Greetings!
So many of you have shared that you enjoyed the group emails, so I decided to pass this along to you. Our NGO, non-governmental organization, Sabre Charitable Trust, based in England, has an exciting blog site of their most recent project, a transcontinental journey with volunteers. To check it out go to...
http://bigbusrun08.blogspot.com
I was greeted at the Tucson airport by Tiffany's family, Jim, and Zac, who had flown in from Minneapolis to surprise me. It took me over a week to get back on a normal schedule with sleep and such. All of the conveniences that I use to take for granted are now greatly appreciated. Like running water, hot showers, washing machines, AC and steady electricity. There was major culture shock when I visited the first grocery store and mall. I have a new lens on my eyes! Everything looks different.
Creating a photo album and CD presentations have helped me to relive my most memorable experience in Ghana. I received a cellphone call from one special friend in the village this week for my birthday. What a joy!!!
Our plan to create an educational scholarship fund for students in our village to go to secondary school and college has been well supported by many of our friends. We have handcrafted photo cards to raise monies. The pictures sell themselves and are hard to resist. We learned of the impossibility for village students to continue their education without financial backing. As perpetual educators, Mary and I heard our calling.
My wish to you and yours is to have a Happy Thanksgiving and remember to be thankful for the many blessings in your lives!
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Nantu Yei...Goodbye from Ghana!
Memoaha....Fante "good afternoon" for the final time from Ghana!
I have arrived safely in the capital city of Accra by Metro bus, after a 3 hour ride from Adjeikrom in the cool, hilly, lush Eastern Region. I have had the most remarkable adventure for 7 weeks and have 1300 photos that only begin to capture the wonder of Ghana and its people. We will meet again I am confident!!
Since last I wrote so much has happened....last Wednesday we were invited to meet with the chief of Besease, a village of approximately 3,000. About 12 elders joined the chief, seated on an Akan sacred stool with a furskin, on a stage surrounded by interested villagers who were in the audience in an open air thatched community center. We were invited as guests and treated with great curiosity and respect. Asked to introduce ourselves at the beginning gave us the perfect opportunity to share our appreciation of the Ghanaians and their efforts to foster education in the villages. Later that day I modeled some teaching for our volunteer counterparts from the UK who have little or no experience teaching. We have met many young adults from all over the world who are here with NGOs trying to make a difference. It is extremely humbling.
On Thursday morning we personalized bucket hats with the KG2 kids in our village which was simply adorable. The idea was Tiffany's, and it was priceless! We found ourselves wandering the village with the sheep trying to capture pictures of the sights which we have grown to love and perhaps take for granted. Especially the children of the village who have endeared themselves to us. I even learned of the vacant ghost house which is visited only by the priest. I peeked inside but witnesses no ghosts. Ghanaians are very superstitious, as I learned on the school day when I arrived at 8 in the morning to the exorcizing of spirits in the JHS 3 class caused by the appearance of the white owl. It was said to have no point of entry in a room which had many that I could see. The kids proceeded to empty the room of all furnishings so they would not be influenced by the evil forces. Sorry if I have alrady shared this stor y, but it made a great impression on me.
Friday was the most tearful day of our stay; the final full day at Brenu. The 350 Primary and JHS students gathered in the heat of the day, but that's every day, to thank us in song and celebration. The Headmaster presented us with small gifts and shared with the students our intent to establish a scholarship fund to assist graduating students to further their education. He spoke of David Cudjoe, their alumnus from last spring, who had the highest aggregate examination score of all children in the Ayensudo Circuit. He has begun his studies to become a doctor but has 2 farmers for parents who make little or nothing.
Saturday early morning we packed and headed off in a taxi for Cape Coast. From their we traveled on 3 tro-tros, jam packed vans, to Aburi in the Eastern Region. It is a village with a magnificent Botanical Garden which was establish over 100 years ago by the British when Ghana was a colony. Acres and acres of exotic plants and trees requiring 2 days to see it all. Informative signs with scientific names, medicinal uses, and countries of origin made the experiece richer. In addition, we stayed at the delapidated guest whcih was used as a sanatorium for the British officers in the late 1800's. The town of Aburi is also known for its wood carvers, so we visited the stalls with a young escort, enjoying the crude studios behind the stalls where the artists were at work. It was so memorable, and we bought a few select items.
Sunday afternoon we taxied farther north to the village of Adjeikrom, where my friends from Western Kentucky University hail. We stayed with a loving family who took us in as their own teaching us their language, Crobo, and preparing local cuisine with plants from their farm. We visited the 2 room schoolhouse, called Kentucky Academy, which my friends were responsible for building. Our 16 year old hostess brought us around the village to meet her curious friends and to the mountain stream where the children gather their water in aluminium bowls and plastic buckets. Wow, we were awed by the dramatic change of scenery away from the coast, where we have lived for 7 weeks. Yesterday we spent most of the day touring WACRI, West Africa Cacao Research Institute, learning about the 5 departments of the enormous modern facility which explores the economy, fermentation, growing conditions, interbreeding, cloning, pesticides, distribution, shade con ditions, pathology of cacao, coffee, cashews, and more. The amount of information was at times daunting, but our young guide was very patient in answering our questions.
We started our day today at 4 am and have settled in for a clean shower and good night's sleep before our international trip back to America. I will need months to digest all that we have done and to sort and cull my collection of photos. My perception on life has been changed in innumerable ways just by knowing the people of Ghana. They are truly remarkable, resilient, and loving. The conditions in which they live make this difficult at times to understand. I go home with so many new friends, and have received far more than I could ever have given. Thank you again to all of the support you have given me. Your love and prayers have surrounded me on this journey.
Keep Ghana's peace and prosperity in your prayers as well. Their election is in December, and they need a forward thinking and moving leader.
Lots of love, Akua Linda
I have arrived safely in the capital city of Accra by Metro bus, after a 3 hour ride from Adjeikrom in the cool, hilly, lush Eastern Region. I have had the most remarkable adventure for 7 weeks and have 1300 photos that only begin to capture the wonder of Ghana and its people. We will meet again I am confident!!
Since last I wrote so much has happened....last Wednesday we were invited to meet with the chief of Besease, a village of approximately 3,000. About 12 elders joined the chief, seated on an Akan sacred stool with a furskin, on a stage surrounded by interested villagers who were in the audience in an open air thatched community center. We were invited as guests and treated with great curiosity and respect. Asked to introduce ourselves at the beginning gave us the perfect opportunity to share our appreciation of the Ghanaians and their efforts to foster education in the villages. Later that day I modeled some teaching for our volunteer counterparts from the UK who have little or no experience teaching. We have met many young adults from all over the world who are here with NGOs trying to make a difference. It is extremely humbling.
On Thursday morning we personalized bucket hats with the KG2 kids in our village which was simply adorable. The idea was Tiffany's, and it was priceless! We found ourselves wandering the village with the sheep trying to capture pictures of the sights which we have grown to love and perhaps take for granted. Especially the children of the village who have endeared themselves to us. I even learned of the vacant ghost house which is visited only by the priest. I peeked inside but witnesses no ghosts. Ghanaians are very superstitious, as I learned on the school day when I arrived at 8 in the morning to the exorcizing of spirits in the JHS 3 class caused by the appearance of the white owl. It was said to have no point of entry in a room which had many that I could see. The kids proceeded to empty the room of all furnishings so they would not be influenced by the evil forces. Sorry if I have alrady shared this stor y, but it made a great impression on me.
