Our History
Vision Impact Liberia
“He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it”. — I Thess. 5:24
By the grace of God
By the grace of God and the leading of the Holy Spirit, Vision Impact Liberia has been able to live out God’s call and impact the lives of thousands of Liberian Muslims living in abject poverty in the interior of this country. Co-founded in 2006, by Liberian Eric Sumo and Canadian Helen Fletcher, the ministry has flourished through much prayer and God’s grace.
Pastor Eric Vision Impact Liberia
Helen Fletcher, International Coordinator of VIL
In 2007 the ministry became a Society in Canada as an agent of the charity International Christian Missions Services (ICMS) — our receipt writer and liaison with Revenue Canada. The ministry began to awaken hope and kindle enthusiasm with three vocational schools offering Tailoring, Carpentry, Auto Body Mechanics, Agriculture, Cosmetology, and Cooking — with all our students viewing the Jesus Film and many accepting Jesus Christ.
Our students were women affected by Liberia’s 14 year civil war and outcast ex-child soldiers. Our commitment was to bring tangible help, opportunity, and the love of Christ to these vulnerable people, to break the cycle of poverty for individuals, their families and communities. By 2009 we had graduated 655 students, most of whom started a small business or became employed. We have also coordinated the sponsorship of a few Liberian children into Elementary school and have met needs for food and clothing at Omega Orphanage. Pastor Eric has planted 35 new churches over the last 20 years.
Graduate student
Well for safe drinking water
The ability to offer a free well for safe drinking water to Muslim and Christian villagers of the interior is an identified opportunity that has opened many doors to showing the Jesus Film and giving testimony of the Christian faith. Here thousands, over the last eight years, have given their lives to Christ, taken baptism and joined a Christian church. From 2007 to 2015 we have put down 13 wells serving approximately 40,000 villagers.
View the Jesus Film
Starting in 2011, we have organized Pastoral Developmental and Discipleship conferences for Pastors and church leaders, pastor’s wives and Christian women from our villages as well as classes in a free Bible School; all to promote indigenous leadership in Christian ministry within Liberia commissioning them to soul winning and discipleship.
Our main focus is the 1-2 week Outreach program, where we travel to the villages of the interior of Liberia, provides a three day teaching conference, and at night show of the Jesus Film, which we have in English and all 15 dialects of the country, and other CDs of Old Testament stories. Over 15,000 have viewed the Jesus Film. We hold services on Sundays and help with their physical needs. We walk village, to village, hut to hut, meeting and praying with the families as we invite them to our movies. Our efforts and influence with the Gospel of Jesus Christ have covered eight of the 15 counties in the country.
In each of 2010 and 2014, we held a soccer competition involving four villages cultivating warm relationships with the villagers, providing equipment and uniforms.
Soccer Coach Brendan Fletcher & Team
During the Ebola crisis of 2014 and 2015, we shifted focus to take education about the disease, sanitation kits, and rice to many villages where no information had reached them, warning of the Ebola dangers and teaching about the critical importance of hand washing and other cultural changes such as diet and care of the dead that had to be made. We believe God’s heart is for the poor, the widow, the orphan, the outcast, and all Liberians.
"For so the Lord has commanded us: ‘I have set you as a light to the Gentiles, That you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.”