Macdella Cooper from a refugee to an inspirational role model
By Mercy Adhiambo Oginga
Born in March 1977 in Monrovia, Liberia, Macdella Cooper lived in her home town until the First Liberian Civil War broke out in 1989. She went into exile with her mother in Ivory Coast, where she lived as a refugee during her teen years.
Later in 1993, she got an American visa and relocated to the U.S with her mother and two older brothers. She attended New Jersey’s Barringer High School in Newark and graduated 3rd in a class of 1200 students. Her exceptional performance earned her a scholarship to study Electronics Communications at the Bachelors level at the College of New Jersey.
Later, she took up modeling, and her career in the fashion industry saw her travel the world, including cities such as Milan and New York. Cooper worked for Jones Apparel in New York and Ralph Lauren as a model, and even appeared on the cover of Marie Claire and Glamour magazines.
She also worked for Anne Klein, Eredi Pisano and Duca Sartoria. Cooper worked as a Coordinator for Marketing and Events for the fashion brands. She also worked for the Independent Film and music Festival in New York.
Despite her success in the fashion industry, Cooper felt empty and was compelled to go back to her country to help people going through what she experienced many years back. She felt she had to give back to her native community and help those with a similar ordeal as hers. In 2004, she founded the Macdella Cooper Foundation to help Liberia’s underprivileged women and children.
The non-profit organization has earned her the name “Liberia’s Angel.” The charity offers basic necessities such as food and clothing, including educational opportunities for Liberia’s abandoned children. The MCF Academy was later opened in 2010 to accommodate up to 200 students in its tuition-free boarding facility.
The academy is secure, safe and ideal for learning, offering the needy high quality living standards. Cooper hopes that the country’s top future leaders will come from the Academy. Leaders who don’t just pride in themselves, but their nation as well.
Due to her extensive connections in the political, business and diplomatic worlds globally, Cooper is a member of many charities’ board of directors. They include the Red Cross Tiffany Circle and the Segal Family Foundation.
She has also won many awards such as the Spirit of Friskies Award, the Victor E. Ward Community Service Award, the College of New Jersey Humanitarian Award, The Archbishop of Michael K. Francis Achievement Awards and the Momentum Women Award, among others.
She’s also a motivational speaker, encouraging those going through hardships that it’s possible to overcome their situation. Working in healthcare, education, renewable energy, affordable housing and technology, she’s helping draw investors from around the world to Liberia. She also helps create jobs for Liberians both locally and abroad.
Apart from her board positions, Cooper also holds various advisory and leadership roles in Liberia, the U.S and other nations across the globe. She also works with humanitarian organizations worldwide.
The 40-year old previous model, refugee and popular philanthropist contested for presidency in 2017 under the Union of Liberian Democrats party. She wanted to bring change in her country through universal healthcare, free education, and decentralization of electricity, power and land reforms.
According to a statement published on her campaign website, “My decision to enter the 2017 presidential race today rests on the backbone of hope and reform. As a former refugee girl, I bear testimony to the fact that education remains the greatest equalizer for hope and reform.”
She goes ahead to state that “When used constructively, education can transform anybody into somebody.”
Currently, she’s running for a Senatorial position in Montserrado County. The seat was previously held by the late Senator Geraldine Doe-Sheriff. She’s determined to ensure that women in the country get redress for the issues they face on a day-to-day basis.
Thomas Tafuto, her husband, succumbed to cancer in 2013.
Macdella Cooper is an intelligent, strong, determined, kind, compassionate, ambitious and confident woman despite her difficult background. She’s also a mother of three, a woman to reckon with and emulate. She’s an inspiration to Liberian and African women, and even those across the world.
Africa Global News Publication