Friday was the most tearful day of our stay; the final full day at Brenu. The 350 Primary and JHS students gathered in the heat of the day, but that's every day, to thank us in song and celebration. The Headmaster presented us with small gifts and shared with the students our intent to establish a scholarship fund to assist graduating students to further their education. He spoke of David Cudjoe, their alumnus from last spring, who had the highest aggregate examination score of all children in the Ayensudo Circuit. He has begun his studies to become a doctor but has 2 farmers for parents who make little or nothing.
Saturday early morning we packed and headed off in a taxi for Cape Coast. From their we traveled on 3 tro-tros, jam packed vans, to Aburi in the Eastern Region. It is a village with a magnificent Botanical Garden which was establish over 100 years ago by the British when Ghana was a colony. Acres and acres of exotic plants and trees requiring 2 days to see it all. Informative signs with scientific names, medicinal uses, and countries of origin made the experiece richer. In addition, we stayed at the delapidated guest whcih was used as a sanatorium for the British officers in the late 1800's. The town of Aburi is also known for its wood carvers, so we visited the stalls with a young escort, enjoying the crude studios behind the stalls where the artists were at work. It was so memorable, and we bought a few select items.
Sunday afternoon we taxied farther north to the village of Adjeikrom, where my friends from Western Kentucky University hail. We stayed with a loving family who took us in as their own teaching us their language, Crobo, and preparing local cuisine with plants from their farm. We visited the 2 room schoolhouse, called Kentucky Academy, which my friends were responsible for building. Our 16 year old hostess brought us around the village to meet her curious friends and to the mountain stream where the children gather their water in aluminium bowls and plastic buckets. Wow, we were awed by the dramatic change of scenery away from the coast, where we have lived for 7 weeks. Yesterday we spent most of the day touring WACRI, West Africa Cacao Research Institute, learning about the 5 departments of the enormous modern facility which explores the economy, fermentation, growing conditions, interbreeding, cloning, pesticides, distribution, shade con ditions, pathology of cacao, coffee, cashews, and more. The amount of information was at times daunting, but our young guide was very patient in answering our questions.
We started our day today at 4 am and have settled in for a clean shower and good night's sleep before our international trip back to America. I will need months to digest all that we have done and to sort and cull my collection of photos. My perception on life has been changed in innumerable ways just by knowing the people of Ghana. They are truly remarkable, resilient, and loving. The conditions in which they live make this difficult at times to understand. I go home with so many new friends, and have received far more than I could ever have given. Thank you again to all of the support you have given me. Your love and prayers have surrounded me on this journey.
Keep Ghana's peace and prosperity in your prayers as well. Their election is in December, and they need a forward thinking and moving leader.
Lots of love, Akua Linda
Friday, October 24, 2008
Maybe Our Final Installment?
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Mary having a lesson from one of the members of the Kukyekukyeku Bamboo Orchestra (pronounced Cuchi-cuchi-koo!).jpg)
The fisherman at Brenu just about to go out for the day
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Mary on the canopy walkway at Kakum .jpg)
The chief's meeting at Besease
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Linda atop a pile of cocoa pods
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Hungry croc en route to Kakum National Park.jpg)
KG2 kids avidly learning doing an alphabet activity
One week remains in Ghana!!!
What a whirlwind week we have had since I last wrote to you. On Friday Mary and I were taken with our newest volunteer to Kakum National Park just north of Cape Coast for an overnight stay. Enroute there we stopped at a crocodile stocked manmade lake where we were as close as 3 feet to the crocs on a slightly raised platform. Very scary, but I took some amazing photos. We had lunch there, and I kept looking fearfully over my shoulder as the restaurant has no walls.
We walked the 350 meter canopy walk 30 meters above the magnificent rainforest. Yes, even with my horrific fear of heights, I was successful in traversing the 7 separate suspended rope/cable walks. They are so narrow that only one slim person can fit the width. Many Americans would be refused entry I think. Heard many birds but viewed no exotic wildlife. Apparently several species of monkeys and antelope live there, but we saw none. Kakum is enormous, about 357 square kilometers.
We then drove to Mesomagor, a remote village of a few hundred people with no electricity or running water. Our guesthouse had an open pit toilet and our dormitory style sleeping arrangement was sweltering hot. The villag is know for their Bamboo Orchestra, so they performed for us an ohour concert at night. The entire village turned out, but there was one camping lantern, so we could not see them. I took many photos with a flash that turned out, so I saw the visual part the following morning. The auditory was sensational, and we bought a CD to share in America. Mary took a 30 minute lesson on Sat morning and did a fine job with her musical talent. The musicians were impressed. All of the instruments are cut bamboo pounded onto rock hard wooden blocks.
Also, on Saturday we walked for 2 hours into the Eastern entrance of Kakum National Park with a local guide. We were informed of the many medicinal ways in which the trees and plants are used. We saw loads if cocoa trees with the pods in various stages of ripeness. Ghana is the world's 3rd largest producer of cocoa. One awful thing happened. We had a 2 minute, seemed like hours, assault by large biting black ants.Our guard was armed with a machete and rifle, but those did not help with the ants. We saw lots of evidence of the elephants, but no elephant. Thank heavens.
Until we meet again.....lots of love, Linda
We walked the 350 meter canopy walk 30 meters above the magnificent rainforest. Yes, even with my horrific fear of heights, I was successful in traversing the 7 separate suspended rope/cable walks. They are so narrow that only one slim person can fit the width. Many Americans would be refused entry I think. Heard many birds but viewed no exotic wildlife. Apparently several species of monkeys and antelope live there, but we saw none. Kakum is enormous, about 357 square kilometers.
We then drove to Mesomagor, a remote village of a few hundred people with no electricity or running water. Our guesthouse had an open pit toilet and our dormitory style sleeping arrangement was sweltering hot. The villag is know for their Bamboo Orchestra, so they performed for us an ohour concert at night. The entire village turned out, but there was one camping lantern, so we could not see them. I took many photos with a flash that turned out, so I saw the visual part the following morning. The auditory was sensational, and we bought a CD to share in America. Mary took a 30 minute lesson on Sat morning and did a fine job with her musical talent. The musicians were impressed. All of the instruments are cut bamboo pounded onto rock hard wooden blocks.
Also, on Saturday we walked for 2 hours into the Eastern entrance of Kakum National Park with a local guide. We were informed of the many medicinal ways in which the trees and plants are used. We saw loads if cocoa trees with the pods in various stages of ripeness. Ghana is the world's 3rd largest producer of cocoa. One awful thing happened. We had a 2 minute, seemed like hours, assault by large biting black ants.Our guard was armed with a machete and rifle, but those did not help with the ants. We saw lots of evidence of the elephants, but no elephant. Thank heavens.
Until we meet again.....lots of love, Linda
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Winding Down in Ghana....
