A group of Liberians residing in the US have established the Benjamin Karmon Sehkar Foundation Incorporated (BKS™). The BKS™ Foundation, as it is affectionately known, has been established in memory of the late Benjamin K. Sehkar. Sehkar was a broadcast journalist killed in 1990 at the height of the Liberian Civil War by Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) soldiers during a popular uprising against the Samuel Kanyon Doe government. The Foundation was established with a focus on providing tuition assistance to disadvantaged and underprivileged children from rural Liberia, with Nimba County as the primary target for aid. BKS™ is headquartered in Monrovia, Liberia.
Our mission is to provide access to reliable, reasonable and quality education for children of underprivileged and disadvantage communities in Liberia. We are committed to providing educational opportunities to every child in Liberia regardless of the constraints, while teaching them the word of God.
Our vision is to realize a Liberia in which children from all over the country have equal access to quality education in this era of global competitiveness.
The BKS™ Foundation, Inc. provides scholarships to underprivileged and disadvantaged students to attend all major universities and colleges in Liberia. BKS™ Foundation is also partnering with some major high schools in the rural parts of the country to provide tuition assistance to students who meet its scholarship requirements. In addition to the aforementioned, we provide school supplies (notebooks, pencil, backpacks, crayons, rulers, etc.) to the disadvantaged students in Liberia.
BKS™ Legacy Scholarships are awarded to students from the Buu-Yao District who are currently enrolled at the following institutions: the Nimba County Community College, University of Liberia, Liberia International Christian College, Starz College of Science and Technology, and the United Methodist University. Qualified students from the Buu-Yao District who are intending to enroll at these universities will be awarded The BKS™ Legacy Scholarship. The Scholarship recipients are expected to complete annual service projects with young children and demonstrate leadership potential through involvement in school or community activities. Buu-Yao students at all levels of academic achievements may qualify for this grant. The selection process highlights an applicant's attitude toward education, willingness to provide service to children, and financial need.
We are committed to providing educational opportunities to the children of Liberia, regardless of the constraints, while teaching them the word of God. Our goal is to ensure that the children of the rural parts of Liberia receive quality education in safe, constructive, and well-staffed educational facilities. We will ensure that these future leaders are not individually, regionally or collectively left out of this fundamental human right, whether as a result of gender inequality, geographical location, policy, financial policy, human resources, or any other limitations.
The Benjamin Karmon Sehkar Legacy Scholarships are awarded to students from Buu-Yao district, who are currently enrolled at the Nimba County Community College, University of Liberia, Liberia International Christian College, Starz College of Science and Technology, and the United Methodist University.
Note: Applications are currently being accepted for the following schools: Nimba County Community College and the Liberia International Christian College. Application deadline for the upcoming August and September semester is August 30th, 2017. Applications received after this date will not be considered.
Click on the blue Apply Now button below to apply for BKS™ Legacy Scholarship
Apply NowThere are many ways you could get involved. Below are some ways you could help make a difference in the lives of the underprivileged and disadvantaged children in Liberia: Follow our progress on our website, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Help us spread the word.
Talk to your School / College / Church / University / Company to select BKS™ Foundation, Inc. as their charity of choice for donations. To promote our partnership, we will provide you with our organization's logo and merchandise.
Help educate a Child for just $11 a Month
BKS™ is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) public charity (tax ID# 47-2420913). To make a donation by phone, please call us at 317-332-8142 (M-F, 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. CST). Donations by mail should be payable to Benjamin Karmon Sehkar Foundation, Inc. and mailed to P.O. Box 1292 Fortville, IN 46040. THANK YOU!
During their brief visit, they visited the BKS Legacy Scholarship recipients at LICC and NCCC respectively. Additionally, the paid a visit to Buutuo, Nimba County, Liberia.
The BKS™ Community Resource Center and Vocational School will improve the educational development of the disadvantaged, underprivileged, and less fortunate youths and young people of Buu-Yao District, Nimba County. It will provide academic assistance through research for high school students and teachers of the district. The long-term expectation of the project or long-term solution of the project: to equip the youths, teachers, and residents of Buu-Yao District with a center that will serve as a repository of knowledge. An estimated 7000 students and teachers will benefit from this project.
Alvin Sehkar is an advocate for underprivileged education and a social entrepreneur from Liberia. Upon Mr. Alvin Sehkar’s arrival to the United States in 2004, he made a promise to gratefully, proudly and gracefully tell his story...
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Dr. Allison was born and raised in Sullivan, Indiana He studied Biology at Butler and DePauw Universities while playing basketball at both schools. He holds a Doctoral Degree in Optometry from Illinois College of Optometry...
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A Liberian, Zeambo Dahnweih is the second of six siblings. He is married and has three beautiful daughters. After graduating from high school, Zeambo enrolled at African Bible College in Yekepa, Liberia...
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Mr. Toby Eiler, was born in Valparaiso, IN and grew up in a very small town called Hebron, Indiana. During High School, he played baseball, basketball, and ran cross country. After graduating HS he went to college at Rose-Hulman in Terre Haute, IN to get his degree in Electrical Engineering...
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Mr. Emmanuel Miantona was born in Ganta, Nimba County, Liberia. He grew up in Saclepea, Nimba County. A small town located in the northern part of Liberia. He attended the United Liberia Inland Church Academy (ULICA) for part of his primary education...
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Pah K Suku Jr, born in Liberia, West Africa. Currently resides in Maryland, USA. Works with the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, DC as a Sergeant and also pastors a small non-denomination church...
