Some pics

Emmanual and me at Dora Memorial School. I visited the children after classes on Tuesday, took them some snacks, and played a little frisbee. Tomorrow afternoon I pick them up for the weekend.

Oranges. They may look yellow, but they are delicious. This is a common way to enjoy them in Ghana: the peel is cut off and the top is sliced so that you can squeeze the orange and drink the juice straight from the orange.

Elolo wearing a hat that says One For Haiti. The Board of Education rolled out a program to assist with the earthquake relief efforts and asked all school children to bring in one Ghana Cedi (a little less than $1). Great iniative; however, the schools are being very strict with it and any student not bringing in a cedi gets sacked (sent home until they bring the money). Sika was sent home Monday at 10am, so I gave her a cedi and one for the rest of the kids. Like I said great iniative but not so great when orphans get kicked out of school because they can't afford to even donate the money-seems to be defeating the whole endeavor, doesn't it?

On the outdoor patio at the hotel kicking back.

A meal cooked by Sister Bernice's mother: yams (love them), stew and noodles (this is a new one, haven't seen these noodles added to the mix before).

A little frisbee action.

It finally happened! SorryO!

I believe in one of my earliest posts from my time here as a volunteer, I mentioned that the streets are lined with drainage/sewer ditches and that some are covered but most are not. I think I also mentioned that my worst fear was that I would walk straight into one. Well, it has taken a while, but it finally happened....I stepped right into one last night! Hahahahaha! I’m fine which is why I am laughing about it!

It was dark out and I was near the market with six of the kids about to get in a taxi (we had just finished dinner after spending the afternoon playing some games and enjoying cold sodas at Freedom hotel-has the pool). Wallasy is always a little gentleman and opens the front door for me to get in the taxi. So last night he opens the door and just as I am saying thank you, I step forward and my left foot feels nothing beneath it. The taxi was parked right in front of this small hole, barely bigger than my foot and wouldn’t you know, I manage to step directly in the middle of it. My leg went down clear to my upper thigh!!!! I was fine, just very shocked. All the kids freaked out trying to help me up, the taxi driver was crawling across the seat and I was laughing! Also thanking the Lord that there was nothing wet or disgusting that I sank into! Phew! I was also thankful that I was hidden by the taxi door and on the side of the street with not many people, so I didn’t have a huge audience! I managed to get out of the hole with just a bruise on my thigh and two minor scrapes. However, the whole mishap alerted me to another Ghanaian phrase. The word ‘sorry’ or 'sorryo' is used when someone gets hurt, falls, or trips; similar to asking someone ‘are you okay.’ So I had every kid and the taxi driver saying ‘Sorry’ to me and when we got home, they of course told grandma right away so she would look at my leg and she said ‘sorry’ too!

Awoenam

YEA!!!! Awoenam is growing healthy and bigger! Awoenam is the three-year old girl we met on the last trip that had recently been brought to Sister Bernice because of concerns she was not being taken care of properly by her sister. I finally got to see her yesterday and can’t possibly describe the joy! She looks so happy and beautiful and she is talking! Sister Pat, the woman that is caring for her in her house, is such a loving and wonderful, new mom to Awoenam. I have no doubt that she is in great hands. My mom loves Awoenam and developed a very special bond with her last time, so she did some extra shopping for Awoenam and sent many dresses (or as Sister Pat said, the dresses are plenty) with me, as well as the cutest, sun hat, shoes, and baby doll (it even says mama and cries). I again had the great privilege of sharing these items with her and I WISH I had captured on video Awoenam’s response to the doll! She absolutely loves it and won’t let go of it; she is being a very good mommy and giving the baby lots of hugs and kisses! She even fed the baby some of her candy I brought! The dresses my mom sent are adorable and I will hopefully be able to load a pic of her in one of her complete outfits. I was able to learn more about Sister Pat and Awoenam yesterday (I won't lie, I really was questioning why Pat would take in a child...what was in it for her...isn't that awful?). First off, Pat has one son that is 24 and lives in Accra. When I commented that now she has the chance to raise a girl, she responded with ‘thanks to God’s grace.’ She really feels honored to do this and her love and care for Awoenam shows through; I can tell Awoenam loves her too. Awoenam’s mother died and her father either left or also died, leaving Awoenam’s older sister to care for her. Her sister was only in high school and she became pregnant and dropped out of school. Pat and other neighbors noticed that Awoenam was malnourished and not being watched after, so someone came to Bernice for assistance (because of her organization for orphans). Sister Pat offered to take in Awoenam if her sister agreed to register her with Bernice. Pat has a big heart; she also cares for her aunt who has suffered a stroke and cannot walk. Thank God for people like Pat!

Awoenam in one of her outfits from Mama Carol (or as Pat kept referring to her, Big Mama in the US -sorry mom, I know you will hate the sound of that- but I am Little Mama, Sister Pat is Mama, and you're Big Mama =)).

She had some great smiles playing with her baby, but of course I couldn't capture any. Whenever she knew I was taking a pic she would look at the camera very seriously. I kept telling her to smile and show her teeth; her response was to open her mouth wide and 'show me her teeth.' Love it!

She was also very excited about this hat! At one point I took it off because it was in the way. When her neighbor came by, she ran for the hat to put it on and show off!