This could be my last group email to all of you faithful followers. I will have so much to share upon my return to America. The pictures are priceless, and we will share them in true Ghanaian fashion. If you have not already, checkout our blog,
www.classroomghana.blogspot.com
Mary and I had a local seamstress fashion us dresses for Sunday church. We were feeling out of place and have had great fun with our dresses.
I thought you might enjoy the description of a typical day in Brenu Akyinim:
5:30 - early morning walk to see the sunrise along the road with hunters and farmers with rifles and hoes;serenaded by a chorus of birds, insects, frogs and the thunder of the sea
7:00 - breakfast after a refreshing shower and a 5 minute walk to the outdoor table by the sea
8-2:00 - school day begun with drums and marching into class, a stone building with open spaces for windows
2:30 - lunch, our big meal of chicken or fish for the day with vegetables fresh from the farm
4-6:30 - time to relax, plan, read, journal, hand wash clothes to hang on the clothesline
7:00 - dinner followed by talking or card playing a local game called "Spa", great fun!!!
9:00 - early to bed as we have a single bulb for light in our room; just happy to have electricity
Today was a little out of the ordinary. When I arrived at my library, I discovered all 90 JHSers were gathered in one room with the Headmaster. In a booming voice he was casting away evil spirits brought on by the white owl that appeared in the classroom, with no apparent place of enty before the building was opened. Keep in mind that the walls do not meet the corrugated aluminum roof, allowing plenty of space for a bird to slip through. One girl was sprinkling hopy water on the gathering from a bucket of water. The children then proceeded to move all of the classroom's furnishings to a vacant room next to Mary's music room. Headmaster informed me that students would avoid entering this room until the pastors exorcised the room of all evil spirits some time next week.
Tomorrow midday we are going to Kakum National Park, a rainforest with a canopy walk on a suspended rope bridge. It is north of Cape Coast, about a 90 minute drive from our village. We will spend the night at a neighboring village where we are scheduled to enjoy a bamboo orchestra. This sounds very exciting!!
Next week we have been invited to attend a chief's meeting in Besease, where 5 young volunteers with Sabre have been placed. The discussion will be about educational practices, including caning which is used freely in both of our villages. When I broached the practice with a young teacher in our village, her reply was, "How do you discipline your students in America?" I offered several ideas, but their practices are deeply ingrained and unlikely to change soon. Perhaps, the next wave of teachers will try new strategies. We have shared the wonderful materials that Walker provided us and have bought others in the city of Cape Coast.
I instructed 2 of my classes to write penpal letters to the Walker Wolves, and I will bring them in November to share. The Brenu kids are so anxious to hear back from you and would appreciate computers and bicycles from you. I asked them to share their dreams, and they did. In the village there are perhaps 12 bicycles shared by all of the children. I have not figured out their system, but it sure seems to work. The tiniest kids will sport around the dirt lots on huge bikes. The only other toy we have seen is a "car", made with a 5" stick, wooden handle, and fisherman's spool for the wheels. The younger kids push them around on their shoulders racing one another.
We have succeeded in staying healthy with our medicines, sunscreen, insect repellant and mosquito nets. I can't wait to get up in the middle of the night and not have to wriggle out of my net. We miss family and friends more as time goes on and are tired of the humidity and heat. It can be very oppressive, although we had about a 2 week respite when it cooled off ever so slightly.
Keep us in your prayers and keep the campaign heading in the direction the BBC has been reporting to our friends in Besease. We have no television or newspaper in Brenu. Very out of touch with the rest of the world.
Lots of love,
Akua Linda
www.classroomghana.blogspot.com
Mary and I had a local seamstress fashion us dresses for Sunday church. We were feeling out of place and have had great fun with our dresses.
I thought you might enjoy the description of a typical day in Brenu Akyinim:
5:30 - early morning walk to see the sunrise along the road with hunters and farmers with rifles and hoes;serenaded by a chorus of birds, insects, frogs and the thunder of the sea
7:00 - breakfast after a refreshing shower and a 5 minute walk to the outdoor table by the sea
8-2:00 - school day begun with drums and marching into class, a stone building with open spaces for windows
2:30 - lunch, our big meal of chicken or fish for the day with vegetables fresh from the farm
4-6:30 - time to relax, plan, read, journal, hand wash clothes to hang on the clothesline
7:00 - dinner followed by talking or card playing a local game called "Spa", great fun!!!
9:00 - early to bed as we have a single bulb for light in our room; just happy to have electricity
Today was a little out of the ordinary. When I arrived at my library, I discovered all 90 JHSers were gathered in one room with the Headmaster. In a booming voice he was casting away evil spirits brought on by the white owl that appeared in the classroom, with no apparent place of enty before the building was opened. Keep in mind that the walls do not meet the corrugated aluminum roof, allowing plenty of space for a bird to slip through. One girl was sprinkling hopy water on the gathering from a bucket of water. The children then proceeded to move all of the classroom's furnishings to a vacant room next to Mary's music room. Headmaster informed me that students would avoid entering this room until the pastors exorcised the room of all evil spirits some time next week.
Tomorrow midday we are going to Kakum National Park, a rainforest with a canopy walk on a suspended rope bridge. It is north of Cape Coast, about a 90 minute drive from our village. We will spend the night at a neighboring village where we are scheduled to enjoy a bamboo orchestra. This sounds very exciting!!
Next week we have been invited to attend a chief's meeting in Besease, where 5 young volunteers with Sabre have been placed. The discussion will be about educational practices, including caning which is used freely in both of our villages. When I broached the practice with a young teacher in our village, her reply was, "How do you discipline your students in America?" I offered several ideas, but their practices are deeply ingrained and unlikely to change soon. Perhaps, the next wave of teachers will try new strategies. We have shared the wonderful materials that Walker provided us and have bought others in the city of Cape Coast.
I instructed 2 of my classes to write penpal letters to the Walker Wolves, and I will bring them in November to share. The Brenu kids are so anxious to hear back from you and would appreciate computers and bicycles from you. I asked them to share their dreams, and they did. In the village there are perhaps 12 bicycles shared by all of the children. I have not figured out their system, but it sure seems to work. The tiniest kids will sport around the dirt lots on huge bikes. The only other toy we have seen is a "car", made with a 5" stick, wooden handle, and fisherman's spool for the wheels. The younger kids push them around on their shoulders racing one another.
We have succeeded in staying healthy with our medicines, sunscreen, insect repellant and mosquito nets. I can't wait to get up in the middle of the night and not have to wriggle out of my net. We miss family and friends more as time goes on and are tired of the humidity and heat. It can be very oppressive, although we had about a 2 week respite when it cooled off ever so slightly.
Keep us in your prayers and keep the campaign heading in the direction the BBC has been reporting to our friends in Besease. We have no television or newspaper in Brenu. Very out of touch with the rest of the world.
Lots of love,
Akua Linda
More Photos
Linda admiring the Toa Tree. I think this was in Kumasi. Looks quite similar to a Calabash.
Linda standing in front of the Akan symbol in Kumasi. This symbol means 'Only God' or 'Except God' and is pretty central to Ghanaian life. In the local language it is called Gye Nyame.
Mary standing in front of a couple of typical pieces of art outsidethe Cultural Centre in Kumasi.
