Save a Mother; Save a Child- Sierra Leone

Betty Tenga is a well-known nurse in the Bow Valley. It would be hard to count exactly how many mothers she has coached through labour, how many babies she has delivered or how many families she has counselled. If you were to start asking around in Canmore, chances are, you would immediately find families that know and love Betty as their labour and delivery nurse or lactation consultant. But here is some background that people might not know about her:

Betty is originally from Sierra Leone. She was inspired to become a nurse when she found herself in the hospital as a patient in her final year of high school. After graduating from Nursing School, she enrolled in Midwifery where she found her true passion. She got a job as a military nurse and was based near the Sierra Leonian border with Liberia. Just three months after her wedding, while at her post on the border, the civil war in Sierra Leone broke out. So then, besides providing obstetrical care to patients, Betty was administering care to casualties of war. She and her colleagues were in constant fear of attack while they worked to treat an overwhelming number of victims. When her initial tour was over and Betty went home to visit her family in Freetown, she recognized that she had suffered trauma from all she had experienced on the front line – but there was a long road ahead for her yet. While at home, she worked at the military hospital in Freetown once again caring for the casualties of war. The work was never-ending. She and her colleagues were constantly tired, hungry and uncertain.

Then, in 1998, the city of Freetown was invaded. There were mass murders, looting and raping in the city. Betty was at home at the time and, even though she wanted to help her colleagues at the hospital, she could not even sneak out to return to her post for fear of falling victim to these war crimes. She also had to keep her family and children safe from the marauders who would kidnap children and force them to become child soldiers. She and her family mostly stayed in their home, praying.

Incredibly, even in wartime, Betty’s generosity and love shone through and she continued to invite the displaced and suffering into her home – at one time housing and caring for 29 people. Soon after, Betty and her family received word that they were being hunted by the rebels and they were forced to flee from their home and attempt to make it across the border. Since Betty was a military nurse there were heightened consequences for her if she was found trying to escape the country. Miraculously, she and her family escaped undetected. As refugees, they went to Guinea and Cote d’Ivoire before finally coming to Canada in 2000 with the help of friends and family and Bev and Paul Carrick. After arriving in Canada, Betty immediately set to work again. Nursing remained her passion and she immediately started studying for her nursing refresher course and RN exam – while working as a Nursing Assistant at the Canmore Hospital and raising her 4 boys. She obtained her license to practice in 2003 and since then has been working full-time at the Canmore Hospital providing excellent nursing and obstetrical care to her patients with joy and compassion. You would be hard-pressed to find a family in this community who does not know or has not heard of Betty. As a midwife in all ways, she has been there to guide many through their labour and delivery journey but also their journey through life as a family.

Betty has given so much to our community and now she needs our help. She is retiring this year and her one desire is to return to Sierra Leone and help the mothers and children of the country she left 23 years ago. In contrast to Canada where childbirth is regarded as a safe process, the maternal and child mortality rate in Sierra Leone is quite high: 1 in 20 women are at risk of dying in childbirth and there are 122 infant deaths per 1000 live births. These statistics would be unimaginable in Canada. Even though Betty is retiring, her passion remains in obstetrics and, as always, in caring for others. She is returning to Sierra Leone in January with a team of nurses with that passion in mind. We are fundraising for obstetrical equipment and supplies as well as educational materials for the Sierra Leonian nursing staff to try to improve maternal and child health outcomes there. This is where we need your help. Please donate what you can to this worthy cause. Every little bit will help.

Betty as one person has had such an impact in this community. You, as one person, can also have an impact in Sierra Leone. Imagine what we can do together.

If you are donating under $20, you can donate on this go Fund Me Site. If you are donating over $20 and would like a tax receipt, please go to: embracecanada.ca and donate under "Save a Mother; Save a Child - Sierra Leone