Here are the new shoes so far:

Wallasy, Elolo, and Sika

Thank you Sister Cassie!

Living the Good Life

Even though my friends here speak English to me, they have some different sayings that I didn’t always understand at first. Now, even though I can still only speak a small amount of Ewe, I find myself speaking their English dialect to communicate more effectively (I’ve caught myself once or twice saying these at home too). Here are a few examples:

If you only want a small amount of an item or there is only a little of something left, you describe it as ‘small, small.’ For example, ‘I speak Ewe small, small.’

If you have a lot, if something is full, the word ‘plenty’ is used versus I have enough. For example ‘the tomatoes were plenty at the market.’

If someone has a cut or other injury, instead of being hurt, it is described as the cut is ‘paining’ them.

If something is broken, it is described as ‘spoiled or finished.’

If a pen runs out of ink or the food runs out, it is also ‘finished.’

If you want to get out of a tro tro or taxi, you want to ‘alight.’

Home is referred to as ‘the house.’ Example: Will you be in the house at 10am or I am going to the house.

If you are leaving or walking away from someone but will be returning, you say ‘I am coming’ or vacaba in Ewe (this one really tripped me up at first). Someone would say to me I am coming and then walk away from me and I wouldn’t see them for another two hours! =)

This is small, but I enjoy it for some reason: The response to ‘good morning’ is usually met with a ‘fine morning.’ I think I’ll try that more often; it just seems less robotic to me.

One of my favorite things to say in Ewe that is very helpful when spending lots of time with the kids: caba, caba! Which means: quickly, quickly!

Our swimming adventure on Saturday, once again was successful. Since my mom wasn’t here, Grandma (Bernice’s mom) came with us to help me keep an eye on the kids (not that she can swim). There was a beautiful wedding taking place at the hotel, which meant a lot of additional Ghanaian children were hanging around. So my kids and I had an audience of about 10 kids and several adults staring at us in the pool! In this area of Ghana, swimming is not something they do for fun nor do most people know how to swim because areas to swim are not plenty. =) One of the boys, Emmanuel, spent some time near one of the fishing villages, so he is the only one that actually knew how to swim and he even beat me in a race (I was actually trying to win)!

After swimming we found a place that could feed and sit all us (13 in total) and thanks to my Aunt Dorles I was able to treat the kids to a good dinner out. I asked the kids what they would choose to eat if they could have anything they wanted for dinner (I named all the Ghanian dishes and options, which are some good ones and asked if they wanted fish, chicken, or even goat...yuck) and they ALL said RICE and chicken!!! What? Rice, seriously? I’ve seen them get served rice multiple meals in a day, so this was surprising. I asked again and they were in a agreement. Luckily the place we found served fried rice also, so they all at least got something a little different and tastier. They also got pepper stew and fried chicken; it all looked delicious (I was the only one that ordered the more traditional dish, fufu)! They were a very happy group! Thank you Aunt Dorles; they will still be getting some fish later this week as well!

I haven’t experienced any real jet lag the first few days here and have been so thankful for high energy levels! I even managed to get a run in yesterday (this is the first time I have ever worked out in Ghana; Ghana is usually a work out in itself)! I woke up very early to avoid the heat. I set my alarm for 5:00am, right when it starts getting light, but I was actually awake at 4:30 excited for the day! I went to the stadium in Ho which meant having to find a tro tro or taxi that early in the morning on a Sunday, luckily it was market day so it didn’t take long. One of the boys Wallasy came with me to keep me safe (mmmm...he’s 12 and weighs maybe 80 lbs), so I let him listen to my IPOD while I ran. It felt great and I will be heading there again tomorrow!

Speaking of running, I have to share how matter of fact Ghanaians are with weight. While it is such a sensitive subject in our culture, they just view it as any other characteristic, such as hair color. So when describing another Ghanian person that is overweight, they have no hesitation in saying, the big girl and they hold out their arms in a way to mimic being big. It could be offensive if it wasn’t so shocking and funny. Anyways, they are usually a little more sensitive to foreigners because they know our culture treats this differently. However, now that I have been running more, I do weigh less than previous trips. So my friends here keep telling me, ‘wow, you reduced.’ Our friend Richard (from internet café and helps Bernice) was the funniest about this, he was commenting that I reduced and we started talking about running, etc. Then he said, ‘good you are no longer heavy. Why is it that Americans are always so fat?’ Ha, ha, ha! Oh my goodness. Not sure how I should have taken this whole conversation, should I have been offended? Maybe, but I wasn’t at all, he wasn’t trying to be mean, just stating the truth. He even did the arm mimic when he was talking about the American volunteers he’s met. I told him not all Americans are fat, but our country does have an overweight and obesity epidemic probably because the overabundance of food. He said but Ghana has food everywhere too. Which is true. While the marketing differs greatly between our countries, everywhere you turn in Ghana there’s a person carrying some type of food for sale on their head (it rivals our fast food frenzy). My other response was our abundance of luxury that diminishes the natural activity levels in Ghana (i.e. personal cars that take us from point a to point b, washing machines, dishwashers, TV, etc).

