Unique Child

This small school in Moree village has experienced some amazing and big changes in the past two months. Most of this time has been a break for the kids at the school, which has resulted in plenty of time for construction.  With the help of my mom (the one living in AK) I have been able to give my head mistress Ruby $2500 that was raised by you!!! I have gone several times to see how the work on the school is going, and to make sure the money is going where it's supposed to go. We still have a ways to go and I definitely underestimated the cost but what has been done is amazing and makes the world of difference to the kids. 

Here is a run down of where the money has gone.

1.Cement Work 

a.12 bags for class rooms

b.20 bags for molding blocks

c.13 bags for wall 

d.15 bags for the yard 

The total being 60 bags, each bag is 30 cedis.

The total cost was 1800 cedis ($450)

2.Sand for molding blocks costing 240 cedis ($60). The workmanship costing 200 cedis ($50)

3.Sand for classroom, the wall, and casting cost 600 cedis ($150)

4.Soil for filling the yard and its transport cost 560 cedis ($140)

5.Wood for windows, doors, and gates cost 600 cedis ($150)

6.Seesaw and merry go round cost 500 cedis ($125)

7.Cost of uniforms that had already been made but hadn't been paid, 630 cedis ($155)

 

8.Teachers pay 400 cedis ($100)

 9.Uniform material and tailers pay, 560 cedis ($140)

10.The 2 mason's pay, 230 cedis ($55)

11.Carpenter's pay, 200 cedis ($50)

12.The 3 laborer's pay 720 ($180)  

Total=7,220 cedis ($1,805)

This is what has been done at the school so far, but there is still so much work to do. We will soon move on to getting the library functional and getting more chairs, books, etc because since the work started many more kids and there parents are interested in the school! I want to thank everyone who donated from the bottom of my heart, you have given a small girl named Giftty a environment where she can now learn her alphabet, a boy named Quese a chalk board to practice his times tables on. All these kids say thank you while dancing around me in there new (but quickly dirtied) uniforms. I hope that it makes you as happy as me to have given these kids a chance at an education and building up a prosperous and proud community.

Moree Volunteer Project

      Here in Ghana primary education is not free and many children don't go to school.  Walking through town I always notice kids from ages 4-16 playing, selling things, begging and carrying around goods on their heads.  All these kids should be in school, but it is not financially possible for many Ghanians.  

     I have decided to spend the second half of my 10-month long student exchange here volunteering. I knew I wanted to work with kids, so my liaison took me to a small school in the middle of Moree, a poor fishing village near where I live. 

      The first time I walked through Moree, it was quit the experience.  I think I can safely assume that most people had never seen a white person in their village, and barley anyone speaks English - they speak the local dialect, Fante.  Because when walking through town I saw so many kids on the street, I knew immediately this was where I wanted to work.

      The school in Moree is just some cement poles with a tin roof, I wouldn't have known it was a school had it not been for I chalk board with the alphabet on it.  I later spoke to the headmistress Ruby and learned more about the school.  She had started the school back in October after she'd had the same experience I'd had when walking through town and seeing all of the kids in the streets. 

      The name of the school is Unique Child and its goal is to give kids a free education.  Ruby and some friends scraped together some money to rent the piece of land and get a area with a roof so kids could learn.  Now there is one "class room" with about 50 students ages 3-7.  On an average day about 25 students actually come. We have one chalkboard,seven tables and chairs for all the kids but that's about it.

      Everyday each student gives two cedis ($00.40) to Ruby which, pays for the lunch that one of the teachers makes.  About $00.10 from each kid goes to lunch and the other $00.30 is all the school has to run on, and that includes monthly rent, the teachers pay and keeping the area from flooding.  Unique Child has two teachers.  They are great people but don't have any training in teaching; there is no money to pay for a professional teacher.

      

As part of my volunteerism, I'm raising money for the school.

      

      The piece of land that the school is currently I won't work the way it is. It is the living space for many locals, there are tons of goats and chickens everywhere, and it floods very badly during the rainy season.  The schools location is otherwise perfect, as it is walking distance for all the children.  So we need to make a drainage system, build an office so as to keep the animals out (the goats eat everything!), and build more class rooms.              

