduate programmes in Business Information Systems, School of Engineering and Information Sciences, Middlesex University. [Mar. 2010].

Ousmann Sheriff a.k.a Jalohmee. hails from Sanda, a village called Rokullan in Northern Sierra Leone, where he started his educational pursuit at the B.D.E.C Primary School, and went to The Bo Government Secondary school in Bo and St. Francis Secondary school in Makeni. He later proceeded to the Njala University College to earn his under-graduate BSc Degree in Agricultural Science. He worked for the Port Loko Agricultural development Project (PLADP) in Port Loko as an Agricultural Extension Officer and later left for the Netherlands where he bagged a certificate from the International Agricultural Centre (IAC). His unquenchable thirst for education did not seem to have waned. He migrated to the United Kingdom and entered Wye College, University of London to crack a Masters degree in Agricultural Economics, specialising in Development. He later entered University of Greenwich in London to study mental health nursing. He is a practising a psychiatric mental health nurse, and also working with relief volunteer organisations. He curently lived in Romford in the United Kingdom with his wife Ramata Dibba Jalloh and daughters, Adama, Mariama, Haja, Bintu and Assanatu Sheriff-Jalloh. [Feb. 2010]

Rev. Tom Sundima Simbo was born in Freetown and grew up in Njama, Kowa Chiefdom, Moyamba District. He attended UMC Primary School, Njama, and Taima Secondary School, Taima Kori Chiefdom, Moyamba District. After graduation from high school, he entered the sacred ministry and commenced his ministry training at a pentecostal mission, Maforki Bible Institute in Port Loko. He was pastor in Port Loko between 1976 and 1980. He later worked with the United Brethren in Christ (UBC) as pastor in Mattru Jong, Bumpe and Wellington from 1981 to 1993. He earned his Diploma and Bachelor of Theology degree from the Sierra Leone Bible College in Jui and Baptist Theological Seminary, Paynesville, Liberia. He joined the Evangelical Fellowship of Sierra Leone, an umbrella evangelical non-governmental organization with headquarters in Freetown, as Senior staff, Director of Evangelism and Church Ministries. In this position, he travelled extensively around Sierra Leone, training church leaders and preaching the gospel. He served as consultant for the Holland-based Christian NGO Samaritans Purse to launch ministry programs in Dar-El Salam, Tanzania and Conakry, Guinea in 2000 and 1998, respectively. He was an executive member of the Inter-Religious Council of Sierra Leone, which was formed in April 1997 to foster religious unity and awareness. He and other members of the Council were very instrumental in mounting pressure on the AFRC Junta to hand power back to the democratically-elected government in 1998. He was also one of the members who traveled the Sub-region - Guinea, Liberia and Nigeria -to advocate for the cessation of hostilities wrought by the RUF. He left the shores of Sierra Leone in 2002 for the U.S.A. He is now happily located in Englewood, Colorado with his lovely wife Elizabeth of 28 years and their four daughters. He holds an MA degree in Counseling Ministries from the Denver Seminary, and serves Supervisory position at the Hyatt Hotel in Denver, Internship Chaplain at the Denver VA Medical Center, and serves on the Board of Directors of the Rocky Mountain Survivors Center. [May 2009]

Jim and Betty Jo Smith were Peace Corps Volunteers in Makeni in 1982. They now live in Denver, Colorado, U.S.A. [Mar. 2010]

Sallu A.M. Sonjor, popularly known as Sonjorise was born to Madam Sallay Sonjor and late Mr. Alhassan Sonjor in Gbap Village, Nongoba Bullum Chiefdom, Bonthe District in Sierra Leone. He attended various learning institutions including Duramany Sesay Memorial ICS Primary; Bonthe Secondary School, Christ the King College, Fourah Bay College and the Institute of Public Administration and Management. After early graduation from college, his mother land by then been ravaged by a senseless rebel war, he migrated to Gambia West Africa. In Gambia, he worked as a lecturer at the Gambia Technical Training Institute, as a tutor at the Marina International School and as an IT training manager at the African Information and Technology Holdings Limited [AITH]. Full of Dynamism and eager to learn, he moved to Germany in year 2000 to pursue a master’s degree in Environmental Protection and Regional Planning. In Germany he attended various institutions among which were the University of Leipzig, Dresden University of Technology, and media project training centre He is currently an Environmental Engineer and Web programmer who fluently speaks both English and German. At an early age, Sallu was always willing to serve. He was senior prefect, Bonthe Secondary School and health prefect in Christ the King College–Bo, during 1989/1990 academic year. That same academic year saw him also as Sport Captain of Saint Eugeno House. As sport captain, he mobilised his fellow students which made that house earned a 2nd position at the end of the sport competition. After graduating from Christ the King College , he taught at the Moyamba boys Secondary School now Fergusson Memorial Secondary School in Moyamba. As one of the House masters during his short stay at the school, he worked hard which saw the Gulama house wining admirable silver cups. In Fourah Bay College, he was a member of the students representative council, a post he resigned after been appointed a Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education in the Student Union government. In the Geography department at Fourah Bay College he was made Secretary General of the Students Geographical Association. Above all, he was President of the Bonthe District Students Union [BONDSU], during 1993/1994 academic year. In Gambia he mobilized the Bonthe Community to form the Bonthe Descendants Association [BONDA] of which he became the Secretary General. In Germany, he helped put Sierra Leone on the map of the University and the town of Dresden by organising, in collaboration with the University, the Sierra Leone socio cultural events. [Aug. 2009]

