With Ebola’s impact appearing to subside, the media have turned their focus to other world crises. Left behind are survivors suffering unimaginable loss, report Stephen and Lori Albright, Alliance Compassion and Mercy Associates (CAMA) workers. During two recent trips to southern Guinea to provide food and financial support to those widowed and orphaned by Ebola, Stephen encountered many heart-wrenching stories. One is shared in the following report.
Ebola survivors are considered fortunate. Yet many are shunned by relatives and neighbors when they return to their villages after spending weeks in Ebola treatment centers where they’ve daily witnessed agonizing deaths.
Some find their businesses closed or farmlands untended. Most are grieving multiple family deaths. Mary’s* story illustrates the overwhelming needs of those who number among the living.
Trail of Death
One by one, Mary watched her brothers, sisters, and parents succumb to Ebola.
Soon she, her husband, and their young son fell ill. Quick-thinking villagers came to the family home and took the couple’s second child, a decision that saved the infant’s life.
Realizing his family needed medical attention, Mary’s ailing husband placed her and their son on a motorcycle and drove them to the nearest Ebola treatment center. Overwhelmed with patients, center staff directed the small family to the next closest facility—two hours away.
At this point, too ill to manage the cycle and his two passengers, Mary’s husband put her and their child in a taxi. An hour into their journey, the vehicle broke down. Mom and child were left by the roadside along with the other passengers. When it became apparent that Mary’s son had Ebola, the two were abandoned.
With little strength and believing she had no other option, Mary left her son beside the road and walked to the nearest village, where she met a Red Cross worker. He immediately dispatched a vehicle to take her and her son to the treatment center. It was too late. Mary’s husband and son expired while under doctors’ care.
Blame
This young widow now lives with her husband’s family, who show her little love. Culturally, they are not bound to help her, and they blame her for their son’s death. Not only are her basic needs unmet, but the family also takes the aid she receives as an Ebola survivor and widow.
Fearing she would pass Ebola to her weakening baby, Mary waited to nurse him until three months after her recovery. As she ended her story, Mary pleaded: “Please just let me die.”
*Name changed
Pray
- As you pray for the thousands of suffering Ebola survivors, like Mary, to find enduring comfort and hope in Christ, there is encouraging news. “We praise the Lord that the gospel is making its way into places previously closed,” Stephen and Lori added. “We’ve seen a church more than double in size because of its response to Ebola victims.”
- A conference, April 6–11, will help to further equip Guinean pastors dealing with Ebola’s aftermath. Topics covered will include discipleship, which Stephen will teach, as well as grief and trauma counseling and reaching the unreached. “Pray that the pastors come with receptive hearts,” the Albrights request. “Revival is needed!”
- Use the weekly Alliance Prayer Requests to join the Alliance family in interceding on behalf of our teams in West Africa and worldwide, who often serve in challenging circumstances requiring Holy Spirit–inspired wisdom in demonstrating God’s love to those who are hopeless and don’t know Him.
Learn More
- Read “Ebola: Alliance People Respond” to learn more about the Albrights’ work in Guinea.
- For more on the spiritual battle confronting those dealing with Ebola in Guinea, see “Pray for Outreach Efforts in Guinea.”
- Check out other CAMA articles about Ebola and the Alliance response on the CAMA Web site.