Tuesday and Wednesday

Elizabeth and I got up early Tuesday morning to spend the day with a third Yo Ghana! Board member, Dr. Eric Ananga, a faculty member at the University of Education, Winneba.  Yo Ghana! Seems to attract people who are really, really busy, and Eric has to be up there near the top of that list.  But he made time to feed us lunch, get us acquainted with our coordinator for Winneba, Miss Betty, and to introduce us to the regional head of education and the headmasters at our two new schools, Mr. Hammond and Mr. Nyarko.  They then took us to their schools, Bosco Catholic (a public school) and St. Paul’s Methodist School.  It is thanks to the connections and knowledge of people like Eric that we get to work with the schools that best fit our mission.  We did some planning for a conference for our coordinators and outstanding letter writers we hope to have at Winneba next June.  Mr. Frank then drove us back to Chez Afrique for dinner with Dr. Williams, who spends many evenings at his wife Afua’s fine restaurant.

Wednesday we went to see our friends at Angel’s Academy, Proprietor Ernest Opoku-Ansah

and his daughter, Headmistress Regina.  They are two of the most joy-filled people I’ve ever met, and we had good meetings with them, the teachers, and then each of the classrooms that will be writing letters.  They quickly lost their shyness when Elizabeth spoke with them and requested the U.S. National Anthem and Pledge of Allegiance, among other things. The school also entertained us with dancing.  This was one of our short days,  but still consumed 8 hours by the time you factor in travel and logistics.  Even so, we are getting a chance to recharge our batteries a bit before a long day tomorrow.

Reflection:  Angel’s Academy began in the living room of its founder some twenty years ago.  Today it is a very impressive set of two-story structures, and the school just added teacher offices and spaces for a computer laboratory, expanded library, and a science laboratory.  For years Mr. Opoku-Ansah taught students for free in his living room, and the school continues to offer students from modest backgrounds an outstanding education.  But Mr. Opoku-Ansah comes across as a very humble man.  He seems to be always laughing and smiling, and no one enjoyed the musical program more.  The teachers tell us that they still go to him for advice.  If there are angels in human form, he is one of them.  Elizabeth, Eric, and Michael are also among the people I most admire.  The cool thing about volunteering so much with Yo Ghana! is that I get to spend so much time around cool people who work tirelessly and happily to help others.