David and Gale Swenson lived in Sierra Leone from 1972 to 1974. Both worked for Sierra Rutile and lived in Mobimbi. David was the Chief Chemist and Gale was the Secretary to the Managing Director. Currently, David and Gale live in Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.A. [Mar. 2010]

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Festus A. Tarawalie was head boy (senior prefect) of St. Francis Secondary School in Makeni during the 1986/87 academic year. He subsequently taught at the same school for two years. He holds a PhD in communication and rural development following years of study in Rome, Italy . He is presently working for Vatican Radio's daily English Programme for Africa as co-editor and co-producer and assists the Consul in Rome for Sierra Leone's representation at the three Rome-based UN offices FAO/IFAD/WFP. He is a member of the Geneva-based International Union of Catholic Journalists (UCIP) and his hobbies include traveling, rural development issues, and news. [Mar. 2010]

Matilda (George) Taylor-Young (Mrs Charid-Dumbuya) attended YWCA Vocational Institute (1966 to 1971). She taught Commerce and Religious Knowledge at the Sierra Leone Commercial Institute (1971-1972) and worked for Sierra Leone Airways/Airlines (1972 to 1987). She lived at Elk Street from birth until 1966 and then in the west end of Freetown until 1987. Her last address in Freetown was Marjay Town , Goderich. She is currently living in London. Educated at Kings College University and City University U.K. Nurse Practitioner/Practice Educator Lambeth South & Lewisham 1997-2003; Senior Lecturer Thames Valley University London 2003-2009 [Retired] but not tired. Formerly Mrs George; her children include Princess Carolyn George [Mrs George-Davies], Desmond George and Roseanna George. Nieces/nephew Rachael Olayemi Niger [Mrs Owens], Angela Taylor-Harding [Mrs Momoh], Cornelious Coker. Adopted Daughter: Cecilia Kargbo [Mrs Peters]. [Mar. 2010]

V.J. Temple, MSc; Ph.D.; C.Biol; M.I.Biol., attended Prince of Wales Secondary School and, from 1971 to 1980, Moscow State University. He was an Associate Professor in the Department of Biochemistry, College of Medicine and Allied Health Sciences, University of Sierra Leone. The AFRC military coup took place one month after his arrival in Freetown to take up his appointment at the COMAHS USL, and one month after the coup he left to join his wife and children in Riga, Latvia, the name of his wife, Olga Kitty Temple. Prior to his arrival in Sierra Leone, he was an Associate Professor in Biochemistry in the Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Jos, in Plateau State, Nigeria. He was a Docent in the department of Medical Biochemistry in the Latvian Medical Academy in Riga Latvia. He is currently Professor of Clinical Biochemistry, Chairman of Basic Medical Sciences (BMS) and Head of Discipline of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in the Division of BMS, School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS), University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG), Papua New Guinea (PNG). He is also the Director of the Micronutrient Research Laboratory in the SMHS UPNG. His current research areas include: Thyroid dysfunction in Infants and Mothers, improving the nutrition status of people living with HIV/AIDS, with special interest in nutrition status of infants and mothers with HIV/AIDS. He has completed several research projects and published several research papers in the area of micronutrient deficiency (Iron, Iodine, Thiamine, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Zinc). [Jul. 2009]

