More to come....

My camera is healed! I was praying like crazy that it would start working again and one evening I went to turn in on and it worked! Praise God. So anwyay, here are just a few pics....

This is me and Mary and Hanielle at the orphanage our group visited this past Saturday.

We had such an awesome time and these kids are just amazing!

This is a gorgeous Ghanaian sunset. I took this photo from the Lodge we stay at. Just one example of the Creator's magnificent handywork!

Quick Note

17 more days! I can't believe how fast our time here is going. Alot has happened and I apologize for not blogging more. I also apologize that there will be no more picture until I get home, my camera broke last Friday while we were at an orphanage. I am super bummed about that, but other people on the team are capturing the pictures for me and have promised to share them when we get back.

Thanks again to all who donated towards uniforms! Yesterday they handed out about 20 to the junior high students and today the seamstress came to collect the money to make the uniforms for the primary school. Because of the generosity of so many people back in the states we are going to be able to paint a mural at the primary school I teach at, put a new roof and paint on the other primary school some teamates are teaching at, purchase new benches and water basins for the junior high, and some new music equipment for the schools as well. God has been faithful to provide in such a huge way for these schools and He is receiving all the glory!

School is going well. I started assessing my students today to determine which ones cannot read and I am going to start intense reading groups with them next week. My prayer is that I can get them heading in the right direction before I leave. About half of my class in unable to read, so that makes teaching and learning very challenging. Pray that God will give me some creativity with my teaching because resources are very limited.

One of our teammates is actually leaving to go back to the States tomorrow:( She has been sick since about our second week here and has been unable to get better. Her doctor advised her to come home, so please be praying for Nika - pray for healing and safe travels home.

I would just ask that each of you pray for strength for the rest of team, so that we may finish out the rest of our stay strong. Many days we feel weary and wonder if our time here is profitable at all. The heat and all the walking take a toll at times. Lastly, just begin praying for our transition back into the States. We have all adapted to a new and different culture and will be thrown back into the prosperity and fast-paced lifestyle that is America. My prayer is that we make a smooth transition while still allowing what we have seen and experienced here to forever change the way we live our lives.

Thanks so much.

p.s. Just want to thank all of you who have written on my wall. I love and miss you guys and appreciate your words of encouragement!

Time flys by when you are having fun.....

I just realized that we leave 4 weeks from today to go home. Its crazy how time seemed to be going by so slowly when we first got here and now it feels like I blink on Monday and next thing it is Friday. When I thought about it, it really made me realize how much I want to make the next few weeks really count.

I want to take a minute to thank all of you who donated money to help purchase unirforms. My mom received $200, so that is 20 uniforms that will be purchased! Also, thanks so much to all of you who have donated school supplies to be mailed over. I don't think you will understand the joy it will bring to the boys and girls to have new pens, pencils, erasers, etc....so on their behalf I say "Thank You" or as they say it here "Medase".

Some of you may be wondering about the safari. It wasn't exactly what I was expecting, but I am continually learning to be flexible. In a 48 hour period, we spent 28 hours in a bus, riding on very poor roads, with no air conditioning. I learned very quickly that there are no nice clean rest stops to pull off and use the restroom. You just pull over and use the restroom...the restroom being a concrete floor, or a bush...interesting experience to say the least. We didn't see as many animals as expected, and broke down on the way home, but we all bonded and made lots of memories....good times.

I am trying to upload pictures right now, sometimes pictures are much better than words. Thank you all again for your prayers. My mom has shared with me how many of you ask about me and the team and it is so encouraging.

I was able to touch a crocodile a couple of weeks ago at this hotel we ate at. I was a little nervous.

This is a picture of my classroom. Not a great picture, but helps to give you an idea.

Two Week Mark

Well yesterday we all hit the two week mark of our time here in Ghana and it has been pretty obvious. Sickness has hit a few of us, homesickness is settling in somewhat....I think the newness has worn off a little and now we are experiencing the day to day life. But it is in these times of weakness that God's strength is so obvious. He continues to just reveal Himself in little ways and it is pretty special. Today my roomate and I had to go to the post office to pick up a package someone from the States had sent. What an ordeal!!!! Nothing like picking up a package in America, that is for sure. Our taxi took us to the wrong post office, we had to walk so far to find the right one, and then found out the "inspector" charged money for opening the package and going through it. We didn't have much money on us and were not sure what to do, but by no coincidence, an American, who teaches at the University and has become a friend of our group, was waiting there for a package as well. He explained what to do and then gave us money to make sure we had enough! God was looking out for us and it was pretty obvious.