Yesterday I took Sika, Elolo, and Wallasy (all three live with Bernice’s mom) with me to visit the kids at the boarding school since they have never been there. When I took the kids out on Saturday it was like trying to free my kids from prison! They are very strict at the school with giving the kids permission to leave, which is good really (I don’t want just anyone coming in and taking them), but it took me an hour to get them out of there which was a little frustrating! So Sunday we just went to visit, but they were very busy studying for their final exams which start tomorrow. It was nice to see that even on the weekends they had extra classes they could participate in for reviews and I learned that often in the evenings they will have some type of cultural group come in and perform for the kids. Sika, Elolo, Wallasy, and I headed to the market for a couple of items. We had unsuccessfully shopped for shoes the day before, so when we passed a few stalls of shoes Wallasy spotted a great pair of tennis shoes and before long I was bargaining for pairs for all three of them. I feel like a I actually got a good deal (the day before I wasn’t which is why we didn’t buy any). The shoes are sooooo cute! I’ll have to get a picture of them today (Cassie- this is what your donation will go to, shoes for the kids!)! Elolo and Wallasy both got tennis shoes (Elolo’s are Addidas-they were only $5- he will be styling) and Sika got fun sparkly black shoes! They can wear them for school and church.

More shoe shopping to come; it is such a joy and blessing to see the kids get so excited about picking out something they really like, brand new shoes that they got to pick themselves and are just theirs! I thought Elolo specifically was going to burst with joy when he saw his shoes being placed in the bag (he literally was jumping up and down, pulling on my arm, asking ‘my shoes, my shoes?’)! Out of the five of us (including the salesman), I am truly the lucky one.












Kids at the boarding school (Noble is the one standing up then Emmanuel, Sammy, Elikim, Patricia, Patience, Peace, and Edem). All the kids in this pic, except Patience and Patricia, are enrolled in the boarding school.











Edem and Peace relaxing at the pool.










Sammy's hair was a bush when I picked him up from school so we went to the barber! Poor Sammy, everyone is just standing around, staring at him and then I start taking pictures! He, he.

Ghana: Is it an Addiction?

It seems I am only good at blogging when I am in Ghana (which makes sense....this is a blog about Ghana). However, my friend Maasen told me I was about to be bumped off of her list of ‘blogs she follows’ (www.maasenyourface.blogspot.com), so I figured I better get back to Ghana and get blogging! Besides this pressure to blog, I’m sure any of you reading this knows by now, that I am just in love with my kids in Ghana and can’t bear to stay away too long....I admit it may be an addiction, but what a good one! This wasn’t a trip planned in advance, it all came together in a matter of weeks. Like so many times before, the timing and logistics of this trip just fell into place and felt right. So I took the plunge and if God is willing, I will get to visit Ghana twice this year. The original plan was to come in the fall with my mom again; she couldn’t take time off work this early in the year, so I am traveling solo. While it seems a little strange not to have her here this time, I am also looking forward to being selfish and having the kids all to myself and being able to walk more places (sorry mom-love you)! Plus it really reminds me of when I was here the first time. I even traveled by myself from the airport this time (a first)!

While I only arrived in Sokode today at 11am, I’ve already had a full and wonderful day catching up and have felt great after my 18 hour journey (fyi- I really wrote this Friday night, but just now posting)! My travels here couldn’t have gone any easier- thank you to those who prayed for just that! From the lack of traffic on Highway 270 at 8:45am to the angelic curbside luggage checker that helped me get my bags to weigh under 50 lbs to the entertaining and inspiring Ghanian man sitting next to me on the plane to the relatively comfortable tro-tro ride, I felt God’s hand all the way.

Since the kids are in multiple places now (boarding school, Bernice’s/’the orphanage,’ and her mom’s house), I made multiple trips around town to let them know I was here. There are currently six kids in the boarding school thanks to everyone that helped our fundraising efforts (there were originally seven, but Princilla proved to be too young to stay there and is at another school now and living with Constance). I got to tour the school and see where the kids sleep. They are adorable, the boys all have the top bunks- three in a row, with Sammy in the bottom middle bed. The girls sleep in a bunk together too. They seem to be doing well and when I drilled them about the school, they still said they really like it, just the food could be a little better. They have final exams next week that they need to pass to advance to the next level, so this will be a true test to see how much they have learned.

Thank you to the many people that provided items for me to bring along on this trip! I stuffed two large suitcases full with lots of clothes, toys, crafts, vitamins, and old phones! It is a privilege to be the distributer of such great gifts and to see the smiles!

We have a day at the pool and shopping for new shoes planned for Saturday and a visit to see Awoenam. Bernice tells me she has grown a lot already in the past 6 months and this is incredible news! I’ll work on getting some pics of her and the other kids on here soon!

Aaahhhh, internet that works….

Well, I didn’t keep up with the blog this trip. Our time just went so fast, getting to an internet café was not convenient, and when we were there is was too frustrating to load pictures. So, below is an array of photos illustrating this year’s trip.

We saw a few new things this year, but for the most part Ghana, to me…and now my mom even….just seems normal, normal for Ghana, that is. We’re becoming use to it, use to a different culture, sounds, smells, foods, and even a different perspective on time! You never know what might happen in Ghana, so we’ve learned to just go with it.