      Additionally, the teachers need books to teach from, we need more chalk boards so that we can separate the kids by age, and the students need paper and pencils, workbooks, and uniforms.  I know that it doesn't seem like uniforms are a necessity, but in Ghana many parents would rather have their kids stay at home than send them to school without a uniform - appearance means a great deal here.

The exchange rate at the moment is 4.3 GH cedis to 1 dollar.  I did round the following prices so they might not exactly reflect the exchange rate, but it is close.

The rent per month on the land- 30 cedis ($7.00) x 24 for 2 years which would be $170.00

Teachers pay per month each- 100 cedis ($23.00) x 2 which is $46.00 per month and $1,100 for two years

Building an office and more class rooms- 3000 cedis ($700.00)

Drainage system- 2000 cedis ($465.00)

Boys uniform-18 cedis ($4.00) each x 25 which would be $100.00

Girls uniform-12 cedis ($3.00) each x 25 which would be $75.00

1 chalk board- 25 cedis ($6.00) x 3 which would be $18.00

1 work book- 9 cedis ($2.00) x 50 which would be $100.00

1 blank book- 8 cedis ($2.00) x 50 which would be $100.00

1 pen- 1 cedi ($0.20) x 100 which would be $20.00

1 teachers book for one subject- 20 cedis ($5.00) x 6 which would be $30.00

All that I stated above would total at $2878, this seems like a lot of money to raise but really it is amazing that, that much money can provide 50 children at least two years of education.  Things like the classrooms, and the drainage system, the chalkboards, and office would last so much longer than 2 years.  My goal is to raise $3000.00, most will go to what is stated above and anything more can go to things like maybe a small library, some toys for the younger kids, bringing running water to the school, etc.

I work with these kids and every time I see them running, laughing, playing, and learning I want to give them an education they deserve I want to help make Ghana a place where education is a right and not just a privilege. So I'm asking for donations to this school, even $5.00 could make the world of difference. I really appreciate your help, you don't know how much it means to me, Ruby, the teachers, the families of the children I work with, but most importantly what it means for those kids.

For the moment if you want to help, my mom is coming to visit me on the 3rd of April so if your quick you can give donations to her and she will bring them to me.  I know that's really soon so if you can't get them to my mom in the next couple of days you can contact my dad.  Thanks a ton, appreciate any help!!

AFS trips

                           Volta trip

Back in the beginning of November all the yes abroad students, year program students and the volunteers from Germany (all with AFS) went and a spectacular trip to the Volta region of Ghana.  The drive to where we were staying took us through a large assortment of sceneries from the busy streets of Accra to the muddy streets of a poor village to the lush forests of Ghana.  But the most amazing view was crossing the Volta river, a huge body of water slowly moving its way towards the ocean with thick green forests on either side.  Everyone on the bus was leaning over each other trying to get the "perfect" photo.  For the night the Germans where dropped off at a hostel in town and the rest of us where taken to a hotel on the top of a very large hill with a breath taking view of the valley below.  The hotel was nice but my favorite thing about the place was that it was surrounded by nature which I miss dearly when stuck in the city.  The following day after picking the Germans up we headed to the Wli falls after a scenic drive we found ourselves on the edge of the town of Ho.  There where a couple shops with souvenirs for us tourists then we headed out on a hike to the water falls.  The hike took us through a jungle of a forest with a cliff rising up on one side.  By the time we reached the water falls we were all completely sweaty, and hurried to change into out bathing suits.  Once set I ran right into the water and headed out the where the water crashed down from the cliff into the pool we where swimming in.  For about an hour we explored all around the water fall, it was thrilling there was so much water spraying you could barley see when you opened your eyes, and to breath with out swallowing tons of water you covered your mouth with your hands.  At one point I just leaned against the rock behind the waterfall and relaxed enjoying the sound of the pounding water and the shrieks and laughter from the other exchange students. Interestingly this waterfall was home to a lot of bats and while we were swimming around we noticed a bat swimming in the water, we soon realized it was actually drowning.  Me and some other kids used sticks to help get it out of the water onto a rock, where we were there was still a lot of spray but with the bat in such a weak state we couldn't get it some place better.  We ended up using some leaves to shelter it as best we could.  Once the bat was taken care of we took lots of group photos, and in the middle we looked up and saw the bat fly away, everyone was happy cause most of us thought it would probably die.  After the waterfall we headed back to our bus, and then drove back to our hotel.  The next day we got all packed up cause we where heading back to Accra but on the way we stopped at lake Volta lake to check it out.  We had a tour of the dock from a worker there and got to tour a ferry as well which was super fun.  After stopping by Volta lake we headed back to Accra, which was really sad cause all of us had, had so much fun on the trip and didn't want it to end.

