Acres of Hope Stepping Stone Visitor & Heritage Center
This request is for $1,650,000 in private funding to be allocated for the design construction, furnishing and equipment for the proposed AOH Visitor and Heritage Center in Liberia, West Africa.
This project is originally the idea of Patty and Harold Anglin in honor of their Liberian children they adopted, and the many orphan children they have actively cared for in the Acres of Hope Children’s Home. In 2006 the Anglin family provided pre-design funding and in addition provided the 2 ½ acres of land to construct the center on. In addition they have constructed two residential apartments for the caretaker of the property to live in.
The total assets to date of the Anglin contributions is $525,000. The availability of funding through private donors, historical societies, and foundations such as Domes for the World as partners in this project makes it financially attractive and feasible to making a target date of June 2008
This new facility will be strategically located half way between the airport and the Capital city of Monrovia. It will be highly visible just off the main highway and easily accessible with a beautiful and symbolic view of the Atlantic Ocean that once carried the slave out of Africa and back in 1847 to colonize Liberia.
The project is in an effort to increase awareness of the historical events in the history of Liberia and to welcome all those who visit Liberia. This will be accomplished by walking through a time line room by room which will set up visually to depict a period in history from before the slave ships took the African people away from their homeland to a progressive Liberia tomorrow.
The goal of the center is to be welcoming and informative and to engage all Liberians in preserving their heritage, history and natural resources through philanthropy and partnerships, to reconnect people with the past while encouraging a better future. The creation of a Visitor and Heritage Center will become an information hub for visitors, an educational avenue providing state-of-the-art exhibits to interpret the history and significance, of the Nations peoples living in Liberia.
This signature project hails the efforts of the Anglin family and Acres of Hope, in creating a gateway to understanding the history of Liberia as well as providing the opportunity for the economic benefit to the local area in both tourism and sustainable job opportunities. In addition, the continued pre-design efforts have rallied the support and vision of both local and state government.
The project boasts a partnership which visions a sustainable, joint-use facility to become the focus for this site, and which will also become the impetus for the future development using the dome concept in other parts of Liberia. The new facility will become a model of sustainable design for an extreme climate and will boast a building design which will provide a low-maintenance highly efficient facility.
The local and regional economic growth spurred from this facility development and the increased tourism traffic will enhance the local business community, as well as provide the opportunity for Liberian jobs in the region.
Through the collaborative efforts of the partners, the goal is to provide an awareness and increased access to this local historical amenity and encourage visitor involvement at the Visitor and Heritage Center, the city of Monrovia as well as the entire region.
Total Project Cost:
The total cost of this project for 2008 is $1,650,000. Of this total, 10 percent of the costs is planned to be funded by private individuals, 15 percent by interested Historical Groups or organizations and 75 percent by the Domes for the World Foundation.
Impact on Agency Operating Budgets:
Acres of Hope Liberia, Inc. will maintain sole responsibility of the facility. Operation and management of the Center will be at the discretion of AOH-L but will consist of collaboration between AOH-L and other entities interested in the educational benefits the facility will provide but approved by the management of Acres of Hope Liberia, Inc. No government operating dollars will be requested for this project.
Previous Appropriations for this Project
The 2 ½ acres site was purchased and pre-design was funded in 2006. Two residential apartments were constructed in 2006 for the operational and matience of the facility.
Other Considerations
The design of this new facility will utilize the Sustainable Building Guidelines as a minimum requirement for the project. The design of this facility will serve as a model for sustainable design for the climate in Liberia. Through a multi-disciplined design approach, research and utilization of design techniques will be incorporated which will maximize the energy efficiency of this facility. The goal is to reclaim energy sources to reduce dependence upon fossil fuels. Strategies will be included to maximize the life cycle performance of the building in an effort to increase the payback on initial investment: as well as provide a low maintenance facility capable of continual energy conservation improvements in the future.
Contact Person: Patty Anglin, Executive Director of Acres of Hope World Wide.
29525 Four Corners Store Rd. Mason, Wisconsin 54856
PH: 715-765-4118 E-mail: aoh.patty@gmail.com