Not sure it is obvious from the pictures, but the kids are growing so much! Of course, as my friend Maasen pointed out to me last night, kids do that. Yes, they do and it is a good thing. It means they are getting the necessary nutrients and are hopefully developing healthy bodies….but still it makes me a little sad. Sad that they will eventually outgrow the cute, cuddly stage and sad because I miss out on much of their lives and the changes that occur between these visits. Regardless, this trip was blessed with much happiness compared to last year. While it was hard to leave again, it felt different…it was okay. Now I am hopeful for their futures and know that with the Hopkins Foundation we are on the right track to ensuring that they will no longer be forgotten about or abandoned in life.

While there are still many kids we can’t help yet this year via boarding school, the fact that seven of the orphans are enrolled and will head off on September 6 is amazing! The Hopkins Foundation hasn’t even been up and running for a year yet and already it is able to make this impact! I just have to say thank you, thank you, thank you again to everyone that has helped support these efforts so far! May God bless you! I wish each and everyone of you could see these children in person and see the impact that you are making in their lives!

I had a little pep talk/heart-to-heart with the seven kids that are enrolled this year: Peace, Noble, Elikim, Sammy, Princilla, Edem, and Emmanuel. I just wanted them to know how many people are making their schooling possible, believing in them, and showing them love. Our work to give these children better lives is far from over, so I don’t want to get a head of myself, but……..I just pray for the kids to feel the love that so many of us have for them, that this love is enough to overcome anything from their pasts, that it makes them grab a hold of the opportunity and potential school offers, leading them to successful lives, and that one day…they’ll pour that love back out to others in need.

I never got to update about the 2nd yard sale….it was also a success and helped with Elikim and Sammy’s enrollment. After the yard sale and several other donations from my friends Maasen and Amy, we raised another $500.00. Josephine also had a friend that agreed to sponsor one of the kids, getting us to the seven! THANK YOU!!!!!

Bernice's neighborhood in Sokode

Melody-Wonder's daughter (he teaches at the school I worked in). We met her last year when she was very tiny.

Our boys playing football with some local kids in Ho. Sokode versus Ho. Sokode won (6-4), whoo hoo!

Big boys playing football. That's Adaklu Mountain in the background....I climbed it, piece of cake. =)

Dora Memorial School. This is the boarding school the kids will attend.

Here are the first seven (oops, six, Princilla is missing from the photo) to enroll in boarding school. From left to right: Elikim, Emmanuel, Sammy, Noble, Peace, Edem.

This is where Bernice's mom lives in Ho. Love the tree.

On the trail to Wli Waterfalls

We crossed the river eight times using these bridges.

God's beauty.

See....my mom really did make it.

Mmmm....I just like trees.

Bernice (left) and her mom.

Huge bamboo

In the forest looking for monkeys.

Monkeys!

Noble feeding a monkey in the tree.

Elolo's turn. We had a ton of monkeys gathering near us waiting for our bananas.

Elolo worn out after a day of swimming.

We took the kids to dinner after swimming. They're enjoying a local dish called banku.

Awoenam. She is three years old, but like Elolo was malnourished and neglected and therefore is the size of a one year-old. She was brought to Bernice, who placed her with a nice woman named Pat. When we first met Awoenam she showed no emotion and wouldn't make any noises (for us nor for Pat). After a few encounters with my mom she was a laughing, happy baby! My mom fell in love!

Friends. Emmanuel and Noble. So cute.

On the way to the monkey sanctuary and waterfalls. Tro-tro with flat tire #1.

Flat tire #2 and our boys trying to lift the tro-tro. It worked.







Entertaining themselves and making me very nervous while we waited for a new tire !

My old friends, the DiVOG boys: Richard, DJ (with the wild pants), and Robert. Mypa (not pictured) and Robert took my mom and me out in Accra our last night in Ghana. It was great to see life in the capitol and all the expats!

I may be in Ghana and they may call it Maize, but looks a lot like Central Illinois to me. This is on the farm behind Bernice's house, she owns several plots.

The boys working on the farm. They are growing cassava, yams, and maize.

Sammy wasn't working too hard on the farm, he found this nice tree.

Gorgeous.

Leaving......

Elikim and Sammy

I have a wonderful update on Elikim and Sammy, the two brothers. Thanks to so many people’s generosity to the Hopkins Foundation and thanks to Josephine’s generosity, both Sammy and Elikim will be attending boarding school this September! This is great news and a big relief after our recent visit to their village. I informed Josephine of their condition and we are quickly moving forward to get them enrolled. Elikim has not been here this past week (he has been staying in Accra for a short period of time), but will be coming to Bernice’s house tomorrow morning to register for school, etc. We are all so excited to see him again and to see his reaction to this news!

The Ghana Travels of 15 kids, two yavus and a grandma

We've returned from our little jaunt to see monkeys and a waterfall (Wli Waterfalls are touted as the highest in West Africa) and everyone survived and returned in one piece! Praise the Lord! Bernice's mom came with us, so she should also be getting some praise!

What will I remember the most from this trip?

Will it be:

• Feeding wild Mona monkeys bananas from our hands?
• The glorious waterfall that appeared to fall from the sky at the end of an hour walk through a forest?
• Having my mom tell me she doesn't like camping, even though we weren't: we stayed in a two room building that had running water....the washrooms just happened to be outside in a common area.
• The mischievous laughter and smiles of my older kids sitting in the back of the tro-tro truly loving their time away from chores and the usual, being nothing but children?
• The tro-tro getting a flat tire twice and watching my tough boys try to lift the vehicle?
• Spending 30 hours with 15 children in very tight quarters? =)
• Guiding my mother for two hours through a slick forest trail fearing that she would fall and her surprising me by not falling or passing out?
• One hand holding my mom's and the other holding a small child making sure no one falls?