                        Northern region trip

  In the beginning of January the YES abroad kids and the three year abroad students went on an amazing trip to the northern region of Ghana.  It started with all of us meeting up in Accra except for the Kumasi kids.  We took the bus up to Kumasi, a long five hour drive.  In Kumasi we met with the two students staying there and checked into our hotel.  The fallowing day we got to do a fun trip around Kumasi.  First we went to a place where kente cloth is woven (kente cloth is the traditional cloth in Ghana, it is hand woven and very colorful).  We got to watch the people weaving and even got to try weaving a little ourselves, though we were terrible.  I bought some strips of cloth, which are gorgeous and will make for really great presents.   Later on we went to another place a got to see people doing Adinkra stamping.  This is where you use this black like dye from tree bark to stamp symbols onto cloth.  The next day we drove all day first stopping for lunch and then stopping at the Kintampo falls, where we got to go down a bunch Of steep stairs to a beautiful waterfall which you can swim in.  It was very cold water which was quit refreshing after our hot trip in the bus.  We couldn't stay long cause we needed to get to our next hostile before it got to late.  That night we stayed at a hostel which was very nice and in a quit location.  The next day we got up early packed our stuff and headed to Mole national park.  This was the highlight of the trip for me, we got to ride on one of those Safari cars where you sit on the roof to observe wildlife.  Not long into the trip we saw elephants and got to go up close and watch them for quit a while.  There were two of them and it was amazing to see them in the wild, they are such beautiful creatures.  After watching the elephants for some time we headed out again, we saw some sort of baboon (I think), some different types on antelope, warthogs, and some birds.  Everyone felt the trip was to short cause we all loved seeing the wild animals.  After the amazing Safari experience we headed to our next hostel which took up most of the day.  At our hostel an afs volunteer greeted us and told us about the community we where staying in, and about a program that the community had, had with Denmark.  After introductions we got to walk around, the hostel was next to a Savannah like area which was so beautiful to walk around in especially when the sun was setting.  The fallowing day we got to go meet the chief of the village while waiting to meet him we took pictures with local children who were so fun to be around.  When we got to go and meet the chief we met him in a large mud hut, as a greeting he gave us each a seed (the name of which I can't recall).  He spoke to us about how important sharing culture was and then we all got to ask him questions and talk with him.  After the meeting with the chief we got to go see his house, or I should say houses.  He had ten wives each with a mud hut house.  The first house in the row was for his first wife them each house went in order of which wife came next.  The first wife was not around but the second wife was so we got to go into her house and talk a little bit with her, it was a truly unique experience.  After having the privilege to meet the chief we headed to where shae butter is made.  It is made in a sort of women's community, we got to see all the steps to making shae butter and even got to participate in some of the process, though I think we were more of a comical sight to the Ghanians than actual help.  Once done with our tour of the shae butter process most of us bought some shae butter which is very good for the skin.  After this full day we headed  back to our hostel and got to enjoy being in a very beautiful part of Ghana for the rest of the day.  That night we had dance lessons from some local guys, it was really fun but I think we can all agree that the Ghanians where much better dancers than any of us.  The next day we went to the white Volta where we saw the pumps that take water to a place where they make it drinkable.  After seeing the pumps we got to cross the river in a canoe w and eat some strange fruit I've never seen before.  After the trip to the river we went to where the water is made drinkable and got to see all the systems they use to make good drinking water.  That day we got to go back to the hostel early so we decided to explore the Savannah a bit before dinner.  The next morning we were all a bit sad cause we had to go all the way back to Kumasi and we all really enjoyed staying in the north.  That day was just a lot of driving and a quick stop for lunch.  After arriving in Kumasi we went our hotel and hung out together as our last night of the trip.  The next day with the exception of the Kumasi kids we headed back to Accra, where we all went our separate ways ways after a amazing, educational and fun trip.

