Ghana: Summer 2017
Donation protected
Hello friends,
This summer I will be returning to the Village of Life in Kete Kratchi, Ghana. I am staying for six weeks this time instead of two like last year! With the extended amount of time I have with the kids I will be teaching them English with an emphasis on creative writing, so that they can be adequately prepared for communication in the future. My goal is to give the kids an opportunity to practice advocating for themselves through written words. Most speak some English so this is the next step for them I believe. I have begun gathering supplies for my lessons and will be purchasing some workbooks to leave behind. This is part of my fund raising.
Last summer when you so graciously sponsored me, I was given the opportunity to travel to Ghana and meet many kids who needed love and help. It was the most rewarding experience to get to spend time with these kids and just play. For those of you who don't know, Village of Life is a home for children rescued from sex trafficking and slavery. Unfortunately, in Ghana it is still very common to have child slaves work on Lake Volta (the large lake by the Village of Life).
To get a clearer picture of the stories behind the children, here are the stories of two boys, Calibos and Yohannes. Calibos is a budding artist and a gentle soul and Yohannes is a genius in the making who can write mile long letters. Calibos never had to work on the Lake but he was orphaned at five and moved from home to home in both Ghana and Nigeria. He has two sisters but they abandoned him when he was still very young. Yohannes however, was forced to work on Lake Volta after being sold by his own mother to his crooked uncle. This means 14-18hr workdays usually with no food, and he could never complain for fear of a beating by his master or the threat of no dinner.
When I first met them it was their resilience that amazed me the most. They had so much love to give, and had hope for the future. Further into the trip I learned that they were not sponsored (someone to help fund schooling and basic items for them). I immediately Facebook messaged my parents and told them that I was going to sponsor Calibos. They replied with support for my idea and said they would sponsor Yohannes. So I use part of my monthly paycheck from REI to sponsor Calibos. My parents sponsor Yohannes.
I haven’t stopped thinking about the kids at the Village of Life. Last summers trip wasn’t just a one time fun experience for me, and then I just moved on. I am counting down the days till I can return and see them all again, because these kids are a part of my life now.
I am hoping to raise $2,500 in donations (I am making bracelets and selling them, participating in fund raisers and asking here). This trip is longer and requires more resources. A small group of 4 of us will be leaving on July 4th and returning with the rest of our team. We will be without any outside support until the rest of our team comes on July 31st. My fund raising deadline will be May 4th, because we will need to purchase our plane tickets by then. Thank you for reading this message.
Back row: Calibos & Yohannes
Front row: Samwell & Francis
This summer I will be returning to the Village of Life in Kete Kratchi, Ghana. I am staying for six weeks this time instead of two like last year! With the extended amount of time I have with the kids I will be teaching them English with an emphasis on creative writing, so that they can be adequately prepared for communication in the future. My goal is to give the kids an opportunity to practice advocating for themselves through written words. Most speak some English so this is the next step for them I believe. I have begun gathering supplies for my lessons and will be purchasing some workbooks to leave behind. This is part of my fund raising.
Last summer when you so graciously sponsored me, I was given the opportunity to travel to Ghana and meet many kids who needed love and help. It was the most rewarding experience to get to spend time with these kids and just play. For those of you who don't know, Village of Life is a home for children rescued from sex trafficking and slavery. Unfortunately, in Ghana it is still very common to have child slaves work on Lake Volta (the large lake by the Village of Life).
To get a clearer picture of the stories behind the children, here are the stories of two boys, Calibos and Yohannes. Calibos is a budding artist and a gentle soul and Yohannes is a genius in the making who can write mile long letters. Calibos never had to work on the Lake but he was orphaned at five and moved from home to home in both Ghana and Nigeria. He has two sisters but they abandoned him when he was still very young. Yohannes however, was forced to work on Lake Volta after being sold by his own mother to his crooked uncle. This means 14-18hr workdays usually with no food, and he could never complain for fear of a beating by his master or the threat of no dinner.
When I first met them it was their resilience that amazed me the most. They had so much love to give, and had hope for the future. Further into the trip I learned that they were not sponsored (someone to help fund schooling and basic items for them). I immediately Facebook messaged my parents and told them that I was going to sponsor Calibos. They replied with support for my idea and said they would sponsor Yohannes. So I use part of my monthly paycheck from REI to sponsor Calibos. My parents sponsor Yohannes.
I haven’t stopped thinking about the kids at the Village of Life. Last summers trip wasn’t just a one time fun experience for me, and then I just moved on. I am counting down the days till I can return and see them all again, because these kids are a part of my life now.
I am hoping to raise $2,500 in donations (I am making bracelets and selling them, participating in fund raisers and asking here). This trip is longer and requires more resources. A small group of 4 of us will be leaving on July 4th and returning with the rest of our team. We will be without any outside support until the rest of our team comes on July 31st. My fund raising deadline will be May 4th, because we will need to purchase our plane tickets by then. Thank you for reading this message.
Back row: Calibos & Yohannes
Front row: Samwell & Francis
Organizer
Sarah Anderson
Organizer
Edmonds, WA