No, while these are all memorable moments, the thing I took away from this trip is how big of a responsibility it is to feed 15 hungry mouths!!!!! Wow, I felt that for the majority of the trip we were eating, talking about eating, searching for enough food for 15 children or negotiating food prices! It gives me a new-found respect for Bernice and McDonald's! =)

It shouldn't be a big surprise, but it has been almost impossible to get any of my pics to load. But for now, I was able to get these on here (I am behind a post on pictures, monkey and waterfall pics should be up tomorrow or Tuesday).




Right to left: Noble, Sammy, Frank (Wallasy), Ayrum, and Eyako-the last two are the twins. This is the picture I took right after we were all first reunited with Sammy in his village.








Races at the pool. Noble won every single time-he's a bit competitive.








My girls lounging pool side.








In Accra on the day of our arrival waiting for the tro-tro to fill up and take us to Bernice's. Looking great....right?

Priceless Moments

No news has meant good news.....sorry for the delay in posting, but we are alive and well. We arrived safely on Tuesday and have just been very busy with the children! I think we have not wanted to spend any time a away from them the past few days as we had just arrived! We want to soak up all the time possible!

So a quick recap from the last few days:
Our flight here went well. We did use a different airline from previous trips, Delta. The flight was cheaper and it flies direct!!!! That is huge since it cuts down on the length of time. So we flew from St. Louis to JFK and then straight into Accra, Ghana. Our whole trip was about 17 hours this time (that includes a 5 hour layover in New York-where we enjoyed people watching and margaritas=)! All I can say about Delta is that it is cheaper for a reason, but it got us here safely so I should not complain. But I will....the flight wasn't quite as enjoyable as my flights on British Airways and KLM, most of the movie monitors didn't work, they seemed to have less staff members, and the seats were much smaller. Also in the airports, their check-in and boarding systems were crazy and disorganized. Also, there were a lot more screaming children....not sure if that is the airline or just luck =). My mom and I did not sit together, which made her a little sad and relieved me a little (ha, mom-sorry). We had seats next to each other originally but gave them up for a father and small child that would have had to sit in different cabins!

Our friend Sylvester met us in Accra and traveled with us back to Ho...well actually now Bernice lives right outside of Ho in a village called Sokode. It is much quieter where she is now, which is lovely, but that also means no internet cafes there. We traveled into Ho today to use the cafe here. The ride from Sokode to Ho is a five minute taxi ride that costs us less than 50 cents. We are staying with Bernice afterall, she begged us to stay with her. We have our own room again which they have prepared for us very nicely and are once again treating us like queens! It is too much! They don't have much, but they give us everything!

As I said earlier, there are a few of the orphans that remained with Bernice and some live with her mom. So on Tuesday when we arrived in the afternoon we hung out with the five kids at Bernice's: Peace, her sister Patience, Noble, Patricia, and Ebeneazer (a new child that was brought to Bernice), plus Bernice's two grandboys- the twins. On Wednesday morning we headed to Bernice's mom's house in Ho...with Bernice and the other children in tow....all in one taxi....that is ten people in one taxi-and yes, my mom was in there! Fun! Elolo, Sika, Priscilla, and Selasie all live with Bernice's mom. After playing with the kids and spending the afternoon there we asked to bring all the children back to Bernice's. So while we are here, all of those children will be in the same house where we can play and spend time with them more easily.

There are the two brothers that we wanted to check on while here: Sammy and Elikim. They are in a small village five miles from Sokode, so yesterday my Mom, Bernice, and I took Noble, Frank, and the twins there to visit. The village is very small and somewhat desolate. Unfortunately, Elikim is away in Accra right now, but we did get to see Sammy. It was sad....in fact, even Bernice began to cry. Sammy was very dirty, his legs were covered in dirt and his clothes were also full of dirt. The women in town that welcomed us informed us that he isn't taken care of well. The women that he and Elikim live with right now doesn't have a lot and isn't around much because she spends all day out on a farm, so the boys fend for themselves. We are all considering right now what to do and what makes the most sense, but Bernice, my mom and I agree, those boys need to leave that house. There was a happy moment of the trip though: when we got to town we were greeted and just told to sit in front of this store while Sammy was located. So we did and of course my mom and I drew a little crowd. So by the time they found Sammy and he came running up, I know he was probably embarassed because everyone was looking at him and talking about his situation. So he looked very shy and wasn't smiling at all. He hugged my mom and me but looked down the entire time. But then we sent him over to Noble and Frank and I would pay a million dollars to see their reactions again! All of them, especially Sammy, had huge smiles, laughed and joked with each other. Noble pulled Sammy over to them and on their laps and they all hugged! Priceless! I did capture one picture right after, but it doesn't do justice. Sammy came to Sister Bernice's house last night and will stay with us for a while.

