Days 9-10

On Tuesday morning we left the warm hospitality of Sampa and Mr. Brew and his staff.  They not only fed us, they also put our logo on the side of their exemplary school!

Not far out of town is Morle Junior High School, where we had the pleasure of meeting with Mr. Albert, our tireless liaison at the school, and the rest of the staff as well as very enthusiastic students.  Then it was a very long drive to Kumasi.

Wednesday morning dawned bright and early, and Mr. ["what a road!"] Anthony, our driver and now friend, got us to Awisa Presbyterian Junior High School about two minutes early, more than three hours later.  There Dr. Eric Ananga from the University of Education, Winneba, joined us for a rousing session with the entire student body, which packed itself into one classroom.  We also had a strong meeting with the staff.  This village school has been one of our strongest members for some time and, under the guidance of Mr. Moses, did an exemplary job on their grant application and report last academic year.  And they do a great job educating students from modest backgrounds.

On the way back to Accra we stopped off for an emotional meeting with the leadership of Purity Preparatory School, one of the first schools we began working with.  Proprietress Madam Constance and Headmistress Madam Stella, who volunteers her time, keep the school thriving against great odds

Thursday I rejoined our Accra taxi driver, Mr. Frank, who somehow manages to stay serene and generous no matter how bad the traffic gets, and we visited four schools before a last dinner with Dr. Williams, Yo Ghana! board member and self-appointed head of security and public relations at Chez Afrique, his wife's wonderful restaurant in East Legon.  Then Friday we were off to Mr. Brando's home village, Akalove.  More on that later--we are laying over in London after a very hectic Friday night at the Accra Airport, so we are a more than a little dazed and confused after trying to do far too much in four weeks, operating regularly on a couple of hours of sleep a night, surviving Northern Ghana's roads and Accra's traffic, all punctuated regularly by meetings with inspirational educators whose challenges make you want to weep and whose dedication can't help but make you have hope for Ghana education in particular and humanity in general.  Thank you.