The President’s Message
Greetings, fellow members of Christ the King College Alumni Association of North America (COBA-NA)!
For the past four years, dedicated alumni of Christ the King College (CKC) have revived COBA-NA, which is an alumni association of our beloved alma mater, which is rightfully known as “The Royal College of the South.” The members of COBA-NA have worked relentlessly to continue the tradition of giving back to CKC. Through the hard work of Mr. Andrew Jawa Thomas and his administration, COBA-NA successfully procured and delivered the following items to the school: 300 classroom desks and 330 chairs, 40 desks for a proposed computer lab, 37 twin-beds for the boarding home, and soccer gear for the school soccer team. Moreover, COBA-NA established the Gabriel Amara Scholarship, Junior Secondary School and Senior Secondary School Teachers of the Year Awards. With the extraordinary commitment of the members of COBA-NA, we have the strength and determination to do even more.
As part of the ongoing efforts of COBA-NA, the recruitment and retention arm of my administration will prioritize more active participation of current and potential members in activities organized by the association. We will contact potential regional representatives of the association. It is anticipated that each representative will create a nucleus of alumni in respective regions of North America and organize local alumni events in collaboration with the COBA-NA Executive. In the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area, the recruitment and retention team will coordinate and facilitate monthly social gatherings in the homes of COBA alumni. The dates and venues for each monthly social gathering will be disseminated via text, email, COBA-NA website and COBA Listserv. The rationale for the gatherings is to take the association to the doorsteps of local alumni and build a solid base for outreach efforts to alumni in the DC, Maryland, and Virginia area and nationwide. During the monthly social gatherings, participants will explore, among other topics, some barriers to the recruitment of COBA alumni, state of CKC, projects, and annual events. I acknowledge all past participants especially the following alumni who hosted the 2014 monthly social events: Mr. Michael Jusu, Mr. Chernoh Lamin Sidique, Mr. Sonny Rogers, Mr. Manif Jaffa, Pastor Paul Amara, Mr. Sao Vandi, Mr. James Kailie, and Pastor Ambrose Aruna. Mr. Gabriel Sevalie actively and tirelessly participated in planning and implementing the COBA-NA social events. Please let us know if you are interested in hosting one of the 2015 monthly social gatherings.
Our country, Sierra Leone, and other West African countries are enduring an Ebola epidemic which has now claimed the lives of more than 7000 people. In general, the epidemic has disrupted the lives of Sierra Leoneans in diverse ways. In particular, CKC and other schools have been closed since the government declared a state of emergency in July 2014 in response to the Ebola epidemic. We are hopeful that we shall soon put this dark chapter in the history of our county behind us, and as a resilient nation, we shall dust ourselves and resume our lives.
Our young people who are the future of our nation will continue to count on us. This is why organizations like ours will make tireless endeavors to support our youth. It is a privilege to lead COBA-NA and serve a school that has and will continue to produce national and global leaders.
Adveniat Regnum Tuum!
Dr. Patrick M. Thomas
President, COBA North America