Yesterday was busy! After all that, we came back and took all the children to the pool at the hotel in Ho! Most have been to the pool once and a few have never been. We had a blast. There is a kiddie pool, the big pool, and inner tubes. At first only the big kids would come in the big pool with my mom and me (wearing the inner tubes of course) and we would lead them around the pool. Then they would get brave enough to swim in the inner tube by themselves. Then the smaller kids starting coming over the big pool and doing the same thing. It was a little scary for my mom and me to keep dibs on eleven kids that can't swim, but they all behaved well and no one drowned...so it was a great day! =) Two of the older kids, Patience (who has never been in a pool) and Noble are probably ready to swim without inner tubes. We tried a couple times and they are almost getting it.

This afternoon we are taking 16 kids and Bernice's mom to the monkey sanctuary which is an hour away. We will go there, stay over night, then tour the sanctaury in the morning, feed some mokeys and head to some waterfalls nearby. We'll return to Sokode Sat night, hopefully sane and with all 16 kids!

There is so much more to share.....like how much all the children have grown, all the silly things they remember about our time together last year, the new children we have met.....

Going, Going, …..Ghana

A lot happens and changes in a child’s life in one year. This past year has been one full of changes for our kids in Ghana: the closure of the orphanage; being separated from each other (their ‘new family’ essentially); sent off to live with any remaining family member they may have; for some, being returned to live with Bernice in a new place; and now some are preparing for boarding school. There is no doubt a lack of constants in their lives and this will remain true for a while until the Hopkins Foundation is truly well established.

At this time, there is only one small constant I’m blessed enough to provide: continuing to spend time with them, albeit a short amount of time each year. To my surprise, the kids made it clear last year just how much it meant that I came back to see them and especially that I brought my mom. They truly do hold on to those promises of ‘I will come back one day.’ I had no idea when I left them the first time when or how I would get back, but I knew I had to….one day. I had no clue that I would go back a year and half later and again a year after that!

Yes, that is right, I am going back to Ghana again!!!! YEA!!!! And so is my mom!!!! We made a last minute decision earlier this month that we couldn’t wait any longer, we had to go see them this summer! We will be there again for two weeks, leaving St. Louis August 10 and returning August 25.

Once again, this trip will be completely different from the last. We don’t have the orphanage to stay in this time and all the kids are in different locations (this is probably going to be the most difficult part for me). Our plan right now is to stay a few days with Auntie, maybe one or two with Bernice, and probably most of the time will stay at a hotel/guest house in town that is supposedly really nice. I’m leaning towards that option because it will give us our own space to use as a central location for the children. We could gather them all up in the morning and bring them to our place. We are also planning on at least one trip to the pool and a one day trip to a nearby waterfall area. We want to provide the kids with an opportunity to all hang out together but also get away from their current environments and doing something they never get to do! I have still not traveled up north to the elephant reserve, which involves a little trek on foot to get up close to wild elephants (uh, not behind fences). My mom wants to take the kids (I don’t think I have shared ALL the details with her-like the no fence part)….but if this actually happens….well, it is a day/night trip there and then back on a tro-tro on some very rocky roads with a bunch of kids and my mom! Kind of sounds like a disaster waiting to happen, but if we could pull it off, could you imagine the look own their faces when a elephant is 15 feet away from us…..could you imagine my face OR my mom’s!!!! =)

So, leaving in less than two weeks!!!!!! 2nd yard sale tomorrow and Sat!!!

A special thanks to several friends and family that have made donations since learning about our new trip. Maase, my mom's friends Gina and Pam, my aunt, and Kendra's Aunt Mary have all given or offered donations to be used for either the Foundation or for toys/clothes/food/etc for the kids while we are there! Thank You!

How Noble

Two more children will be enrolled in boarding school this year, which makes for a total of five currently!!! Oscar, who is one of volunteers my mom and I met last summer from Spain, is sponsoring one of the children and has said that he can raise enough for a second child! What incredible news! When Oscar first learned about the Foundation and the option of sponsoring the children, he asked if he would be able to indicate which child he sponsored. The answer was yes, but then internally I started quessing which child he was considering. I was betting on one of the boys because of the huge bond that was obvious between Oscar, Leo and the boys. I was right! Oscar requested that his donation be used to enroll Noble into boarding school! This makes my heart so happy!

Noble has been one the main kids that has had my heart since my first trip to Ghana. While he is behind in some of the major learning areas, he is truly such a smart boy. He would always make me think up math problems for him to solve and he rarely got them incorrect- and when he did he wasn't happy until he got it right. He dominated the dominos game my mom and I took there last summer and he LOVES football (soccer)! He is also the one who we had the birthday party for last year with the cake. Before coming to Bernice and the orphanage, Noble lived on the street by himself in one of the villages. I can't even begin to fully grasp how incredible this new attention and investment in Noble could affect him in so many ways!

The second child that Oscar will be sponsoring with the money he is raising is one of the girls, which is equally as adorable. Priscilla (really it is Princilla but my mom always say it wrong =)), the peanut-but toughie of the group, will now also be enrolled this Fall!

Thank you Oscar for impacting these children and all the SWODC kids!

Will Someone Please Buy this Goose?

The first of the two benefit yard sales occurred this weekend at Jeff’s house and raised $300 for the kids’ boarding school costs! I am definitely pleased with that amount and excited to see how much can be raised later this month!