Finding Sea Shells

This past weekend I went to a beach just outside of cape coast.  To get there I took a trotro to a junction where I walked about 20 min to the beach.  Walking down to the beach it looked perfect.  There were palm trees lining the golden beach which was perfectly clean.  The water bright blue and crashing on the beach and around rocks.  I immediately ran right in and swam for a half hour, it was so refreshing.  After swimming I decided to walk down the beach a ways.  I loved the feeling of the sand on my feet, it was literally a perfect beach.

As I walked I started to come across more and more trash on the beach and in the water, eventually there was so much that I could barely walk with out stepping on something.  In front of me was an old net twisted with a shirt with some princesses face on it, there was also a clock twisted up in it all.  Right next to my left foot there was an pink stuffed toy and the heel of an high heel shoe.  Behind me I had stepped over a huge pile of so many colors from cloths and countless other things all torn up and tangled togather.  A ways of to my right there was an old mattress, with many holes in it.  It was sad to me how quickly the beach that had been so clean had become so thrashed.  

As I kept walking I started looking more closely, and I found some of the most beautiful shells I have every seen amidst all the garbage.  If there was a big clump a trash usually there were more shells, because the trash kept the shells from being swept away by the water.

As I walked I started to think, that this beach was actually representing my exchange.  As I thought about it, it kept making more, and more sense.  The initial beach I had arrived at had been perfect, it was so clean and picturesque.  And my life in Alaska had been pretty much perfect, I had loving family and friends, and so much to be thankful for.  On that beach I had gone on the walk I search of an adventure just like I had when I decided to come to Ghana.  

This exchange has been very challenging for me, and more than once I just wanted to go back home, I just wanted life to be easy again.  So with the beach like my exchange I found lots of trash every where and longed to go back to that perfect beach.  But then I looked closer and I found beautiful sea shells expecially next to the largest pieces of garbage.  I've learned on this exchange that after the hardest days there is a beautiful reward.  What I learn here I could never have learned back home.  On the perfect beach there were no shells it was just sand.  So I found that even though something is harder, even when things just suck, you find that you gain invaluable things that you never could have if life had been perfect. 

So I guess my point with the beach is that even though this exchange is hard and it sometimes feels impossible, the shells make it worth it.  I want a life that is up and down not just steady, cause that's how I'm going to grow, learn, and love.  So right now I'm off to find some more sea shells in this exchange.

International education week

I was chosen as 1 of 65 kids to go to 12 amazing countries for the 2016-2017 year with the YES abroad program.  I now want to encourage students all over the United States to apply for this program (the application is due December 1).  This program is run by the State Department and gives full scholarships to all students accepted.  

I am currently on my exchange in Ghana, Africa and it is an experience that is so unique, and so amazing that I know it will be a part of who I am for the rest of my life.  You experience wonder, amazement, confusion, loneliness, sadness, love, friendship and so much more.  There are so many aspects of the country that you experience and learn about.

The host family is the base of your exchange, they are the ones who will be most important to you on exchange.  The host family also gives you a deeper understanding of the culture.  My family is always smiling, asking me at every opportunity how I am doing.  My Mom wakes up every morning at 4:30 and makes lunch for my little sister and I to take to school. My Dad always is so happy to see me that I always feel so much better around him.  My little sister holds my hand through the market, making me feel like one of the family.  My sister that is my age is away at boarding school but when she sees me she gives me the biggest hugs, and jumps up and down with excitement.  With this exchange you learn of the love and kindness of people who never met you but then take you in as their own child.  

School is an experience, sometimes maybe it feels like you are not learning much academically, but what you are learning can never be put on a transcript.  School is where you make friends who are so interesting and different you could talk to them all day.  My school is very different from what my school in the USA is like, but with that I'm truely understanding how school is for so many other kids.  My school is a boarding school, and I'm the only white person there.  Being the minority is a crazy but amazing experience.  School lets you be with so many other kids your age who you can learn so much from.  

