Sierra Leone

Long shot. Long Odds. 

Every coffee related trip I take is different.

Sometimes, we are gathering stories about our farm partners. 
Other times, we are visiting farms in hopes of finding an additional values- aligned partner.  
When I lead trips to origin, my wish is that my fellow travelers have a positive, transformational experience. 
Occasionally, we are exploring a region we have not yet visited to see what’s there and envision what might be possible.
In Sierra Leone? Our directive was clear. Visit the new coffee nursery and support the folks doing the work on the ground.  ​

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“I cannot tell the truth about anything unless I confess being a student,
growing and learning something new every day.”

~ Sonia Sanchez

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Hello friends!

It’s great to be home this week. I cannot believe the difference in the trees and plants! Everything is so much more leafed out than when I left, and the perfumed air from the lilacs and lily of the valley? Wow! 

I love this time of year. The exuberance of nature reminds me of possibilities and growth. Folks are returning to town after a winter somewhere warm. And somehow, Mike managed to do all the hard work on our sailboat while I was away. I came home to Little Wing not only nestled into her slip, but she’s absolutely gleaming! Let the sailing season begin. 🥰

I have so much to share about my time in Sierra Leone. Being in West Africa for the first time was special for me. This is an area that was hugely transformational for Mike. After college graduation, he spent 2 1/2 years in the Peace Corps in Guinea Bissau. While I still hope to visit Guinea Bissau someday, I’m grateful for the opportunity to have visited the region.

Sierra Leone does grow coffee. But, due to Civil War and Ebola, much of the knowledge base about how to care for coffee has been lost. Therefore, in the places where coffee is growing, the quality of that coffee is very poor and people are desperate for knowledge. 

Coffee can be a very important crop for a country because it is a commodity, and that means it brings in hard currency as an export. 

Kadiatu Allie (pictured above) is the Deputy Finance Minister of Sierra Leone, and she is one of the most amazing humans I have ever met. In addition to working tirelessly for her country, she wants to change lives in the villages where her family lives. So, she has purchased land and is starting a model coffee farm. This will provide much needed employment within the villages, and, hopefully someday, bring in that hard currency that Sierra Leone so desperately needs. 

Seeing the coffee nursery was nothing short of miraculous. Truly. 
It is so difficult to explain what it takes to get to these villages. But there they were. Healthy coffee seedlings and baby coffee plants. 

Wana Chipoya, a Zambian agronomist who specializes in coffee, was with us to help assess and support the new plants. Everyone was so eager to learn more, to do more, to make sure this all succeeds. 

We also spent hours walking Kadiatu’s new parcels of land . . .  exploring where it might be best for the coffee once it's ready to be transplanted. 

Coffee is not a quick solution. If everything goes super well, it will be four years before there’s anything to harvest. And, coffee doesn’t often go according to plan. While we hope to buy coffee someday from this model farm, it remains a long shot. 
But you know what? I will take that bet. Why? Because of Kadiatu Allie. She has the vision. The focus. The grit. And the determination. 

I have so much more to share, but for now . . . a quick reminder: there’s yoga happening at the Yacht Club this Saturday!! Bring your mat. Bring your friends. Our hour together will leave us relaxed and revitalized. I hope to see you there. 

With light and love,

~m