In 2003, Liberia emerged from a long and devastating civil war that took the lives of hundreds of thousands of people and displaced millions. The country suffered massive destruction and the very fabric of society was torn apart; infrastructures were in ruins - roads, buildings, health clinics, communications networks, schools, farms and factories were almost totally destroyed. With an 80% unemployment rate; extreme poverty with average earnings of $1 a day; no electricity; no running water or sewage system; and an inadequate education system, the country had enormous needs.
It was a conflict that forced Saran Kaba Jones and her own family to flee the devastation when she was just 8 years old. In 2008, a then 26 years old Saran, returned to her home country and saw the remnants of war and its attendant ills. She witnessed acute poverty and the debilitating effect it had on the young, elderly, weak and strong. She felt helpless in the face of tragedy and unnecessary deaths, an occurrence that was frustratingly routine all over Liberia. She promised herself that she would work to contribute to the improvement of the human condition of her people. Saran, along with many others began the difficult process of trying to rebuild their society... one piece at a time.