Women carrying the world on their heads!
Linda with Robert cycling beside her. Robert is one of the most promising young students with a fantastic grip of English and a real passion for learning.
A mural on one of the old school buildings done by previous volunteers and in need of updating in terms of funds raised!
From the Big City
Greeting from Kumasi, second largest city in Ghana with 1.5 million people. Our adventure just getting here was exhausting. Left our village at 7:30 with our favorite taxi driver. There are checkpoints on the highway (?) where ther is lots of graft. We were stopped by policemen and told that our driver's insurance was expired and that a different taxi would provide us with transport. We would not budge while they hassled our friend. It seems that since we were Brunis (white tourists) he would be allowed to continue after a gave them some money. Very common occurrance. At Cape Coast we hoped to board a bus soon but needed to wait 2 hours before departure. Then the fun began....the roads were horrible with potholes, so we progressed at a snail's pace much of the time. We made one rest stop about 2.5 hours into our trip for snacks and a stretch. When I asked several local ladies for a pay toilet, one l ead me across the road and handed me a huge leaf. All I could do was laugh and use the opportunity in the bush, out of sight of the busload of passengers.
We finally arrived in Kumasi, the garden city, in the heart of the market place, absolutely enormous and bustling. With the help of our guide book and several passersby, we found our hotel. Greeted with a clean room, towels, and soap, we were very happy. Dined and now we are at the neighboring Internet Cafe.
Tomorrow we will explore some sights of the city, then board the bus for our return at noon. It will have been a whirlwind getaway but an adventure nonetheless. The countryside enroute here was hilly and lush and dotted by little villages that all begin to look alike. The government built school are all identical as are the gov't. issued uniforms in gold/brown.
Taught several math lessons this week and shared the algorithm, Lattice Method for multiplication with 2 classes. They love it and floor the entire time. Never in America. One tiny example of the difference in a third world country. Someone told us that families can get insurace for 15 cedis, but the problem is noone caught on fast. During one class, an epileptic child suffered a seizure and lay sprawled on the has 15 cedis.
Most people in our village earn their living, hand to mouth, through fishing, farming, or selling small items from a wooden shipping box. We have no market, so the ladies walk twice a week with their vegetable, kenkey or smoked fish to a neighboring village on the road. We are tucked away at the seaside where noone travels by enroute anywhere. A small number of men go to a nearby city to work. There is a strong tradition to stay in the village generation after generation.
I am past the halfway mark and am missing many people and conveniences of home. We still have travel plans for the next 2 weekends, so I will keep you posted. Thank you for all the prayers and well wishes. They have helped to keep us healthy and happy. But then the village children and women are a wonderful support system for us. They seem at times to be the whole village.
We keep receiving updates on the campaign and feel very encouraged by what we hear. We never see television, so at times we feel very out of touch with America. Life seems simple most days and very routine. Encountered a hunter this week on my early morning walk carrying a rifle in one hand and an antelope in the other. A small one.
Lots of love,
Linda
We finally arrived in Kumasi, the garden city, in the heart of the market place, absolutely enormous and bustling. With the help of our guide book and several passersby, we found our hotel. Greeted with a clean room, towels, and soap, we were very happy. Dined and now we are at the neighboring Internet Cafe.
Tomorrow we will explore some sights of the city, then board the bus for our return at noon. It will have been a whirlwind getaway but an adventure nonetheless. The countryside enroute here was hilly and lush and dotted by little villages that all begin to look alike. The government built school are all identical as are the gov't. issued uniforms in gold/brown.
Taught several math lessons this week and shared the algorithm, Lattice Method for multiplication with 2 classes. They love it and floor the entire time. Never in America. One tiny example of the difference in a third world country. Someone told us that families can get insurace for 15 cedis, but the problem is noone caught on fast. During one class, an epileptic child suffered a seizure and lay sprawled on the has 15 cedis.
Most people in our village earn their living, hand to mouth, through fishing, farming, or selling small items from a wooden shipping box. We have no market, so the ladies walk twice a week with their vegetable, kenkey or smoked fish to a neighboring village on the road. We are tucked away at the seaside where noone travels by enroute anywhere. A small number of men go to a nearby city to work. There is a strong tradition to stay in the village generation after generation.
I am past the halfway mark and am missing many people and conveniences of home. We still have travel plans for the next 2 weekends, so I will keep you posted. Thank you for all the prayers and well wishes. They have helped to keep us healthy and happy. But then the village children and women are a wonderful support system for us. They seem at times to be the whole village.
We keep receiving updates on the campaign and feel very encouraged by what we hear. We never see television, so at times we feel very out of touch with America. Life seems simple most days and very routine. Encountered a hunter this week on my early morning walk carrying a rifle in one hand and an antelope in the other. A small one.
Lots of love,
Linda
Living by the sea
I have been walking along the beach most mornings before breakfast. It is a most peaceful experience and I do wish that I could bring it home with me to Tucson. The surf crashes night and day and puts me to sleep on these very steamy nights. We have a new companion, a young woman named Elizabeth who has come for two weeks from New Jersey to do volunteer work.. She is young and very warm and helpful and has been assisting me in my music classes, both on the hill where i teach junior High and Primary (elementary grades) and down on the beach where I've been doing the nursery and the Kindergartens. The children are so precious. Elizabeth is especially taken with the very young ones. Today, after we spent singing those good old kinder songs like "Where is Thumbkin?" and "Johnny Pounds with One Hammer" she stared tickling one child by his ears. It set up such a giggling circus that we were all on our sides with laughter!! Elizabeth has been very helpful in video taping the children while I'm teaching so there will be plenty for out Walker kids to see when we return.
The three of us, Ms. Lagen, Elizabeth, and I will be going to Kakum National Rainforest tomorrow and we'll be attending a special bamboo concert by a band called Kukyekukeyku. Really. The village it is in is to the east of the park and called Mosomagor. I am especially thrilled to see and hear this because I have noted that there is plenty of bamboo in this country. In fact, we passed miles and miles of it on our bus ride to Kumasi last weekend.
More photos are on the way. Some of them are from Kumasi. It is a huge city nut not at all like the huge cities in the U.S.!!!
The three of us, Ms. Lagen, Elizabeth, and I will be going to Kakum National Rainforest tomorrow and we'll be attending a special bamboo concert by a band called Kukyekukeyku. Really. The village it is in is to the east of the park and called Mosomagor. I am especially thrilled to see and hear this because I have noted that there is plenty of bamboo in this country. In fact, we passed miles and miles of it on our bus ride to Kumasi last weekend.
More photos are on the way. Some of them are from Kumasi. It is a huge city nut not at all like the huge cities in the U.S.!!!
Friday, October 10, 2008
Out of water
Can you believe that we ran out of water???? And that means for the shower, the toilet, and the sink. So the kids of the village--- under the supervision of some teenagers---brought buckets and bowls of recently collected rainwater and probably some well water, too, to fill up the tank on top of the house. We really appreciated it!!
We hope to post more pictures soon. Right now we're in Kumasi---look it up online---and will be back in our lovely village tomorrow.