One thing you all could be praying about, for all of us who are teaching at the primary level, is the caning that takes place at the school. My students get caned for being late, for not knowing right answers, for not having a pen (which many can't afford), for not bringing in money to help the teacher buy a new eraser for the chalk board, etc... This is SO difficult for all of us! They do not understand why it bothers us and why we won't cane. We are trying to share with the other teachers that there are other methods of punishment AND that students should not be punished for not knowing a right answer. I am praying for wisdom in how to handle these situations. It brings alot of us to tears almost daily. These children are precious and it tears me up to have to sit by and watch this.

This weekend we are all traveling 12 hours to Northern Ghana to go to a walking Safari....I will try to capture some pictures of nature at its finest :)

Please continue to pray for safety, good health, and a servant's heart for all of us here.

Also, we are raising money to help purchase uniforms for students here. Children cannot attend school without a uniform and so many do not go. A uniform is about $10. If you are interested in helping, please contact my mom.

Thanks!

Picture time!

Hey Everyone! Just got done an awesome day of teaching. My students are precious and each day I am with them, it get better and better. I know I haven't written in awhile but I think it's time for some pictures! I want everyone to catch a glimpse of what I see and experience each day here in Ghana.

Below is a picture of the beach that we go to, it is about a 10 minute walk from the lodge we stay at. The picture doesn't quite do it justice!

This is a picture of me, my professor Dr. Nerren, and his awesome wife Suzanne. They left on Friday morning to go back to the states. I cried when they left. They were a tremendous source of encouragement.

This is one of the schools we have teachers in. The students are so loving and accepting! This is one of my favorite pictures so far!

A little Update

Greetings from Ghana!

I hate that I haven't been able to write much up to this point, but we have been so busy since we got here and we have to walk pretty far to get to a place where we can use the internet.

Things are going really well so far. The place we are staying - The Lagoon Lodge - is very nice. No air conditioning or hot water, but the fan seems to be doing the trick and I don't think I could stand to take a hot shower with this heat. The people of Ghana are absolutely amazing! Everywhere we go people wave and welcome us, they say "welcome abrune, abrune" which means welcome white person - haha! There aren't many white people around these parts so we draw a bit of attention. I have been to the ocean almost everyday since I have been here. It absolutely blows my mind that I have been sitting on the beach in Africa, drinking out of a coconut- Crazy!

Probably one of my favorite parts of the trip so far was on Thursday when we went to visit the schools for the first time. When we pulled up to the first school, the children came flooding out of the classes just cheering, smiling, and waving. It was like something out of a movie! There was not a dry eye on the bus. Very quickly I remembere why I came here. I have the privilege to love on these children and learn from them for two whole months.

The schools are very primitive - dirt floors, nothing on the walls, no electricity. But when we got to school on Friday to do our first day of observation, the children were outside the school cleaning. They were sweeping the dirt around the outside of the school, they were cleaning up leaves and branches- this happens each morning. The older kids spent the first hour of the school day mowing the grass - with machetes! They don't have much but they take pride in what they do have.

I have been assigned to teach Class 4 English, which includes reading, grammar, speaking, and listening. Their system is much different then ours. The kids in my class range in age of 9 to 16 and it would be similar to our grade 4. My mentor teacher's name is Eunice and she is very sweet. They are very laid back at school, some of the teachers sat outside on the porch of their classroom all day and never went in. My teacher only taught one lesson all day. But if you ask them, they have a very organized, structured system you must follow. School starts at 8:30am, and the headmaster who teaches first grade didn't show up until 9:30/10. So her class just sat there! Pastor Bob Coy from Calvary Ft. Lauderdale has said "Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be broken" - that is my new motto! I am just taking it all in. The kids love to sing and they sang several songs for me. Many of the songs they know are old hyms! I taught them "Jesus Loves Me" and "Deep and Wide" and "Father Abraham" - they were big fans of that. They also had me sing "The star spangled banner" (that was painful) and recite the pledge of allegiance. They are teaching me their national anthem and pledge as well.

Today we went to an old slave castle in Cape Coast. We stood in dungeons where they used to keep hundreds to a thousand slaves at a time. The conditions were horrific! It was a heavy day. On the way home I was listening to Amazing grace, my chains are gone, and the song had a whole new meaning. I will never forget what I saw today.

Well, I need to wrap it up. There is so much more I could write. I will try to write more tomorrow or Monday and upload some pictures as well. Please continue to pray for strength, encouragement, and for opportunities to serve and love the beautiful people of Ghana.

Please feel free to ask questions and I will answer them in my next post. Love you all!

Here!

This post will be short, but I just wanted everyone to know that I arrived safely! Its almost 4pm here on Thursday, so I have almost completed my second full day in Ghana. I will give details on my next post. But things are really great! Miss all of you so much and would love to hear from you!