In the heart of Tinway Town, Liberia, a small community of about 800 people has long dreamed of building homes they could truly call their own. The residents—fishermen, traders, mothers, and laborers—have always worked hard, but the dream of constructing durable houses often slipped further away as the cost of bricks and transportation rose beyond reach. For years, they relied on expensive suppliers from outside the community, watching incomplete homes stand as quiet reminders of what they couldn’t yet afford to finish.
It was from this struggle that a group of ten determined neighbors came together to form “It Is Our Time”—a name that carries both hope and quiet defiance. Led by Morris W. Charlie, a small business owner in Buchanan City, the group decided that waiting for outside help was no longer an option. They would build their own brick factory, right there in Tinway Town. Each member contributed not just money but time, labor, and personal commitment. They worked together to find land, tools, and sand, often taking turns hauling materials by hand and molding bricks under the Liberian sun.
Their vision was simple yet transformative: to make quality bricks available for ₤90 LD instead of ₤110 LD, allowing every family to continue building and rebuilding their lives. Over time, their determination began to pay off. They secured community support—neighbors offered storage space and land at a minimal rent. Small victories followed: a pile of sand delivered, shovels bought, the first batch of bricks molded and left to dry in the open field.
But the path hasn’t been easy. The group faced challenges in raising funds for equipment and transportation, and rains often washed away their freshly molded bricks. Still, they refused to give up. Each setback only deepened their unity. They learned to divide shifts, working from dawn until dusk, sharing meals and stories as they shaped each brick—symbol by symbol of their resilience.
Today, the Tinway Town Community Bricks Project stands not just as a factory, but as a story of what happens when people refuse to be defined by limitation. It is a story of neighbors who chose to create opportunity where there was none, who believed that if they could shape clay into bricks, they could also shape their future.
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