We hope to post more pictures soon. Right now we're in Kumasi---look it up online---and will be back in our lovely village tomorrow.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
More Pictures from Mrs. Kierzek and Mrs. Lagen
Monday, October 6, 2008
Memoache, (Good Morning)
I have some informational sites to share with you. The website for our nonprofit organization through whom we traveled is http://www.sabretrust.org/
When there click on volunteers, then photo library to see many of the things we see every day; i.e. children, Brenu Beach, hillside schools without electricity, painted walls of the beach classrooms fpr KG-2.
My colleague set up a blog at http://www.classroomghana.blogspot.com/
where she posts weekly new activities.
For those of you who have asked about the needs of the children, an address for the school is:
Brenu Akyinim D/A School
Via Elmina
Ghana, Africa
The greatest need for the children is used summer clothing of all sizes and flip flops or lightweight leather shoes. Again, used would be equally appreciated as new. Most children have one tattered outfit aside from their one issued school uniform. I am planning to return in about 1-1 1/2 years, so I will also carry my maximum allowance on the plane.
The school supplies that we brought in some cases have been greatly used, like the 60 soprano recorders and whiteboards. However, glue sticks and scissors have been of little use. The schools have NO supplies, not even textbooks for the children. The teachers teach verbatim from a syllabus using chalk on a crude chalkboard. We are gaining a much deeper appreciation for the teaching circumstances in America. The children of America would never believe how different life is for the students in third world Ghana. Begin to count your blessings, Walker Wolves.
Tiffany has asked me to talk a little about the houses in the village. They are made of a variety of earthen materials, non-mortared blocks, mud walls, woven palm fronds. Very few have doors or something over the windows. Most have an outdoor privy with an deep open pit dug for waste. These are share by several homes. The roofs leak and are in constant need of repair. The churches are probably the most permanent structures in the village with wooden windows and doors that are opened only on Sunday. Few homes have any electricity or running water, but there is a central well which the children use constantly to carry buckets to their homes.
Know that the Ghanaians are strong supporters of Barrack Obama, wearing buttons, stickers on the taxis, and even an occasional teeshirt. We are frequently asked about our gov't by the young adults who have mastered English. There will be an election here in December and there are many parties contesting.
In the 3 weeks we have been here, there have 3 deaths in our village of 1500 people. The customs are different than ours. Loud music emanates from the church for 24-36 hours straight, and family and friends of the decesed arrive from all over. Just this weekend we have an extra 4 people staying in our guesthouse sleeping on the couch and chairs in the living room. Plastic chairs are set up at the deceased person's house and people grieve and celebrate his/her life. We watched a carpenter construct a beautiful casket trimmed with metal. Everything becomes a community activity.
Last week we had a school holiday for Ramadan, so we went to the Elmina Castle. It is 526 years old and was built by the Portuguese for trading of gold, ivory and spices. Later taken by the Dutch and finally the Bristish. The Ghanaians reclaimed in during their independence in 1957. For hundrends of years it was used for slave trading and housed as many as 1,000 slaves. It was a haunting experience for us.
Much more to follow...love to all...really beginning to miss home and family.
Akua Linda
I have some informational sites to share with you. The website for our nonprofit organization through whom we traveled is http://www.sabretrust.org/
When there click on volunteers, then photo library to see many of the things we see every day; i.e. children, Brenu Beach, hillside schools without electricity, painted walls of the beach classrooms fpr KG-2.
My colleague set up a blog at http://www.classroomghana.blogspot.com/
where she posts weekly new activities.
For those of you who have asked about the needs of the children, an address for the school is:
Brenu Akyinim D/A School
Via Elmina
Ghana, Africa
The greatest need for the children is used summer clothing of all sizes and flip flops or lightweight leather shoes. Again, used would be equally appreciated as new. Most children have one tattered outfit aside from their one issued school uniform. I am planning to return in about 1-1 1/2 years, so I will also carry my maximum allowance on the plane.
The school supplies that we brought in some cases have been greatly used, like the 60 soprano recorders and whiteboards. However, glue sticks and scissors have been of little use. The schools have NO supplies, not even textbooks for the children. The teachers teach verbatim from a syllabus using chalk on a crude chalkboard. We are gaining a much deeper appreciation for the teaching circumstances in America. The children of America would never believe how different life is for the students in third world Ghana. Begin to count your blessings, Walker Wolves.
Tiffany has asked me to talk a little about the houses in the village. They are made of a variety of earthen materials, non-mortared blocks, mud walls, woven palm fronds. Very few have doors or something over the windows. Most have an outdoor privy with an deep open pit dug for waste. These are share by several homes. The roofs leak and are in constant need of repair. The churches are probably the most permanent structures in the village with wooden windows and doors that are opened only on Sunday. Few homes have any electricity or running water, but there is a central well which the children use constantly to carry buckets to their homes.
Know that the Ghanaians are strong supporters of Barrack Obama, wearing buttons, stickers on the taxis, and even an occasional teeshirt. We are frequently asked about our gov't by the young adults who have mastered English. There will be an election here in December and there are many parties contesting.
In the 3 weeks we have been here, there have 3 deaths in our village of 1500 people. The customs are different than ours. Loud music emanates from the church for 24-36 hours straight, and family and friends of the decesed arrive from all over. Just this weekend we have an extra 4 people staying in our guesthouse sleeping on the couch and chairs in the living room. Plastic chairs are set up at the deceased person's house and people grieve and celebrate his/her life. We watched a carpenter construct a beautiful casket trimmed with metal. Everything becomes a community activity.
Last week we had a school holiday for Ramadan, so we went to the Elmina Castle. It is 526 years old and was built by the Portuguese for trading of gold, ivory and spices. Later taken by the Dutch and finally the Bristish. The Ghanaians reclaimed in during their independence in 1957. For hundrends of years it was used for slave trading and housed as many as 1,000 slaves. It was a haunting experience for us.
Much more to follow...love to all...really beginning to miss home and family.
Akua Linda
Saturday, September 27, 2008
The Children Will Do It
Ms. Lagen has a most wonderful photo of some students from the junior high walking up the hill to their new school with huge old wooden desks on their heads. Things on heads of every size and age are nothing special in Brenu Akyinim. And children doing heavy and tedious work is commonplace. In fact, what we have noticed is that all the people of every age in the village contribute to the wellbeing of the village every day. even the smallest children work and help. And they care for themselves and their siblings constantly while parents are away on the farm working or in the home cooking and doing laundry.
Yesterday, I decided it was time to get working on coming up with some instruments for the new music room on the top of the hill where the newly built junior high school is. Nothing in Brenu is wasted. Ms. Lagen and I were walking along the beach and spotted about five boys, maybe about ten to twelve years old, sitting on a sandy rise just out of reach of the surf. They were busily hacking away with their machetes at the coconuts they'd dropped from the nearby palms. It has been a source of concern to both of us that such young children, many younger than these boys, carry very dangerous implements with them as a matter of course.