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Alvin Sehkar is an advocate for underprivileged education and a social entrepreneur from Liberia. Upon Mr. Alvin Sehkar's arrival to the United States in 2004, he made a promise to gratefully, proudly and gracefully tell his story. His has experienced the works and grace of God throughout his life. God manifested His will in his life and has brought him a long way. Now, he feels obliged to give back to the people of Liberia. With that conviction, he established a foundation in his late father's name, the Benjamin Karmon Sehkar (BKS™) Foundation, Inc.
After losing his father during the Liberian Civil war in the early 1990s, Alvin's family fled to the Ivory Coast to seek refuge. Growing up as a refugee in the Ivory Coast with a widowed mother, Sehkar and his siblings' lives were marked with poverty and hardship. Sometimes, his mother would have nothing to offer them, and they would go to sleep hungry without a meal.
Due to the hardship, and without financial Assistance or support, Sehkar withdrew from school on several occasions. Clothes and other basic human needs were scarce in their lives. Although Mr. Sehkar's early life was not easy, his faith in God remained constant during those tough times. With the help of a Catholic diocese in Kentucky, Alvin and his family had the opportunity to resettle in Owensboro, Kentucky. It was certainly a blessing, cultural shock and a life changing experience for them.
After seeing the countless blessings and opportunities this beautiful country (USA) has to offer, pursuing education was his next plan. He enrolled at Kentucky Wesleyan College in Owensboro, Kentucky. His reading, writing and speaking skills challenged his success. Again, his faith in God, hard work, perseverance, tenacity and determination took him through. Gratefully, Mr. Sehkar was able to complete his studies within four years.
After graduating from college in 2008, he relocated to Noblesville, Indiana. He enrolled at Anderson University, where he graduated with an MBA on May 11, 2013. Mr. Sehkar is currently employed at Capital Group in Carmel, Indiana.
CapitalSpeak: My rough journey to the American Dream
Dr. Alison was born and raised in Sullivan, Indiana He studied Biology at Butler and DePauw Universities while playing basketball at both schools. He holds a Doctoral Degree in Optometry from Illinois College of Optometry. Following few years of practice, he decided to go back and get his MBA which he completed from Anderson University.
Professionally, he has served as an optometrist at Lakeview Eye Physicians and Ossip Optometry + Ophthalmology, respectively. He has managed to hold several roles at Ossip Optometry + Ophthalmology which include the following: Managing Optometrist and Senior Medical Director. He currently serves as the Chief Optometric Officer.
A Liberian, Zeambo Dahnweih is the second of six siblings. He is married and has three beautiful daughters. After graduating from high school, Zeambo enrolled at African Bible College in Yekepa, Liberia.
What was expected to be a four-year journey eventually became an eight-year adventure as the Liberian civil war often truncated classes beginning his junior year. Upon graduation in 1995, Zeambo assumed his first pastorate, serving as assistant pastor, and later pastor, of a 350-member refugee congregation, the Liberian Refugee Fellowship in Danane, Ivory Coast.
However, this newfound profession was short lived as Zeambo immigrated to the United States a year and a half later to further his studies. As he pursued graduated studies in Communications at Governors State University in Illinois, Zeambo ministered as assistant pastor at the Riverdale Baptist Church in neighboring Riverdale, a position he held faithfully for seven years.
Zeambo currently works and studies at Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green, Kentucky. He is a dual credit instructor, while at the same time a doctoral candidate in Educational Leadership.
Mr. Toby Eiler, was born in Valparaiso, IN and grew up in a very small town called Hebron, Indiana. During High School, he played baseball, basketball, and ran cross country. After graduating HS he went to college at Rose-Hulman in Terre Haute, IN to get his degree in Electrical Engineering.
Mr. Eiler also played baseball for two fall seasons at Rose-Hulman. He also has an MBA from Anderson University where he graduated with honors with a 4.0 GPA.
After graduating Rose, he worked for On Semiconductor as a field sales engineer. He then worked for ST Microelectronics as a Market Development Engineer. He now works for Analog Devices where he serves as Americas Automotive Sales Director.
Mr. Emmanuel Miantona was born in Ganta, Nimba County, Liberia. He grew up in Saclepea, Nimba County. A small town located in the northern part of Liberia. He attended the United Liberia Inland Church Academy (ULICA) for part of his primary education. He later moved to Monrovia to continue his primary education, but that didn't happen due to the civil unrest that broke up in the early 1990s. This unrest led to his family resettling in the Ivory Coast for several years until he and his family were granted the opportunity to travel to the United States on a resettlement program.
Upon his arrival in the U.S, they settled in Southwest Philadelphia. He enrolled at the John Bartram high school and later enrolled at Southside Baptist Academy where he completed his 9th and 10th grade education. During that time, his parents decided to moved to Brooklyn Park, MN. He then enrolled at Park Center Senior High school where he completed his primary education in 2002.
To further his education, he enrolled at Trinity Christian College where he graduated with a BA in Business in 2006.
Mr. Miantona currently works at the University of Minnesota Medical Center as a Laboratory Tech and is currently working on a 2nd Bachelors degree in pursuit of becoming a health care professional.
Pah K Suku Jr, born in Liberia, West Africa. Currently resides in Maryland, USA. Works with the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, DC as a Sergeant and also pastors a small non-denomination church, Freedom Christian Fellowship Ministries International, in Landover Maryland. He holds double degrees in Criminology and Criminal Justice and Sociology from the University of Maryland College Park. He's married to Frances Woods-Suku with four children; Hazel, Wendy-estelle and Joshua.
