NORTHFIELD CHURCH
To Bootle and Beyond
Laurens trip to Ghana 2010 and June 2011
This is a short video from Laurens trip to Ghana in 2010. She will be returning in June 2011
This is a report from SELASI KOFFI ACKOM, Director, Rescue Aid Foundation September 2010
We were a bit late to the airport to pick them though, but we made it there about 10minutes later than the scheduled time. They did waited for long because their flight arrived far earlier than scheduled time. It was joyous when we met them finally and we quickly loaded their bags into the car and drove straight to their hotel room in Tema, a city in the capital.
All arrangements were set for action the next day which was on the 10th of September 2010. Three days with an orphan home in Accra and another three days with another orphan home in the Volta region of Ghana plus a full day giving aid to school children and visiting some interesting places.
Day 1 at the Accra orphanage was awesome. Lauren and Leanne spent some quantity times with the kids there – helping them to do some paintings, fixing arts and many other playful activities.
Day 2 was same and the kids became very found of them. So Lauren and Leanne also became found of them and I did sense a great connection between the kids and our volunteers. They spent good quality time from 9am sometimes to 4pm. We did have lunch in the midst of these times and it was awesome.
Day 3 was fixed to be spent at the beach with the kids. We got there after we left church service. We were full of fun and excitement to see the kids and their leaders with Lauren and Leanne, Edmund and myself teaming up to make these kids happy at the beach. Lauren and Leanne donated some items of importance to the orphanage before ending their volunteering time there.
The next day, we drove straight to the Ghana Arts center for them to shop. There, they bought some things of interest like wooden crafts, African necklaces and etc… We then drove straight to the Volta region to start our four nights five days time with the other orphanage home and donate to the five cluster of schools under RAF’s project dubbed ‘’OPERATION WIPE ILLITERACY’’.
In the next morning of our arrival at in the Volta region, we went straight to the grounds with the Hohoe North District educational directorate to kick start OPERATION WIPE ILLITERACY. Though it was not in our interest to bring a live radio coverage to that program, we were ‘’compelled’’ by the educational directorate to do so, therefore we went for it. We had a live radio coverage with our program on LoLo Nyo FM in the Volta region which was aired on Ghana’s leading radio station; ‘’JOY FM’’ which was expected to have been carried on BBC. By the Grace of God, the first program for OPERATION WIPE ILLITERACY was successful with an attendance of close to a thousand school children from five schools and their teachers and parents. The director of education in the district was present with his colleagues and RAF by the help of Lauren and Leanne was able to donate some several thousands of educational materials to the five schools. This included; exercise books, pens, pencils, erasers, sharpeners, mathematical sets, slates and etc…
After a hectic and hardworking day, it was only good that we took a trip to the WLI water falls to enjoy the beauty of nature and have a cool breeze to release stress. So we drove there and took a rainy walk of 30minutes there from the reception point.
Day 1 in the Volta region started slow and cool because it was their first day there and the environment was very ‘’rural’’ but as these two wonderful personalities got intuned with the kids, it became normal for them and it was full of excitement. Lauren and Leanne help in teaching the class 3 pupils of the orphanage school because their teacher was absent. We were there on time to take the kids when they needed a teacher. Leanne was marking the exercises they did and Lauren was assisting whilst at the same time, they were teaching them. We took them in English and Mathematics.
Day 2 was same but even deeper and awesome because the children there also became found of Lauren and Leanne so everyone’s passion was ignited and presence was known. We taught and taught and taught and marked and marked and marked. During these times, Edmund (RAF’s Project Coordinator) was also taking the class six pupils because their teacher was also not in. Lauren and Leanne sited some brilliant children among the others in class 3 where we were and Edmund also sited same in his class. We at RAF wont leave these brilliant but helpless children to go ‘’waste’’. We will follow up and fish for them at the right time and put them through their higher education.
We also paid a visit to the Tafi Monkeys Sanctuary that evening for some site seeing.
We later that evening paid a visit to the children’s ward of the Hohoe District Hospital to donate some children items to their mothers in the ward. It was a touching moment for us seeing Lauren and Leanne getting busy doing what they had to do to get the items to children.
Day 3 got more interested and by then Lauren and Leanne did realized that the children there had a small football field so they decided to buy them a football. In the morning of same day, school went on perfectly and we played some football with the kids and had some great times with them too after closing. It was time to go so we donated some items of importance to them. (Please note; photos of all these can be seen on Lauren and Leanne’s facebook page. You can check them up through RAF’s facebook page too; www.facebook.com/Rescue.Aid.Foundation or on our website)
We got back to Tema that same day to relax and get ready to the airport the next day. Soon, it was the evening of the next day and we had to pick them back to the airport for their flights back home.
We at RAF enjoyed every bit of our moments with Lauren and Leanne and we are sure they did too. We are looking forward in receiving them again next year in July.
Yours Faithfully,
SELASI KOFFI ACKOM
Director, Rescue Aid Foundation
Office Line: +233 22 216567
Cell: +233 28 527 9469
Facebook: Rescue Aid
Twitter: RescueAid
Website: www.rescuesouls.org