Anyway, I asked them if they would consider cutting and cleaning some coconut shells for me in such a way that the shells could be used for a musical instrument. The children have only makeshift instruments and have begun to learn the recorder now, so I want to add some pretty tone colors by making a set of tempo blocks. Then we can add interest to our recorder pieces and our songs with cool rhythms on the tempo blocks. My Walker students will know what I'm talking about. In the classroom at Walker were two sets of tempo blocks. Both have five wooden boxes suspended on a stand. one is quite small and we call them the piccolo blocks. The other is large and is played with mallets while standing. It has a tick-tocky sound that goes vert well with other instruments. Well, the children obliged. I explained what I wanted and they happily set to the task of c utting and cleaning out the coconuts. It was no small task. The coconuts now sit at my window drying out so that I can mount them and take them up to my classroom.
One more thing. We have noticed that, in spite of their poverty, these children probably eat a better balanced meal than many children in the United states. Because they cannot afford such things as candy and bagged snacks and soda pop, their diet consists of vegetables and fruit that they or their village neighbors pick the very same day that they eat them. Like the coconuts!!! Frech from the palm trees to their waiting stomachs. It is a life that would seem in some ways idyllic to us if not for the hardships.
I am enjoying learning and speaking Fante with the village people. They are so amazed and tickled to hear "bruni's"---foreigners---speak their tongue. It's fun to learn and everyone tries to help.
Yesterday, I decided it was time to get working on coming up with some instruments for the new music room on the top of the hill where the newly built junior high school is. Nothing in Brenu is wasted. Ms. Lagen and I were walking along the beach and spotted about five boys, maybe about ten to twelve years old, sitting on a sandy rise just out of reach of the surf. They were busily hacking away with their machetes at the coconuts they'd dropped from the nearby palms. It has been a source of concern to both of us that such young children, many younger than these boys, carry very dangerous implements with them as a matter of course.
Anyway, I asked them if they would consider cutting and cleaning some coconut shells for me in such a way that the shells could be used for a musical instrument. The children have only makeshift instruments and have begun to learn the recorder now, so I want to add some pretty tone colors by making a set of tempo blocks. Then we can add interest to our recorder pieces and our songs with cool rhythms on the tempo blocks. My Walker students will know what I'm talking about. In the classroom at Walker were two sets of tempo blocks. Both have five wooden boxes suspended on a stand. one is quite small and we call them the piccolo blocks. The other is large and is played with mallets while standing. It has a tick-tocky sound that goes vert well with other instruments. Well, the children obliged. I explained what I wanted and they happily set to the task of c utting and cleaning out the coconuts. It was no small task. The coconuts now sit at my window drying out so that I can mount them and take them up to my classroom.
One more thing. We have noticed that, in spite of their poverty, these children probably eat a better balanced meal than many children in the United states. Because they cannot afford such things as candy and bagged snacks and soda pop, their diet consists of vegetables and fruit that they or their village neighbors pick the very same day that they eat them. Like the coconuts!!! Frech from the palm trees to their waiting stomachs. It is a life that would seem in some ways idyllic to us if not for the hardships.
I am enjoying learning and speaking Fante with the village people. They are so amazed and tickled to hear "bruni's"---foreigners---speak their tongue. It's fun to learn and everyone tries to help.
Monday, September 22, 2008
From Ms. Lagen
Memoache! Good Morning in Fante
I have been here one week only, and it feels like a lifetime. I am already planning to return some time next year with Jim as a volunteer in the same village of about 2,000 people, called Brenu Askyinim. We are located in the Central Region on the Atlantic with the most magnificent beach, We walk the beach gathering shells, octopus backs, and sea glass as early as possible before the heat of the day.
The people are so warm and friendly everywhere I go. They are delighted that we use their everyday greetings every opportunity that we get.The young children flock around us and want their pictures taken so they can see themselves. They have a joy for life unmatched in America. Their toys consist of sticks, stones, shells, and fishermen's spools. Very creative!! No signs of technology which in many ways has retained their innocence.
School on the hilltop overlooking the sea began on Tuesday. I teach Junior High School math and English but spent this week setting up our library from scratch. Last term the school was on the beach so everything had to be hand carried 15 minutes up the hill. I mean everything. Students carried heavy desks attached to chairs on their heads. The JHSers pushed an enormous cart "truck" filled with books, exams, workbooks, etc. multiple times delivering them to me at the library. I recruited several industrious students to assist me. We categorized them very crudely and labeled the shelves with first aid tape. You need to be very imaginative when you do a task as the nearest stores are 12 miles away in Elmina or Cape Coast where we are today. I brought new items each day to entice kids into the library.One day it was wrap ups, a match manipulative, another day calculators, also a phonics game that in America would appeal to 6-7 year olds. Yesterday, I brought hula hoops, and they were a huge hit!!! More boys than girls go the swing of it quickly. Kids play "Cat in the Cradle" with string stretched between trees jumping between them and jacks with stones. Children from a young age farm with machetes, shimmy trees to get coconuts and fronds to weave for roofing material and privy enclosures. Young girls walk about the village selling extra produce from bowls and trays balanced on their heads. I have favorites but all of the kids hold their faces to the sun and are lovable.
Those of you who contributed to our adventure, "medase". We contributed $20 to help a family who had a tragedy this week at the farms nearby. A baby on mother's back had 2 fingers severed at the knuckle by a machete when she fell forward. We bought some school supplies today in CC. There are none at the schools. We brought 4 suitcases from America, but we couldn't anticipate everything. Walker children, your contributions have been invaluable. The level of math that I am teaching to 13-16 year olds matches Walker's 4/5th grade curriculum.
Our house is first class by their standards. We have electricity (unlike the school), running water, a flush toilet, a COLD shower and walls that reach the rooftop. The children always carry our supplies to and from school and peek into our home if they can. Others in the village live in all manner of crude structures and are grateful for a roof over their heads. Many unfinished structures stand until they can get funds to continue construction. Up on the hilltop near the school are several beautiful homes underway owned by African Americans who are benefactors to the community.
Communication from Ghana is very difficult. Last time we came to the city to an Intenet cafe, the network was down. I will try to write again in about a week. Until then........nantu ye. (good bye)
Much love, Akua Linda (Wednesday's child) a Ghanaian custom
I have been here one week only, and it feels like a lifetime. I am already planning to return some time next year with Jim as a volunteer in the same village of about 2,000 people, called Brenu Askyinim. We are located in the Central Region on the Atlantic with the most magnificent beach, We walk the beach gathering shells, octopus backs, and sea glass as early as possible before the heat of the day.
The people are so warm and friendly everywhere I go. They are delighted that we use their everyday greetings every opportunity that we get.The young children flock around us and want their pictures taken so they can see themselves. They have a joy for life unmatched in America. Their toys consist of sticks, stones, shells, and fishermen's spools. Very creative!! No signs of technology which in many ways has retained their innocence.
School on the hilltop overlooking the sea began on Tuesday. I teach Junior High School math and English but spent this week setting up our library from scratch. Last term the school was on the beach so everything had to be hand carried 15 minutes up the hill. I mean everything. Students carried heavy desks attached to chairs on their heads. The JHSers pushed an enormous cart "truck" filled with books, exams, workbooks, etc. multiple times delivering them to me at the library. I recruited several industrious students to assist me. We categorized them very crudely and labeled the shelves with first aid tape. You need to be very imaginative when you do a task as the nearest stores are 12 miles away in Elmina or Cape Coast where we are today. I brought new items each day to entice kids into the library.One day it was wrap ups, a match manipulative, another day calculators, also a phonics game that in America would appeal to 6-7 year olds. Yesterday, I brought hula hoops, and they were a huge hit!!! More boys than girls go the swing of it quickly. Kids play "Cat in the Cradle" with string stretched between trees jumping between them and jacks with stones. Children from a young age farm with machetes, shimmy trees to get coconuts and fronds to weave for roofing material and privy enclosures. Young girls walk about the village selling extra produce from bowls and trays balanced on their heads. I have favorites but all of the kids hold their faces to the sun and are lovable.
