During the height of the Ebola epidemic in Liberia last October, The Associated Press published a series of heartbreaking photos of a little girl named Mercy Kennady, who had just lost her mother to the deadly virus. Then only nine, photographer Jerome Delay captured her mourning. This photo, taken Oct. 2, has a caption that reads: “On Thursday, little Mercy walked around in a daze in a torn nightgown and flip-flops, pulling up the fabric to wipe her tears as a group of workers from the neighborhood task force followed the sound of wailing through the thick grove of banana trees and corn plants.”
Journalists were interested in Mercy’s neighborhood because it’s where Thomas Eric Duncan, the Liberian man diagnosed with Ebola in the U.S., was from. Duncan was suspected of coming into contact with 19-year-old pregnant woman Marthaline Williams who later died of Ebola, as did Duncan. Mercy’s mother was also linked to the cluster of Ebola patients that included Duncan, notes Delay.
After her mother’s death, Mercy and her brother were all alone. Her neighbors shunned her for fear of contracting the disease, and a few weeks after losing her mother, she moved into an orphanage run by Ebola survivors, reported CBS News.
Unfortunately, Mercy was far from the only child who suffered immense loss during the Ebola outbreak. Of the 24,000 people who caught Ebola during the current outbreak, approximately 5,000 were children, while 16,000 children either lost one or both of their parents or primary caregivers. International aid organization UNICEF released these numbers Tuesday to call attention to the urgent needs of children in West Africa. Even if they weren’t directly affected by Ebola, says UNICEF, the disease’s devastation has taken a toll on the millions of children who have been traumatized by the suffering they’ve witnessed, or fallen behind in school because their educations have been put on hold. What’s needed, according to UNICEF, is a renewed focus on rebuilding basic health infrastructure and helping children transition back to school.
After the media interest in Mercy’s story died down, UNICEF continued to keep in touch with Mercy as she transitioned from the orphanage to a new home with her foster mother, who is a close family friend. To bring awareness to Mercy’s story, as well as their recent report on Ebola’s devastating effects on children in West Africa, UNICEF has shared these photos and captions of Mercy’s new life.
On March 10, (left-right) Martu Weefor helps her foster daughter, 9-year-old Mercy Kennady, change out of her school clothes, in the Paynesville suburb of Monrovia, the capital. Mercy, who is in her first year of school, attends school in the capital. Ms. Weefor, a friend of the family, is caring for Mercy and her 17-year-old brother, Harris Wreh, following the death of their mother in late 2014 from Ebola virus disease (EVD). Their father passed away long before the outbreak. Ms. Weefor’s house is located very close to the home the siblings shared with their mother.
On March 4, (foreground, right) 9-year-old Mercy Kennady, who is in her first year of school, smiles during a class, in Monrovia, the capital.
On March 10, (foreground, centre) 9-year-old Mercy Kennady, who is in her first year of school, lifts a younger girl up onto the landing of the school building, in Monrovia, the capital.
On March 10, (second from left) 9-year-old Mercy Kennady, who is in her first year of school, laughs with other girls on the ride home from their school in Monrovia, the capital.
To see Mercy’s transition from orphanage to home, check out the slideshow below.
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Ebola Survivor Mercy Kennady
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On 14 November, (centre) Martu Weefor embraces Harris Wreh, 17, in the Paynesville suburb of Monrovia, the capital. Next to her is Mercy Kennady, 9, Harris’s younger sister. Ms. Weefor has agreed to foster the children, whose mother died of EVD and whose father passed away long before the outbreak. She is a friend of the children’s family and lives very close to the home they shared with their mother. The children have just left an interim care centre for children exposed to EVD, in Monrovia. The Ministry of Health and Social Welfare set up the centre, where children who were in direct contact with patients suffering from EVD will be accommodated during 21 days of isolation, the virus’s maximum incubation period. There they are cared for by workers trained to monitor the children closely for signs of EVD. In parallel, active tracing of children’s extended family is also undertaken, with the ultimate goal of reuniting them with relatives immediately after the conclusion of the quarantine period. UNICEF has helped train the centre’s workers – who are themselves EVD survivors and, therefore, have a level of immunity or resistance to the virus.
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On 14 November, (foreground, left-right) Martu Weefor completes fostering paperwork with the help of social worker Antoinette Boimah in the Paynesville suburb of Monrovia, the capital. Ms. Weefor has agreed to foster siblings 9-year-old Mercy Kennady and 17-year-old Harris Wreh. The children – whose mother died of EVD and whose father passed away long before the outbreak – have just left an interim care centre for children exposed to EVD, in Monrovia. Ms. Weefor is a friend of the children’s family and lives very close to the home the children shared with their mother. The Ministry of Health and Social Welfare set up the centre, where children who were in direct contact with patients suffering from EVD will be accommodated during 21 days of isolation, the virus’s maximum incubation period. There they are cared for by workers trained to monitor the children closely for signs of EVD. In parallel, active tracing of children’s extended family is also undertaken, with the ultimate goal of reuniting them with relatives immediately after the conclusion of the quarantine period. UNICEF has helped train the centre’s workers – who are themselves EVD survivors and, therefore, have a level of immunity or resistance to the virus.
