Harper, Liberia - A tree planting ceremony took place at the City Hall of Harper in Maryland County in commemoration of the International Day of Peace, September 21. Amb. Gerald B. Coleman, Secretary General of UPF-Liberia and Dean of the College of Engineering & Technology at Tubman University in Harper, gave the congratulatory address. Excerpts follow:
I first extend warm greetings to all of you on this special day of Peace. Today’s program symbolically represents the planting of a New True Liberia and Africa as we join millions of global citizens to celebrate and proclaim peace as the core value of life. Going beyond our fellow global citizens we are saying today, through the theme of this year’s program, that such peace should come through love.
Allow me as we plant this tree to proclaim it as a symbol of our commitment and thus capacity to bring to life the essence of peace through our collective love of God. As loving and raising children reflects the commitment and capacity of parents to bring to life their offspring, let us plant this tree with the heart and commitment to bring to life a new true Liberia and Africa able to live up to the national and continental motto of: “Freedom, Liberty and Justice for All.”
Here in Harper, Maryland and West Africa as a whole, we have seen the fruit of living outside the realm of peace and love. We have seen and are seeing through the presence of our refugee brothers and sisters of Ivory Coast what selfishness, hatred, greed, corruption, ungodliness, and irresponsible parenting or leadership has and is doing to our beloved nations. Let the planting of this tree today represent our commitment as citizens of this new, true Liberia to be different this time around. We must not only plant this tree but we must be committed to its healthy growth and development. If we can do so for this one simple tree, symbolizing the gift of life from God, we can do so for our new nation and a new world centered on peace through the love of God.
May the Lord bless this commitment and guide our nation and Africa through this period of reconciliation and continental redevelopment