Those of you who contributed to our adventure, "medase". We contributed $20 to help a family who had a tragedy this week at the farms nearby. A baby on mother's back had 2 fingers severed at the knuckle by a machete when she fell forward. We bought some school supplies today in CC. There are none at the schools. We brought 4 suitcases from America, but we couldn't anticipate everything. Walker children, your contributions have been invaluable. The level of math that I am teaching to 13-16 year olds matches Walker's 4/5th grade curriculum.
Our house is first class by their standards. We have electricity (unlike the school), running water, a flush toilet, a COLD shower and walls that reach the rooftop. The children always carry our supplies to and from school and peek into our home if they can. Others in the village live in all manner of crude structures and are grateful for a roof over their heads. Many unfinished structures stand until they can get funds to continue construction. Up on the hilltop near the school are several beautiful homes underway owned by African Americans who are benefactors to the community.
Communication from Ghana is very difficult. Last time we came to the city to an Intenet cafe, the network was down. I will try to write again in about a week. Until then........nantu ye. (good bye)
Much love, Akua Linda (Wednesday's child) a Ghanaian custom
Saturday, September 20, 2008
A Different World!!
Oh, my dear friends and students, there is so much to tell you. Ms. Lagen and I have been at school in Brenu now for a week and more. Ms. Lagen will be teaching in the Junior High School, which is about the level of our fourth and fifth graders at Walker. I will be in the Primary Fourth grade, the fifth grade and the sixth grade; also in the earlier grades. I have taught music and English and Math so far. The children have no supplies to work with, nothing. I use the blackboard for most of my instruction. The classes are large and the classrooms have no lights, no screens on windows, no electricity, no running water.
But the children desperately want to learn and they do. Imagine this, they are learning in two languages at once. They learn and study the Ghanaian culture in their language of Fante, but they also study math and reading and writing in English, even the very youngest ones. So while they seem to be behind us in many regards, they are also way ahead of us in others.
When I can post pictures, I would like you to see what the children use for toys. Many of them wander about the village with long sticks cleverly attached to tin cans or soda cans and these are their "cars", They also collect bottle caps to use to count with. And rocks---rocks are used in their math classes for operations including multiplying. They spend their early morning minutes before school sweeping the ground around their school buildings of debris like leaves and sticks and litter. The broom are made by them of some stiff weed. They truly rely on nature for their existence in a way we can barely imagine. The fruits of the plants---coconut palms, palm nuts, ground nuts, plantains (a fruit similar to bananas), and many garden vegetables that you would recognize---are their foods. Actually, when you think of it, they're far healthier in their diet than most of us in the U.S.
Our life is simple but very pleasant there in Brenu. (We come to the city of Cape Coast to get on the internet. It is a long taxi ride and quite expensive by Ghana standards, but it is the only way for us to get on line!!) We take cold showers, but we are lucky to have water at all!! Running water. Outside the window of our rooms---we live in an actuall building of concrete block---we hear goats bleating constantly and roosters crowing and sometimes children playing or babies crying. The children are well loved in Brenu.
Ms. Lagen and I walked along the beach one day in the early morning and discovered some rather strange objects that were clearly from the sea. We could not figure out what they might be. I guessed that these things were the skeletens of something that had tentacles. It turned out to be a good guess. The science teacher from the high school told Ms. Lage that they were the "backbones" of the octopuses!!!
We miss our students from Walker and think often of you. We often find outselves saying," Our students would be so surprised by this (or that). You would. We'll let you know more as we are able. In the meantime, Nantu ye, Yebeshia! (Goog-bye! We'll be seeing you!) Ms. K
But the children desperately want to learn and they do. Imagine this, they are learning in two languages at once. They learn and study the Ghanaian culture in their language of Fante, but they also study math and reading and writing in English, even the very youngest ones. So while they seem to be behind us in many regards, they are also way ahead of us in others.
When I can post pictures, I would like you to see what the children use for toys. Many of them wander about the village with long sticks cleverly attached to tin cans or soda cans and these are their "cars", They also collect bottle caps to use to count with. And rocks---rocks are used in their math classes for operations including multiplying. They spend their early morning minutes before school sweeping the ground around their school buildings of debris like leaves and sticks and litter. The broom are made by them of some stiff weed. They truly rely on nature for their existence in a way we can barely imagine. The fruits of the plants---coconut palms, palm nuts, ground nuts, plantains (a fruit similar to bananas), and many garden vegetables that you would recognize---are their foods. Actually, when you think of it, they're far healthier in their diet than most of us in the U.S.
Our life is simple but very pleasant there in Brenu. (We come to the city of Cape Coast to get on the internet. It is a long taxi ride and quite expensive by Ghana standards, but it is the only way for us to get on line!!) We take cold showers, but we are lucky to have water at all!! Running water. Outside the window of our rooms---we live in an actuall building of concrete block---we hear goats bleating constantly and roosters crowing and sometimes children playing or babies crying. The children are well loved in Brenu.
Ms. Lagen and I walked along the beach one day in the early morning and discovered some rather strange objects that were clearly from the sea. We could not figure out what they might be. I guessed that these things were the skeletens of something that had tentacles. It turned out to be a good guess. The science teacher from the high school told Ms. Lage that they were the "backbones" of the octopuses!!!
We miss our students from Walker and think often of you. We often find outselves saying," Our students would be so surprised by this (or that). You would. We'll let you know more as we are able. In the meantime, Nantu ye, Yebeshia! (Goog-bye! We'll be seeing you!) Ms. K
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Oh the people are beautiful!!
We arrived in Brenu Akyinim yesterday and have found the people to be very friendly and open. We were settled into our rooms and then went down to the beach where we met the lady who will cook for us. We sort of took new names. Mine is Araba Mary and Ms. Lagen's is Acua Linda. The first names are the names of the week on which we were born.
The most common sight that we observe every day a thousand times is small, small children carrying bundles of things---sometimes baskets of food to sell or large bundles of wood for cooking. Everyone in the village, including the children, have a job to do and a role to play in their community. They are beautiful and so happy!! They have next to nothing, but they are so happy and willing to talk about anything. The children who have begun school speak some English. The younger ones mostly do not unless they have been exposed to the volunteers. The language spoken in the village of Brenu is Fante. "Good morning" is "Memo atchay".
The people walk nearly everywhere. Andwhen they walk, they carry their burdens on their heads.
The most common sight that we observe every day a thousand times is small, small children carrying bundles of things---sometimes baskets of food to sell or large bundles of wood for cooking. Everyone in the village, including the children, have a job to do and a role to play in their community. They are beautiful and so happy!! They have next to nothing, but they are so happy and willing to talk about anything. The children who have begun school speak some English. The younger ones mostly do not unless they have been exposed to the volunteers. The language spoken in the village of Brenu is Fante. "Good morning" is "Memo atchay".
