Profile/Autobiography of

Unisah Samuel Conteh

The Reverend Unisah Samuel Conteh, M. Th., M. Ed. is an Ordained Elder in Full Connection in the United Methodist Church (Liberia Annual Conference).  He is a preacher, teacher and passionate family man and avid advocate for child’s rights. As an international preacher, he has served in churches and schools in Liberia, Africa and the now the United States.

Growing at his local church in western Liberia at the A. B. Anderson UMC, he grew up holding almost all the positions of the church from youth leader, Sunday school teacher, secretary, Men’s president and local lay pastor, trainer and choir member. As pastor of his first local charge at the McIntosh Grove UMC, his country was submerged in a bitter and prolonged civil war. However, his resolve to keep the church family together in the midst of situation was an asset in hope and revival and encouragement to members and the displaced people and refugees. He constantly reminded all that God hadn’t forgotten Liberia. His reliance and casting his complete faith in God with strong prayer discipline is answer to all situations. He always encouraged communities to return to God with reverence whatever the situation, as Jesus is the hope of the world.

Other churches Unisah served are the Reeves Memorial and the St. Peter’s Churches. In these churches he inspired members to undertake great effort in the spiritual harvest in the church community. In so doing, he motivated the church family and communities haggard by civil war to undertake spiritual and social nourishment of war-affected people. He helped empower women and children gain subsistent skill training and other agricultural and community initiatives.

Additionally, he spearheaded the renovation and building of churches and schools destroyed by the war. His passion is to help train rural students, teachers and farmers all over the Liberia Area under the sponsorship of assistance from Methodist conferences abroad.

His services also extended in helping establish reading programs in local village community schools and churches with assistance provided by the Edington Street UMC of Raleigh, North Carolina. His services in ministry to these areas greatly impacted the lives of war ravaged communities in abject poverty and brought holistic change in the lives of the people and their communities.

Serving as District Superintendent of the St. Paul River District (2006-2010), he undertook the establishment of a palm estate as an income generating initiative for the district. Empowering churches and communities are his passion in ministry.

Because of his leadership skills and experience, his peers (Superintendents) repose their confidence in him by electing him as Associate Dean and subsequently Dean of the Cabinet. These position he diligently administered supporting and working with the Episcopal leadership of the Conference.

Having migrated to the United States, he now serves as Pastor of the St. Mark United Methodist Church on Marks Church Road, Augusta, GA.  He also affiliates with the United African Alliance of Christian Methodist Ministers where he serves as the current Vice President and advisor/member of the Augusta Interfaith Coalition. He is a lifelong servant worker of the church who is passionate about spreading the Gospel and helping pastors in their ministry. He strongly believes that as the Lord’s handmade one should maintain intimacy for God and attend God’s business as a way of life.

As an educator, Unisah has served several schools as classroom teacher and in some as school principal. Among the schools he prominently served as an administrator include the St. Paul Episcopal School, the Gbah Public School, the Arthur F. Kulah School and the Matthew UM School. As classroom teacher, he served at the Bomi High School, The British Preparatory School, and the J. J. Robert UM School as either a History/Social Studies and Christian and Religious education teacher.  Having served assiduously in the various school positions, the Episcopacy saw it fit to promote him from Administrative Secretary, to Regional Coordinator of Schools and to the position of Associate Direction of the Department of Education of the Liberian United Methodist School.

Rev. Conteh believes adults must be role models in nurturing school children to become the best they could. He has positively touched the lives of thousands of school, church and community children and inspired them to appreciate their self-worth to success. Such character exemplifies him as a stalwart in promoting educational by using innovative literacy means.

The educational journey has not been a smooth sailing one. However, it has evolved of the years and yielded fruitful results. Upon successfully graduating from high school in 1977, he took advantage to train as an agriculturist and forest ranger, but his passion for teaching lured him into teacher training as an elementary school teacher at the Bomi Extension School. He earned from Ministry of Education, Liberian, a Grade “B” Teaching Certificate to teach all subjects in the Liberian Elementary School and taught for twelve years (1980-1992) before receiving the call to ministry. Upon completion of the discernment program for Candidacy courses, Unisah matriculated at the Gbarnga School of Theology of the United Methodist University. There he earned a Bachelor Theology (Com laude, 1998). He was ordained Probationary Deacon (1996) and Elder in Full Connection (2000). Two years later, he enrolled at the Department of Theology, School of Professional Studies of the Cuttington University and earned a Master of Systematic Theology (2007).

In 2010, he migrated to the US and continued his education in preparation for the United States classrooms. He again matriculated at the Grand Canyon University and earned a Master in Secondary Education, Majoring in history (2014). His new frontier is helping under achieving youth to success as Substitute Teacher in the Richmond County School District of Georgia. The role of technology in inspiring diverse learners is now his preoccupation and feels technology is the new frontier for ministry in the church and communities.  Gospel Pastors is a positive avenue for promoting this initiative in order to inspire minister of the gospel to collaborate and venture in the world of ministry.

Therefore, the preacher and teacher is now mustering ministers to join the band wagon of technological invasion of the church ministries in order to improve church outreach and ministry. Conteh is currently studying Web Development and ministry is reaching its tentacles in to technology.

As a family man, Unisah is married to Carolyn Roberts Conteh. They are proud parents of eight adult children and are blessed with several adventurous grandchildren. Two of the grandchildren now hold undergraduate degrees in Civil Engineering and Sociology respectively. As hobbies, Unisah loves web surfing, screening live sports, reading and traveling.