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On 14 November, (foreground) Mercy Kennady, 9, waves farewell to children who will remain at an interim care centre for children exposed to EVD, in Monrovia, the capital. Behind her, a worker loads a vehicle with the contents of reunification kits. Mercy and her 17-year-old brother, Harris Wreh, who has also been staying at the centre, are about to be taken to the home of Martu Weefor, a family friend who has agreed to foster them. The children’s mother died from the disease, and their father passed away long before the EVD outbreak. The Ministry of Health and Social Welfare set up the centre, where children who were in direct contact with patients suffering from EVD will be accommodated during 21 days of isolation, the virus’s maximum incubation period. There they are cared for by workers trained to monitor the children closely for signs of EVD. In parallel, active tracing of children’s extended family is also undertaken, with the ultimate goal of reuniting them with relatives immediately after the conclusion of the quarantine period. UNICEF has helped train the centre’s workers – who are themselves EVD survivors and, therefore, have a level of immunity or resistance to the virus.
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On 4 March, (foreground, right) 9-year-old Mercy Kennady and her foster sister, Patience, laugh outside their home, in the Paynesville suburb of Monrovia, the capital. Mercy and her 17-year-old brother, Harris Wreh, live with their foster mother, Martu Weefor, and her family. Ms. Weefor, a family friend, is caring for the siblings following the death of their mother in late 2014 from Ebola virus disease (EVD). Their father passed away long before the outbreak. Ms. Weefor’s house is located very close to the home the siblings shared with their mother.
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On 4 March, (foreground) Mercy Kennady, 9, fills a pail with water, at home in the Paynesville suburb of Monrovia, the capital. Mercy and her 17-year-old brother, Harris Wreh, are living with their foster mother, Martu Weefor. A friend of the family, Ms. Weefor is caring for the children following the death of their mother in late 2014 from Ebola virus disease (EVD). Their father passed away long before the outbreak. Ms. Weefor’s house is located very close to the home the siblings shared with their mother.
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On 4 March, (foreground, centre) 9-year-old Mercy Kennady, a friend’s hand on her arm, queues with other students during assembly at the start of the school day, in Monrovia, the capital. This is Mercy’ first year of school. Mercy and her 17-year-old brother, Harris Wreh, live with their foster mother, Martu Weefor, in Monrovia’s Paynesville suburb. Ms. Weefor, a friend of the family, is caring for the children following the death of their mother in late 2014 from Ebola virus disease (EVD). Their father passed away long before the outbreak. Ms. Weefor’s house is located very close to the home the siblings shared with their mother.
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On 10 March, (centre) Martu Weefor, does washing while chatting with her foster daughter, 9-year-old Mercy Kennady, as they sit with other children on the landing and steps of the family’s home, in the Paynesville suburb of Monrovia, the capital. Ms. Weefor, a friend of the family, is caring for Mercy and her 17-year-old brother, Harris Wreh, following the death of their mother in late 2014 from Ebola virus disease (EVD). Their father passed away long before the outbreak. Ms. Weefor’s house is located very close to the home the siblings shared with their mother.
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On 10 March, (second from left) Mercy Kennady, 9, feeds a younger girl as they sit on the landing at Mercy’s home, in the Paynesville suburb of Monrovia, the capital. Several women are around them. Mercy and her 17-year-old brother, Harris Wreh, live with their foster mother, Martu Weefor, a friend of the family. Ms. Weefor is caring for the children following the death of their mother in late 2014 from Ebola virus disease (EVD). Their father passed away long before the outbreak. Ms. Weefor’s house is located very close to the home the siblings shared with their mother.
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On 10 March, (right) Mercy Kennady, 9, lifts up a younger child as she and other children plays near rubbish burning in a fire outside her home, in the Paynesville suburb of Monrovia, the capital. Mercy and her 17-year-old brother, Harris Wreh, live with their foster mother, Martu Weefor, in Monrovia’s Paynesville suburb. Ms. Weefor, a friend of the family, is caring for the children following the death of their mother in late 2014 from Ebola virus disease (EVD). Their father passed away long before the outbreak. Ms. Weefor’s house is located very close to the home the siblings shared with their mother.
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On 10 March (foreground, right) 9-year-old Mercy Kennady, who is in her first year of school, peeks over her teacher’s shoulder during a class, in Monrovia, the capital. Mercy and her 17-year-old brother, Harris Wreh, live with their foster mother, Martu Weefor, in Monrovia’s Paynesville suburb. Ms. Weefor, a friend of the family, is caring for the children following the death of their mother in late 2014 from Ebola virus disease (EVD). Their father passed away long before the outbreak. Ms. Weefor’s house is located very close to the home the siblings shared with their mother.
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On 10 March, (at centre and at right) Martu Weefor, her hand resting lightly on the head of her foster daughter, Mercy Kennady, 9, chats with Fatu Johnson in the family’s home, in the Paynesville suburb of Monrovia, the capital. Mercy, who is in her first year of school, has been accompanied home by Ms. Johnson, the cook at her school. Ms. Weefor, a friend of the family, is caring for Mercy and her 17-year-old brother, Harris Wreh, following the death of their mother in late 2014 from Ebola virus disease (EVD). Their father passed away long before the outbreak. Ms. Weefor’s house is located very close to the home the siblings shared with their mother.
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