Thane Thompson was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Kabala and Njala from 1992 to 1994, working on agriculture projects dealing with work-oxen and animal production. Upon returning to the US, he worked for a community environmental organization from 1994 to 1996 before pursuing a Master's degree in Environmental Policy and Natural Resource Management at Indiana University. After three years with the Department of Labor in Washington, D.C., he and his wife moved to Cincinnati, Ohio. He currently works as a Project Manager for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Inspector General, and is also a freelance writer of fiction and poetry. Look for his work at places like The Drabblecast, Reflection's Edge, and Flashquake. Thane and his wife Tamilyn have two daughters, Cora and Avery. [Mar. 2010]

Rachael Patricia Thorpe currently lives in western Freetown. She attended the Central Nursery School, Tower Hill Municipal School and the Methodist Girls' High School. She works for Rokel Commercial Bank (SL) Limited, and has many professional certificates in Secretarial Studies. [Jul. 2009]

Teddy Abioseh Thorpe attended Methodist Boys' High School (1961 to 1965) and Fourah Bay College (1967 to 1971) He taught Geography at the Annie Walsh and St. Helena Secondary Schools (1972 to 1975). He worked for Sierra Leone Airways (1975 to 1981), the Commonwealth Secretariat in London (1981 to 1989). He moved to Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A. (1989 to 1994). He is currently in Atlanta, Georgia where he has worked as a residential real estate broker since 2004. [Mar. 2010]

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Karen Ulberg was a Peace Corps Volunteer from 1972 to 1974 at St. Andrew's Secondary School in Bo. She is now in Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S.A. [Mar. 2010]

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Chuck and Barbara Vaughn lived and worked in the town of Rogbin, Bombali District, Northern Province. They currently live in Ukiah, California, U.S.A. Chuck works for the Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources of the University of California, and Barbara is a first grade teacher. They have two daughters, Darcy and Sara. [Jul. 2009]

Jaap W. J. Verhey van Wijk was Regional Manager of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines until the 1997 coup. He now resides in the Philippines, but will relocate to Cape Town, South Africa in September 2009. [Jul. 2009]

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DarEll T. Weist lived in Bo from 1973 to 1976, where he taught theological education for the United Methodist Church. He currently lives in Pasadena, California, U.S.A. [Mar. 2010]

Paul A. Wilson taught at Yonibana Secondary School, Tonkolili District, from September 1971 to June 1974 as a CUSO volunteer. On his return to Canada, he took a Masters Degree in International Development at the University of Toronto. Following that, he worked for fifteen years in the field of Community Development for the Toronto Board of Education. In 1988/89 he went to work in Cross River State, Nigeria, to do community development work. In 1992 he went back to university to get his teaching certificate, and taught public elementary school students until June 2008, when he retired as a permanent teacher. Paul is currently an occasional teacher. He became active working with the local Rwandan community in 1998 joining an NGO called Hope for Rwanda's Children's Fund. He has travelled to Rwanda three times and remains active with Hope. On one of those trips in 2006 he had the joy of marrying his partner, Dada Gasirabo, at a traditional Rwandan ceremony, in Kigali. They live together in Toronto, Ontario, Canada where Dada works in the Francophone community on programs to prevent abuse against women. [Mar. 2010]

Dr. Dennis Wilson-Cole was born and raised in Kissy, Freetown. He is an alumnus of Kissy Primary School, Prince of Wales School, the Institute of Public Administration and Management, Emile Woolf College of Accountancy, Middlesex and Kingston Universities. He is a chartered accountant and management consultant. He lectures graduate and research students in various finance and law modules. His research interests include Enterprise Governance, UK & European Union Company Law, Corporate Social Reporting, Emerging Economies and Financial Management in SMEs. His past employers and clients have included the world-renowned London School of Economics (LSE), Her Majesty's Treasury (HMT), the Lord Chancellor's Department (LCD), Investors in People UK, The Centre for Tomorrow's Company, Diabetes UK, The Insurance Charities and the London Boroughs of Newham and Croydon. He is a non-executive director, trustee, honorary treasurer and Corporate Governance adviser to many SMEs and third sector organisations in London, the home counties and the Midlands. He is married to Marilyn Sylvia (a British child development specialist with Caribbean ancestry) and they have a daughter, Chantelle Adeyemi Denise. They are Seventh-day Adventists living in London, England. [Mar. 2010]

Jon Wright was born in Port Loko, and grew up in Freetown, where he attended St. Edward's Primary and Secondary School. He came to the U.S. in 1978, and lived in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. He now resides in Santa Clara, California (Silicon Valley) where he is a Senior Systems Engineer with Intel Corporation. [Mar. 2010]