I had this weird dream (wait, aren’t dreams always weird?) last week that we raised $300 at the sale. I happened to mention this to my mom and suddenly, $300 became our unofficial goal. Most likely, we could have raised more than that but we had serious rain nonstop Saturday morning that required the yard sale be moved from the front yard to the back alley garage! Needless to say, our sales were hurting on Saturday but some people did surprisingly come out to shop! We had over $207 the first day and then with the help a few purchases on Sat and a nice donation from one of my mom’s friends we had $260 in the end. My mom was either really set on the $300 goal or maybe just loves to make me happy (I’m thinking both), because she made her own donation to make our proceeds an even $300!

In addition to raising money to help the kids and getting rid of some old stuff, we enjoyed discovering others’ connections to Africa. One of our first customers knew a lady going on a mission trip to Ghana later this summer, one person’s neighbor was from Ghana, and there was a mom and son who knew a couple from church that recently adopted from Uganda. There were also several people that asked further about the Foundation and added a few extra dollars onto their purchases to help out!

Jeff and my mom deserve a HUGE THANK YOU because by default of being my family members they both got stuck doing a lot of work this weekend! Uh, I love you both….a lot! =) My mom was great because she likes to chat with people (no surprise there) and enjoyed the opportunity to talk about her kids in Ghana which helped us with more donations. Jeff’s muscles were of course a big help when it came to setting up and tearing down, but even more helpful was his willingness to entertain me on the slow, rainy day in the garage (and to ensure no one abducted me from the alley)! I may be able to obtain some of the pictures of the great outfits he pieced together from the clothes for sale! He also was great when I made him be a pretend shopper when a car would drive by! =)

The wooden goose from the picture is still left and will be waiting for a new owner at the Champaign garage sale! Really, I thought it would be a top seller when I pried it from my mom’s hands in her basement where it has sat for six years.

Cleaning House, Raising Funds

I have incredible friends and family! This isn't news to me, but it still makes me so happy every time I am reminded of it! My brother and my good friend Kendra have both been nice enough to offer up their houses (yards and driveway to be accurate) for garage sales to raise funds for my kids in Ghana! Thank you Jeff, thank you Kendra (and Jim)!

On July 3 & 4 at Jeff's and July 31 & August 1 at Kendra's we will be selling our old stuff and giving 100% of the proceeds to the Hopkins Foundation so more of the SWODC orphans can go to boarding school this Fall and have three meals a day! This should be a fabulous way to raise some more funds!

I'll be home over the Fourth of July weekend to hang with the family and conduct the St. Louis garage sale. In Champaign, we're having the garage sale at Kendra's because she lives on a very busy road, so we will hopefully attract a large crowd. I am promoting the garage sales as fundraisers for the kids and will have information about the Hopkins Foundation and pictures of the children onsite. Hopefully, some of our customers will feel extra generous when they learn our purpose. Also, their purchases are technically donations, so they are tax deductible! Friends and family can donate any items they no longer want or use. I figure everyone has stuff they want to get rid of but haven't gotten around to taking it to Goodwill yet, so why not give it to this cause! Especially, when it so easy-I am willing to pick up the items, organize, price, etc.

On another note, Josephine had an amazing trip back in May and came back from Ghana with lots of updates on the kids. She has asked to post on the blog to provide an update and I am thrilled. She had some 'make the hair on your arms stand-up' moments while there and feels even more certain of her calling in these kids' lives. So there will be another post soon to provide an update on the boarding school progress. But a quick summary for now- three children are being enrolled for August. Picking the three is definitely a difficult part and when Josephine asked my opinion it broke my heart to think about choosing. Yes, for these three it will be life-changing but for the others..... Regardless, during her trip the three presented themselves to her and the decision was easier than expected as you will read soon!

Josephine Returns to Ghana

Josephine (from the Hopkins Foundation) returned to Ghana last Sunday for a two-week visit. She has been visiting with the children that have remained with Bernice and her mother, working on the boarding school logistics, and she will also be traveling to the various villages where the other SWODC are currently living. She is there to prepare for sending the children to the boarding schools and to check in on the children that were returned to their guardians.

She sent me this beautiful email this morning to let me know about her time in Ghana thus far. Instead of recapping what she said, I thought I would just post most of the actual message here because it is so touching. It brought a huge smile to my face and maybe even some tears to my eyes (I know, I know, I am such a sap)! As I told Josephine in my email response, just hearing that she is there with the children brings such a peace and happiness to my heart. I know they are safe and are being loved right now!

Quick note on the email-'Woezo' is Welcome in Ewe and Richard is the guy that gave my mom the full African dress! =)

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From Josephine Hopkins (4/26/09):

Woezo sister Alicia,

I am so grateful that I am here and able to hang out with the children. They are looking great but are in need of a few things so I will be filling those needs. I have told them all that you send hugs and kisses and I wish you could have seen their smiles. They sure love and miss both you and Mama Carol.

By the way, I am at the internet cafe next to the old SWODC office and Richard told me to tell Mama Carol hello and he misses her. He is an incredible young man!!!

I have been able to spend time with Patricia, Patience, Peace, Noble (who are still living with Bernice) and Elolo, Sika and Celese (who are living with Bernice's mother). In fact I am just on my way back from visiting today. I will be headed back tomorrow with new sandals for all. I will find out how to get to Bernice's mother's home tomorrow which is in Ho so I can spend some more time with Elolo, Sika and Celese.

