The people of Liberia deeply understand the value of safe water, sanitation, and hygiene. Civil wars in the nation from 1989 to 1997 and 1999 to 2003 resulted in the deaths of more than 200,000 people, and destroyed thousands of wells that were essential for survival.
In 1995, the European Union and Liberian government invited Jim Gehrels (Lifewater Canada’s co-founder and hydrogeologist) to conduct the first systematic testing of wells in the capital city, Monrovia. Jim’s report indicated that half of the wells were contaminated, while millions of people outside the capital had no safe water at all.
The OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) still ranks Liberia as one of 34 countries least capable of achieving the UN’s Development Goals. With your support, we can continue to help Liberia by focusing on water, sanitation, and hygiene programs in villages, schools, clinics, and orphanages.
Lifewater Canada currently maintains three vital partnerships in Liberia:
These teams work together to best serve the people of Liberia and optimize the workflows and skillsets of each organization. Our Liberia Country Coordinator, Stephen Varfee, coordinates all three Liberian teams, distributing drilling and well rehabilitation projects to the respective L-Linc. teams and H&H workshops and pump repair projects to STS-Lifewater, maximizing the efficiencies of all partners.
Stephen coordinates all the work done by the Lifewater Liberia teams. He assumed this role in April 2023 after serving as L-Linc’s Project Coordinator since 2017. Stephen is also the Senior Pastor of a local church, a member of the Africa Leadership Peace Ambassadors organization, and a strong advocate for children’s education and young women in leadership.
The original Lifewater Liberia (L-Linc) team focuses on drilling new water wells and rehabilitating dormant wells in a nation where they are desperately needed. With the addition of the “Rural” team in 2025, this group is now commonly called the “Local” team as they are primarily focused on the areas in and around Monrovia.
Henry began assisting Stephen Varfee in late 2021 and became L-Linc’s Program Coordinator in April 2023. He came to Lifewater Liberia after serving in managerial roles with several organizations including, most recently, a major Liberian transportation company where he was Administrative and Human Resources Manager.
Rocky G. Kollie
Senior Driller and Supervisor (former national team soccer player)
Boakia Thomas
Senior Driller and Supervisor
Kelvin Fayiah Bomboo
Driller and Driver
Victor Dolo
Lead Mechanic
Rev. Haven Johnson
Evangelist with H&H Team and Community Mobilizer
Sangbeh Dennis
Head of Security and Compound Maintenance
Francis Kafie
Security and Compound Maintenance
Peter S. Johnson
Security Guard
Lifewater Liberia’s Rural Team began in March 2025, operating as a branch of the existing Lifewater L-Linc team. The team’s members were previously drilling and doing repair work for another NGO, but when that organization was no longer able to support the team’s work, Lifewater was thrilled to welcome them. This new “Team Rural” has now received training and a custom truck-mounted drilling rig, allowing them to travel over rugged terrain. This team’s vision is to bring safe water to the rural communities of northern Liberia.
Bennie Paul
Project Coordinator
Jerry Sammie
Head Driller
Kay E. Toby
Administrative Assistant
Edwin Bakay Kpabee
Driver & Technician
William T. Ben
Assistant Driller & Technician
The Lifewater Service-to-Servants (STS) team assesses community needs to determine whether a new water well is required or if instead, a pump can be repaired to make an existing well function again. New wells are drilled by the Lifewater Liberia team, while pump repairs are completed by the Lifewater STS team, which also provides community Health and Hygiene education.
Joe joined Lifewater in April 2023 and leads the STS team. He has a degree in Electronics Engineering with a concentration in Information and Communication Technology. He has worked as an Analyst, Manager, Network Switch Engineer/NOC, and a Monitoring and Evaluation Officer for several institutions. He is also a member of the Salvation Army church.
Before joining STS, Yaya was involved in assessing Gender-Based Violence (GBV), Livelihood, Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene services. He has a degree in Business Administration and has more than 14 years professional experience helping many consultants in designing assessment and evaluation tools.
Frank Green
Assessment and Education
William Veselee
Assessment and Education
Larwuo (“Blessing”) Kezelee
Assessment and Education
Tawah Bumdoo
Assessment and Education
Delphine Jallah
Assessment and Education
Sam Saye Waquoi
Pump Repair
Charles Morris
Pump Repair
Anthony Bombo
Pump Repair
Matthew Sando
Pump Repair
Oral T. Goanue
Driver
