Africa-Press – Liberia. Darius Dolo—born on the 26th day of September, 1985—is a native of Nimba County, Liberia’s current leader in economic activities among the Country’s 15 Counties.
His personally told story at a graduation program of a Business School, he was graduating from, emotionally moved many of those listening, shown by their clapping for him.
“I picked out commercial washing of other people’s clothes, because I couldn’t find white-collar job after I graduated from the African Methodist Episcopal University, located on Benson Street, Monrovia, in 2016,” Darius, now age 37, said during his narration to a body of panelists coordinating the “Business Idea Pitching” contest among graduating students, and the general audience. The graduation program was at the STRIVE Business School, in Thinker’s Village, located along the road leading to the Head Office of the Liberia Telecommunications Limited (LTC)
He won the Third-place prize with a fifteen thousand Liberian dollars (LS$15,000) price tag.
The graduation ceremony was Saturday, January 31, 2023.
At Darius’s business place one week after the graduation, different sizes of wet clothes—including children’s—were on five clothes lines to dry. The lines were in front of a small building “D & W Laundry & Domestic Cleaning Services, VOA Community” written at the front and sides of the building. He was with eight young persons—five males and three females. Two were cleaning in and around the laundry business center; three were washing; and two were hanging clothes on two vacant lines. He was giving instructions and suggestions to the workers.
“They are my employees. Five are on salary; three are working for wage,” Darius informed this writer.
He repeated to this writer what he had said at STRIVE’s graduation ceremony about why he’s now into commercial clothes-washing.
“My knowledge and expertise of clothes-washing from age 15 to age 25, when I was living with my uncle, Mr. Peter Dolo, after the death of my biological father, Cooper Dolo,” Darius explained further. He added: “I started with washing other people’s clothes at my house or their houses. Now, I have my own laundry company,” he pointed to the mini business center, “and I have employed other people,” he pointed to each of those busy with his or her assigned task. “We wash clients’ clothes at your business center and go to customers’ homes to work, based on their preference or instruction.”
Darius said, prior to resorting to survival-related washing job, he had surfed Liberian websites and toured on legs around for jobs.
“I checked the Liberian E-Mansion’s website, but I couldn’t see the white collar job I was looking for. Later, I went from one Ministry to another, looking for a voluntary job, but none of the Ministries I visited absorbed me into the system,” the now-commercial clothes-washing businessman said.
To the interviewer’s question of how he got the money to start the washing business, Darius said: “I borrowed fifty United States dollars from a friend to buy washing tubs, the first bar soaps and the detergent, or tar soap, I used on the first customer’s clothes.”
“I started with washing other people’s clothes at my house or their houses. Now, I have my own laundry company, and have employed other people. We wash clients’ clothes at your business center and go to customers’ homes to work on their preference. My business has a Social Media, Facebook, page for more people to contact me.”
For High School education, Darius said he graduated from the Victoria Chapel High School, located in Redlight, Paynesville, in 2010.
“My high school education was sponsored by a Christian Organization, named Livingstone Outreach, based in the United States of America.”
Darius’s passion for Agriculture started when he was living with his uncle—Peter Dolo, he said.
“My uncle was a popular and highly respected farmer in Nimba County, my ancestral home, when I was living with him,” he recalled.
He also explained during the interview with this writer why he didn’t study his favorite subject, Agriculture, at the University.
“I took the Entrance Exam of the University of Liberia, the only University I knew had a Course in Agriculture. But, my name didn’t appear on the University’s list of persons who passed the Entrance Exam. The following year, I took the Entrance Exam of the African Methodist Episcopal University. My name appears on the list of those who passed the Entrance Exam. But AMEZU wasn’t offering Agriculture. So, I chose Business Management and Public Administration,” the now-commercial laundry businessman narrated to this journalist.
In September, 2018, Darius Dolo established a non-profit organization.
“The organization is named Abandoned Children Foundation, ACF, for orphans between age eighteen and twenty-two. These are Liberians whose parents are dead, or are deserted by their parents for some reasons. With the little profits from my clothes-washing business, I buy foods and clothes for children-orphans in orphanages. The Foundation also pays school fees for these young orphans. For now, the Foundation is paying the school fees, based on the NGO Founder’s educational struggles during his childhood days. The NGO is in three Counties: Bong, Margibi, and Montserrado, ” he added.
According to E.D. Darius Dolo, the NGO’s education beneficiaries are in the following Schools: Destiny Kids Foundation Daycare and Primary School, Duarzon Community, Lower Margibi County, five students; Creative Voice Academy, Paynesville, Montserrado County, one student; LICOSSESS Demonstration School, GSA Road, Paynesville, Montserrado County, one student; and Christ The King Foundation School System, Bong County, four students.
However, Darius vision of continual caring for abandoned children is undermined by financial handicap of the NGO.
“Based this financial handicap, I am using this medium, your news story on me to be in a newspaper, to appeal to individual humanitarians and humanitarian organizations to financially support the NGO to continue to provide school fees to these disadvantaged Liberian children,” he added.
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