The markets are a huge part of Ghana.  In the market I can buy dresses, tomatoes, credit for my phone, toilet paper, and some plantain chips all in less than 10 yards.  walking through the market is actually one of my favorite things to do.  The variety of venders is incredible and I can't help but stop at most of them.  I will never get to taste all the amazing food sold on the street, most of it is carried on people's heads on trays or in boxes until someone wants to buy some.  In the market you see so many people dressed in their brightly colored African prints.  But the best thing is the kindness of the people, always asking if you are lost, wanting to know your name and if you'll be their friend, and laughing with happiness when I can speak a little of their local language.  One time I was trying to get to a shop to buy stuff for my Mom, and when some ladies asked where I was going I told them, they laughed and said I was very far away.  They immediately flagged down a taxi for me and made sure the driver did not make me pay to much, I'll always remember them even though I don't even know their names.

Transportation here in Ghana is hectic but kinda fun.  The most common way to get around is by trotro, which is a bus people are constantly getting on and off.  It is very cheap, but you can't be scared to get cozy with your neighbor cause they pack people into them. To get on a trotro you stand on the side of the road and when one passes you use hand signals to show where you are going and if that trotro is going the same way they will pull over for you to get on.  Usually when they pull over you have to jump out of the way or they will hit you.  You can also take taxis. Most the time you take shared taxis which are not too expensive.  With a shared taxi it is similar to a trotro just smaller.  You can also charter a taxi to take you exactly where you want to go, but this is definitely the most expensive option.  Getting places is a whole exciting experience in of its self when your on your toes trying not to get hit, while also trying to get a ride to the right place.

With living abroad you get to learn much more than you'll ever know.  You get to break stereotypes about your country, and also the people you meet will break the stereotypes you had about them.  While living abroad you grow so much stronger, you become more your own person.  You will be building bridges and tearing down walls.

A visit to the hospital

Don't be alarmed by the title I am perfectly fine.  On October 27th I woke up with a very soar throat, which in the USA I would have taken cough drops and gone to school, or if I was feeling lazy would have convinced my mom to let me stay home.  Because it is Ghana it was 4:30 am that I went into the kitchen to tell my mom who was cooking that I had a soar throat, she told me I needed to go to the hospital, I thought that was overdoing it but she insisted.  Since she was going to Accra for the day she left the house by 5.  I slept until 8 (and cried because I was homesick) then I caught a taxi to my moms work in town where my dad and one of my moms workers met me, they then took me to the hospital which is literally 100 yards from my moms work but I had never noticed it before because it is behind all sorts of run down Ghanian homes and other buildings.

I am not writing this to explain what happened to me but to share what going to the hospital is like for all Ghanaians.  I don't know how it is all run but I'll try to explain it as best I can.  The hospital is small, you sign in and wait outside.  When you sign in you show an insurance card or pay some money.  For me, my dad took me to the female recovery room where there were about 4 beds with sick people in them.  The nurse in there sat next to a computer and she asked me what was wrong I told her and she typed it in to the computer. Then took me to another room where another person and nurse were and she weighed me and took my temperature.  She then sat me in a room with about 40 others one at a time we went into one doctors office, each patient taking about 2 min.  When it was my turn the doctor just said go to the lab, this was after I waited for about 1 1/2 hours.  I didn't really know what was going on but I went and sat with about 50 others waiting out side the lab.  The same nurse who helped me in the begaining called me into the female recovery room again, where I saw the nurses giving soda and fried food to the patients.  I was sat down on a bed next to a girl with tubes coming out of her wrist, across from us were two little girls who also had tubes coming out of them and were asleep.  The nurse all the sudden was tying some rubber tube around my wrist tightly, then I saw the needle in her had and realized it was for me.  She turned my hand over cleaned it then put the needle in and withdrew my blood.  She put a cotton ball on it and told me to hold it on my hand till it stopped bleeding.  I went and sat outside with my dad we sat there for three hours I slept most of the time, most others there did the same.  Around 1 the same nurse told me they needed my urine and she gave me a small container. After giving it back to her I sat again for another half hour.  Through all this I was never told why this was happening, or if anything was wrong but it seemed like that's the experience for everyone who goes to the hospital.  When results come from the lab it is for about 20 people so we all go back to the one doctor who tells us what's wrong, so after waiting for another hour I was told I have a small infection, but no malaria.  So the doctor sent me to the pharmacy which is in the same building where I go some vitamin c, again after waiting for another hour.  So after sitting all day at the hospital I learned that I could have gone and bought oranges instead.  But it was really eye opening to see the medical system here, it really shows how privileged we are in the USA.  The things that stood out to me were that everyone there looked fairly wealthy.  There is no such thing as appointments you only go to the doctor when needed.  Getting into the doctors office involved lots of arguing between patients cause everyone wanted to finish as soon as possible.  I had a needle stuck in me, and no one told me why it was happening the only reason I knew was because I saw the needle in her hand.  If you need serious medical attention you must go to Accra, where they have more resources.  Even though for medical reasons the visit was pointless, I'm glad I got to experience that part of Ghana. 