The people walk nearly everywhere. Andwhen they walk, they carry their burdens on their heads.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
To Accra on the West African coast of Ghana
From Tucson, Arizona, to Accra, Ghana, we are finally---at long last---on our way!!! So, Walker students, stay tuned in and connected and we will try our best to do the same. Please remember that our village is small and does not have all the amenities that a city would have. We will most likely have to get a ride to the nearby city of Elmina---or, in the opposite direction, to Takoradi---in order to find an internet cafe where we can plug in and get online.
Oh, and it bears mentioning that the school of which you have seen several photos on this blogsite was very, very recently built by volunteers. It has concrete floors and a thatched roof and contains four classrooms. Each classroom will handle several grade levels and as many as sixty children!! The kindergarten classroom , you may have noticed, is still without desks. They call it the kindergarten, but I believe it is for first and second grade also. We will soon find out!!!
Here we go!!!
Oh, and it bears mentioning that the school of which you have seen several photos on this blogsite was very, very recently built by volunteers. It has concrete floors and a thatched roof and contains four classrooms. Each classroom will handle several grade levels and as many as sixty children!! The kindergarten classroom , you may have noticed, is still without desks. They call it the kindergarten, but I believe it is for first and second grade also. We will soon find out!!!
Here we go!!!
Friday, September 5, 2008
Tucson connections
Ms. Lagen has a friend living in Tucson who knows a fine man and his wife from Ghana. The man, whose name is Kwaku, teaches at a college in Kentucky; so Ms. Lagen flew to Kentucky to meet him and also met his wife, Ama.
While she was there, Ms. L had dinner with Ama and Kwaku and made plans to visit Ama's mother who still lives in Ghana. In fact, to our delight and surprise, Ama's mother lives in the little village of Egyei Krom, outside of a larger city, Kumasi, north of our village of Brenu Akyinim. Ama has now arranged for Ms. Lagen and me, Ms. Kierzek, to stay with her mother in that village before we return to the United States at the end of our teaching experience. We are extremely thrilled at the prospect of staying with a villager in her own home. It will be for a couple of days. She does not speak English, but we're confident that we will do just fine. She will be taking us to another village that is very well-known for its beautiful wood carvings.
That makes two particular crafts we now know of that we must investigate: this wood-carving and the beautiful woven cloth called kente cloth. We will, of course, bring back samples of each to show our students!!!
In addition to this lovely couple, we have made the acquaintance of another wonderful person. Her name is Florence Clark and she is a Tucsonan who has recently set up an orphanage in Ghana and is trying to finance the private education of the children who live there. She says that Ghanaian students must take a very important test before middle school and they must score high in order to go on in school. She wants to be sure they all make it to the next level of schooling. She cares so much about these children---there are twelve of them presently living at the orphanage--- that she is even now trying to establish a business near the orphanage to help support the cost of raising the children, that is, buying their food and clothes and paying for their schooling. I have so much admiration for people such as Florence.
Here's the interesting part: the business she's starting up is fish farming in a lake nearby the orphanage. Who even knew there was such an industry in Ghana as fish farming?
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Our assignment, at last!
We have received word that we will be teaching in the seaside village of Brenu Akyinim. Brenu is situated fifteen kilometers west of Elmina. And Elmina, as my students at Walker may recall, is the location of the notorious Elmina Castle wherein were kept the captives from all parts of the African continent while they awaited shipment to the New World to become the slaves of landowners there and work the fields until they died.
We plan to take time to visit that historic place and record our thoughts about it. But first, we will get situated in our new home in the village and meet the families that make up that community. Our classroom, we have now heard, is an actual building. Though it lacks doors and windows---and thus, is open to the outside---it has floors and desks for the children. How many children we will be teaching we have yet to find out. This we do know: The children will most likely range in age, anywhere from five or six to ten or twelve; we will be teaching the English language to these children and I, Ms. Kierzek, being a music teacher, intend to use song and movement as much as I possibly can.
Ms Lagen and I are so anxious to be on our way, but still have some last minute preparations. We are stuffing suitcases full of the school supplies contributed by our students at Walker---we acquired several large ones just for this purpose---weighing them carefully, and stuffing in more. I am taking my keyboard and those 60 soprano recorders from Dr. Rinehart---wooHoo!!!---to help me teach with musical motivation. Oh, I wish we were on our way!!!
We plan to take time to visit that historic place and record our thoughts about it. But first, we will get situated in our new home in the village and meet the families that make up that community. Our classroom, we have now heard, is an actual building. Though it lacks doors and windows---and thus, is open to the outside---it has floors and desks for the children. How many children we will be teaching we have yet to find out. This we do know: The children will most likely range in age, anywhere from five or six to ten or twelve; we will be teaching the English language to these children and I, Ms. Kierzek, being a music teacher, intend to use song and movement as much as I possibly can.
Ms Lagen and I are so anxious to be on our way, but still have some last minute preparations. We are stuffing suitcases full of the school supplies contributed by our students at Walker---we acquired several large ones just for this purpose---weighing them carefully, and stuffing in more. I am taking my keyboard and those 60 soprano recorders from Dr. Rinehart---wooHoo!!!---to help me teach with musical motivation. Oh, I wish we were on our way!!!
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Destination: Ghana
Ms K and Ms L are scheduled to depart for Ghana and their new adventure as teachers in a foreign culture in September 2008.
As they are able, they will keep you informed of their activities, of their whereabouts, and of some experiences of interest. This site has been established for the benefit of their awesome students at Walker Elementary School and any others who may be curious as to the nature of their doings across the globe from Tucson, Arizona.
They are expecting the unexpected, that is, they don't really know what's about to happen except that they will find themselves in a new world. They have prepared for this undertaking---they have been inoculated for Malaria, Yellow Fever, Typhoid, and countless other threats that greet travelers afar. They have worked with an organization in the United Kingdom that places volunteers in positions of need in various spots throughout the world and have been accepted as volunteers by this organization. They have updated their passports, applied for visas (permission to enter a country) to Ghana, and purchased their airline tickets. They have agreed to serve where they are most needed in the country of Ghana, probably near or on the coast, possibly in the community of Brenu Akyinim.
What is more important, with the help of their many fine students at Walker School and some other generous folks, they have accumulated school supplies ranging from the "well, duh" to "huh?". They have pencils, tablets, scissors, rulers, as well as soprano recorders for making music. These are not things that all the children of Ghana have readily available to them. They will teach students English, the official language of the country of Ghana. Many children enter school without having spoken English, having grown up hearing only their tribal language. There are 46 languages spoken in Ghana, the most spoken being Twi, Fante, Ewe, Ga, Dagomba, and Halisa.
As they arrive in Accra, the capital city of Ghana, ladened with many pounds of supplies and luggage, they will meet with the leaders of their volunteer team and take a very quick class to introduce them to the country, the culture, and the language of Twi (pronounced "chwee").
As soon as they are able, they will post a new message to their kids at Walker. Stay tuned!
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