I have actually run into some of the other children that are still around Sokode and Ho, Gloria, Matilda and Evelyn. I am so thankful for this.We went to market on Thursday with all the children (I don't know what I was thinking) and it was CRAZY!!! We decided to just go to Freedom Hotel and have a cold drink...much calmer.

I will try to figure out what needs to be done from this point and keep you posted.There is much love for you and Mama Carol here and I will close on that note.I'll be back in touch soon.

Much love,
Mama Josephine
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Prior to checking my email today, I was just sitting here thinking about my blessings this week (it is amazing how many blessing we actually receive on a weekly basis, but most of us...myself included....don't normally realize this because we don't take time to stop and think about it). I was already impressed by the blessings I did receive, then I got this email and it is truly a great blessing. THANK YOU!

40 Day Journey to Generosity

I spoke briefly to Sister Bernice again the other week on the phone and have learned that another one of the children, Selasie, has been brought back to Bernice from a guardian. Selasie lived at the orphanage during my first stay in Ghana but was gone visiting her aunt when my mom and I were there. She was suppose to remain with her aunt after September's events, but now she is now back to being Bernice's responsibility. Selasie is actually staying with Bernice's mom (because of the school she is enrolled in), along with Noble and Elolo; have I mentioned before that Bernice is in her 50s and her mom is maybe late 60s/early 70s! They really are amazing.

I debated writing the remainder of this post. Know now that I'm not trying to pat myself on the back or make it seem like I want anyone’s praises. I think doing a good deed and not telling anyone about it, though very difficult, is a true sign of your heart and intention. But here’s the thing, there’s so much news about the negative things in life and not nearly enough about the good things. So I want to share what is going on in my heart in hopes it starts a rumbling in another’s. Have you ever heard of the 40 Day Journey to Generosity?

Lately I have been being hit left and right it feels like with the need to reexamine my own generosity. I have made some big steps over the past six months to truly want to give cheerfully and regularly of my resources. For me after some original consideration, 10% of what I make was what felt right. I have always felt like a fairly generous person, I like good causes, a bit of a bleeding heart, etc. But, wow, when you really take a calculator out and see that 10% number, it is a bit of a reality check……I’ve been a selfish scrooge….that five bucks at church each week doesn’t really cut it (hey, I thought that was a lot and that was on a good week =))!

Since being back from Ghana, I have gotten really close to reaching my 10% goal, but not fully. There has been something kind of holding me back. Now my ‘almost’ 10% isn’t just to church, though I hope in the near future to get to giving 10% to church and all other causes be in addition. Currently, my ‘almost’ 10% is a mix of mainly church, the kids in Ghana and a couple of other local things I support on a monthly basis. As I talked about before, my mom and I have been sponsoring Elolo for quite sometime now (really in one way or another since I first went to Ghana), but I have wanted since September to sponsor another of the children for boarding school (I do wish it could be more than one) and have just been procrastinating on what the best way would be (i.e. monthly, a couple of large donations, etc). In the meantime, I’ve started to do some major saving for another major endeavor that is down the road a bit. This endeavor will take a lot of savings and a lot of faith when it comes down to it and also involves the kids in Ghana in a way (no I am not thinking about moving there….just in case that is running through your mind). But this need to save a substantial amount of money that is also for a really good cause had made me start rethinking my ability to sponsor another one of the kids for boarding school. Of course, I didn’t like this idea, but I can’t really make money magically appear so I thought that would have to be that. I have to choose.

But suddenly I have been inundated with messages about sacrificial giving and faithful giving…. and feeling like I need to make this sponsorship donation. Giving what I can now faithfully, knowing that God will provide for me in the future when its needed...its a little scary, but awesome! I have been in fear of giving the money to fully sponsor one of the kids because I fear the large sum that I need to save and not being able to do it. But what I’ve come to realize finally is that the money I have right now is not really mine; it has only been entrusted to me and I need to give back to God what is his. So, okay, I thought a lot about the donation and then I looked back at how I was doing with my 10% giving. Well, I was falling short as I knew. But then I calculated in the sponsorship donation and what that would equal out to for the year and I kid you not, it was got me right at 10%! So this week I wrote the full check, cried a little….really it was out a joy, not sadness….and took the leap of faith and it is awesome!

Now again, I don’t write this to congratulate myself or even suggest you also sponsor one of the kids (though that would be huge and help sooo much), but hope it does a little something in your heart too.

Here are just a few of the cool resources/interesting facts/verses that got me thinking….

An awesome 40 Day Journey to Generosity- www.givewithjoy.org –Very cool, you get messages to your email inbox for 40 days with brief teachings on giving with joy and viewing money totally different than what is pushed at us by society.

1 Timothy 6:17 Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God.

Think that verse above doesn’t apply to you, that you are not one of those rich people?

- Did you realize that if you personally make more than $1500 per year you are richer than 75% of the world’s 6+ billion people!

-3 billion people live on less than $2 a day

-70% of the world’s wealth is concentrated in just 5% of the population (guess where most of that 5% resides)

-If you own a car, you are in the top 6% of the wealthiest people in the world

This is really cool: How rich are you? To find out how your income compares to everyone else in the world go to: www.globalrichlist.com