Religion

A key part of Ghanian culture is religion, and everyone I've met since arriving here has been religious.  Not in the USA standards of religious, but more intense like going to a church or mousque 3 or more times a week, and praying everyday.  The people here are Muslim or Christian, there are some other religions but they are not very common.

I go to church with my family and it is a lot of singing, dancing, discussing, and praying.  It is a really amazing experience to watch how much things like God and Jesus move people spiritually.  Since I'm not religious it can sometimes be amusing to watch the people in church, but I don't think any less of them because of what they believe.

      I've grown up in a world where there are hundreds of ways to believe, your beliefs can be completely unique to you and that is ok.  In the USA I called myself Jewish even know I don't believe in God or many other spiritual things, I am culturally Jewish.  When people in the USA asked what I believed in I would say I believe in love and nature.  I have no issue with any set of beliefs, as long as your a good and moral person, than I respect the way you believe. 

      Here in Ghana I can't tell people I'm Jewish because then they automatically assume I believe in God, and that's not true.  Once I tell people I don't believe in God they ask in a very confused manner, "well then how was heaven formed?"  I would assume that someone who doesn't believe in God would also not believe in heaven, but here that idea is so unheard of that it just can't be fathomed.  Another common question is "if you don't believe in God who do you think created you?" I usually answer that I believe in evolution, and many times have been told that evolution is a delusion.  Usually at this point I just say "well we have different beliefs I respect yours and I hope you respect mine" and so far everyone has said they respect my beliefs.

My family is Christian and very religious.  They know that I support gay rights, and am pro-choice with abortion as well as some other things that go against the bible, and they respect that even if they don't agree.  I'm glad they know because I don't want to hide my beliefs, I want them to love me for all my beliefs not just the ones I think they will agree with.  My mom and me have had many discussions about religion, we usually don't agree but there is no tension.  One of the big things we have discussed is moral.  My mom says she try's to do everything as best she can and show as much love as she can because on judgement day God will look at all her sins and all the good things she has done.  She doesn't understand that even though I don't believe in judgement day I still do good, she thinks that if I truely didn't believe in judgement day then I wouldn't care about who I hurt or what I did in my life because no one will punish me after death.  

In school there is a lot of religion which is weird for me coming from the USA, where religion is a touchy subject in school.  Here everyday before school starts there are prayers.  Many teachers talk about God in class, I'm in a class called Christian religious studies (CRS), which is pretty much just readying the bible.  One of the weirdest things though is that before every physics class the teacher has us pray, which just seems so out of place.  And in ICT (information, communication, and technology) we pray at the end of class.  At break very commonly students come to the class rooms and preach to us, which was definitely shocking the first time that happened.  Many have told me to accept Jesus Christ as my personal savior, or to believe in God.  I have asked some of them why and non have given me a very clear answer, or they say that if I don't I'll go to hell.  They don't say this in a mean way, they say it more as, they really don't want me to go to hell.  Mostly though people just don't understand, it doesn't make sense, in there world religion is part of everyone's life, if you aren't religious something is wrong so they really want to help you.  

            Another thing is the bible is law.  So when I talked to one girl we got on the subject of gay rights.  The said she would have no issue with gay people but the bible said it was wrong so there for she was not ok with it.  I've also heard when people learn that I don't believe in God, heaven, or hell,  "but the bible says they are real.", they would never think I don't also believe in the bible.  Through all this learning of religion I may change some of by beliefs or not, but I'm ok with either.

      Even though I don't think I'll every be particularly religious, I am really happy to learn about religion, since it is such a big part of so many people's lives around the world.  This country is sometimes called the most religious country.  Not because of how religious people are but the % of people who are religious is the highest.  I'm learning lots and working through this exchange day by day.  Miss all my family and friends.