Well if you couldn't tell from my original blog and knowing me in general, I loved my time volunteering in Ghana. It was an incredible learning experience about our world, how lucking I am, and how loving and accepting people can be. I made some wonderful friends while I was there amongst my fellow teachers, the volunteer coordinators, other volunteers, and my favorite ladies selling items on the street. I was also touched deeply by the children at the SWODC orphanage and the lady that started it, Sister Bernice. Despite the hand they have been dealt in life, they have a great ability to love and desire to succeed.
While I was excited to return home last year (three months without AC was hard), leaving Ghana and those kids was honestly, devastating. It felt like a great loss and I when I first got home I think I experienced some strange form of grief. At that time, I had no idea when (if ever) I would get to return to see these amazing people again. But I am so unbelievably blessed to have the opportunity to once again go to Ghana. I am also so unbelievably blessed to have an amazing, adventurous mother that wants to share in this experience with me and will be going to Ghana as well. My mom and I have been through a lot together, but wow, this will really be a new experience for us! For those of you that know my mom, she is really energetic and strong.....but still this is a big stretch for her. So, I will be sure to try to capture her reactions to 'Africa' as much as possible, it will definitely be good for some laughs with the fam. But really, I am so proud of her and that she is willing and wants to do this with me.
Since I left Ghana, a number of things have been going on at the orphanage and I feel I am needed there more now than ever. The timing of this trip is turning out to be perfect because things are in a bit of disarry. In the past year and a half my mom and I have sponsored one of the children specifically, Elolo and have helped overall by sending items and gifts to all the kids. Elolo is the one I am sure I talked the most about before and dominates most of my pictures. He is six years old now, but is very small and behind for his age. He was very malnourished and neglected early in life which stunted his growth. To help get him caught up and able to start attending school, we paid for him to have a private tutor come to the orphanage four days a week. He was enrolled in kindergarten this past year and has been slowly improving. I am anxious to see for myself how he is faring.
The orphanage has had some difficulties with its current property and will have to relocate this November. A new location still has not been found. Due to a lack of finances and the impending move, where these children will end up is still unknown. Another volunteer that has also been deeply involved with the orphanage has just set up a foundation with her husband to help support the education of the children. The thought right now is that given all the other troubles and the poor public education system, that it may be best for the children to go to a boarding school in town. This will ensure they are getting the best education possible and that they are fully supported. There will be more to come on this after my mom and I get there and can assess things on our own. The foundation, which I am very excited is now up and running, is called Hopkins Foundation. It can be found at http://www.hopkinsfoundation.org/. I met Josephine and her husband when I was there earlier and they are amazing people with big hearts. They have been helping these kids on there own for the past two years.
My mom and I will be staying at the orphanage with Sister Bernice so that we can spend as much time with the kids as possible. Our suitcases are full of gifts for the kids and friends! We plan to spoil these kids for the two weeks we're there. Above all we want them to know that they are loved. I also plan to visit the school where I taught and have lots of friends to see. And of course, while I am not staying with Auntie this time, I do hope that my mom will get to try out her cooking! I actually miss some of the food there and eating with my hands! =)
We arrive in Ghana's capitol, Accra, on Monday Aug 19 and will travel to Ho in the Volta Region the next morning. I will hopefully have the first post up on Tuesday or Wednesday.
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