Our Mission and Vision
The MacDella Cooper Foundation (MCF) is a 501c3 international charitable organization devoted to empowering Liberian youth, especially orphans and abandoned children, by providing education and the basic necessities of food, clothing, and shelter. Our vision is to give as many Liberian children as possible the chance to escape the poverty cycle and grow in the nurturing environment of an MCF Academy, so that they can lead Liberia toward an economically strong and politically stable future.
Board of Governance
Founding President and Chairman |
Director of Operations Ms. Tibbetts works for Hearst Magazines Digital Media, where she led the creation of DonateMyDress.org, the nonprofit site of the Seventeen Magazine Network. She has created multiplatform, interactive web experiences for teen girls, for which she's managed partnerships with music and retail companies, local schools, and dress drive organizations nationwide. On November 1st, 2009, she launched She's the First, a media campaign promoting the importance of educating girls in developing nations. It is a network of schools and foundations, including MCF, that facilitate the sponsorship of girls' tuition. She also serves on the Foundation Board of New York Women in Communications, where she oversees the alumni network of scholarship winners and mentors young women in the industry. She is a Phi Beta Kappa journalism graduate of The College of New Jersey whose senior capstone was an in-depth web feature report on MacDella Cooper. |
Director of Finance
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MCF Board of Directors
Erin Browne Ms. Browne is an equity strategist for the Global Macro Fund of Moore Capital Management in New York. In her role at Moore, Erin is responsible for providing investment advice and ideas to the firm's global macro fund, as well as monitoring the portfolio's equity investments. |
Mr. Creal is a managing member of Remtrics, with which he is currently serving as a Panel Expert for the United Nations regarding forensic accounting matters involving the Republic of Liberia. Mr. Creal served as the Chief of Staff for the Loleta Didrickson Administration at the Office of the Illinois State Comptroller, and as the lead Partner for the accounting firm of Checkers, Simon & Rosner. |
Krystyna Houser |
Thomas Creal, CPA MCF Board of Advisers
Barbara Brennan, Director of MCF Board of Advisers |
Rosemary Zraly, Owner of RMZ Communications |
Giana Farina, European Director of MCF |
Richard Klein, Publisher of Surface magazine |
Cali Carlin, Anchor for CBSNews.com |
Bisila Bokoko, Executive Director of The Spain-US Chamber of Commerce |
Seth Krauss, Executive Vice President & General Counsel, Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc.
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Letter from the Founder
Dear Friends,
Many of you may have already heard about the brutal civil war that started in Liberia during the early 1990s. Liberia's economic, political, and social systems were decimated, while more than a million civilians either died or became refugees. Many young girls my age were raped or taken as sex slaves, boys were recruited as soldiers, and others were abandoned or orphaned. I am one of the lucky few who escaped without harm.
As I watched my country go from peaceful and quiet to chaotic and dangerous, I never forgot how lucky I was to make it to the United States, receive a full academic scholarship to college, and begin a glamorous career in the New York City fashion world. In 2004, the civil war finally ended and Liberia democratically elected the first female president on the continent of Africa, her excellence Ellen Johnson Sirleaf in 2005. I knew my time had come to give back to my people. I founded the MacDella Cooper Foundation (MCF) with the mission of empowering Liberian youth, especially orphans and abandoned children, by providing education and the basic necessities of food, clothing, and shelter.
I started by simply collecting and shipping supplies to Liberia. Then, I began renovating orphanages and hosting annual parties in Liberia for 400-500 orphans on Christmas Day, when each child received a warm meal and gift. MCF then piloted an education sponsorship program in one of the neediest communities of the Monrovia suburbs. Today, my vision is to give as many Liberian children as possible the chance to escape the poverty cycle and grow in the nurturing environment of an MCF Academy, so that they can lead Liberia toward an economically strong and politically stable future.
The MCF Academy will be the first tuition-free school in a post-war Liberia. Under the direction of acclaimed architect Winka Dubbeldam and her firm, Archi-Tectonics, we will open in Fall 2010 to 200 students, who are abandoned or orphaned and have no other means of getting an education. I believe that education is the saving grace of Liberia and can lift the 85 percent of the population that lives well below the poverty line toward a sustainable, improved future.
We are extremely excited and honored to be part of the world community assisting in Liberia's recovery. I am eternally grateful to everyone who has given their support. Our work cannot be done without our donors, supporters, volunteers, and staff. On behalf of the children we serve, I say thank you. As Americans, we are far ahead of the curve. Many developing countries around the world are struggling to resolve issues that we had to deal with ages ago -- issues of hunger, poverty, education, basic medical care, malaria, democracy and basic human rights.
Whether you are CEO or a college student, you have the solution to many of the problems our friends in the developing world face. It is as simple as jumping on the bandwagon of solution finders. Donating your time, resources, or your funds is a great start. I personally invite you to join us in rising to the challenge to help one child at a time.
I look forward to your participation in one of our projects.
Gratefully,
MacDella Cooper
Founder
Download the MCF press kit for more information.