Ghana Update #6

HEADLINE: Lots of power outages and Internet unavailability.

HEADLINE: I leave Wednesday (tomorrow) afternoon for the north.

PS: no photo this time; I'll try to make up for it next time



Saturday digression … You should have heard all the exclamations when we arrived bearing not only groceries and kitchen supplies, but also three water tanks. Every staff member approached me and said “Praise God, praise Grandma Judy, and praise the friends who have provided the money to make these purchases”. They all know that you folks at home are praying for us and funding these projects.

Sunday 6th

The various children who needed medical care on Saturday are looking much better today. Even master ‘G’ is tolerating the eye drops with only a little protesting. Little miss ‘G’ did not develop a fever today and is interacting some with the other children. She sure does cling to a ball when they are handed out. One of the two older children who were thought to have malaria is acting much better; the other one is still droopy.

I am eating well. The BH food this time has more protein and vegetables and is very tasty. There are some dishes that I do not eat, so this year I am doing some of my own cooking in the microwave in my room … mostly rice, cabbage, and eggs mixed together in one micro pot (lunch/dinner) and oatmeal for some of the breakfasts. I fix mango and yogurt for snacks. The added protein and avoidance of salt in what I cook is hoped to help lessen the health issues of last year. As is our custom on Sunday, Romana and her children and I eat restaurant fare after church. It is good to look forward to a western style lunch once a week.

Monday 7th
Everyone had their fill of water. The new tanks are filled as well as the old containers and all the buckets and basins. There was cooperation all around. Hurrah!!


Wednesday 9th

Medical problems here among the children. Three went in for checkups and one of them was admitted to the ‘ward’ (which means she was admitted to the hospital). She is one sick girl. She was put on fluids and antibiotic via IV, otherwise all care must come from the staff member that must stay 24/7 with her. The hospital does not even supply a thermometer; the child’s ‘family’ is expected to bring one or buy one. Everything must be supplied by BH … water, food, bedding, paper supplies … everything but the IV with meds.



Runny noses continue and two of the 4-6 year olds continue to show symptoms of malaria. Their symptoms run like a roller coaster … feeling fine, then feeling miserable. There is infant pain/fever meds, but no child version of same, so I am giving maximum dose of the infant type when one comes to my attention. Their usual treatment for fever is bathing and fluids, but when that doesn’t do the trick I cannot just sit on my hands and do nothing. So far, as long as I enter the med into the child’s chart, Romana has not forbidden me to be involved. Next year, I will bring both infant and child fever meds.

Thursday 10th

Crash, bang, and gulley washing!! A fantastic storm hit right after lunch and lasted almost 3 hours. It was pretty spectacular, like the ones I remember when traveling through the Midwest. The children where kept inside the rest of the day, except those doing the dishwashing which is done outside. The rain here is not cold so getting wet is not really a worry. When rain starts all adults, including me, run to the clothes lines and frantically gather anything that is even partly dry. The little ones all jump up and down and think it is just a splendid show.


At 5 o’clock the little ones were dressed in their night clothes. I asked how they bathed the children … I knew the tubs were still full of rain water from roof runoff. The answer: Oh, it is too cold to bath them, so we just changed their clothes. Would you like to guess the temperature here after a rain storm? I have a small thermometer with me and it registered a very low 80 degrees. Cool indeed.


There has been no electricity during the day yesterday and today. The power went on this evening about ½ hour after the sun went down. I distributed the solar flashlights various folks funded. Everyone asked me to say a big thank you to all who helped provide the lights. They are most appreciated, particularly since they do not have to buy batteries.

My trip north has been postponed once and will, hopefully, happen this coming

Tuesday (15th). I have lots to do while up there …

Wednesday 16th – leave Accra via bus with a friend of a friend of Romana’s

Thursday 17th – arrive Bolgatanga (it is a very long trip, but costs only about $40 round trip); shop local ‘market’ for bag of millet for Lydia’s grandmother then ….

Thursday 17th – spend the day in the VEA village with Granddaughter Lydia’s grandmother, Pastor John, and other folks who will be receiving the Proclaimer (solar powered audio New Testaments); this visit starts with a visit to the village chief

Friday 18th – visit Juliana’s (baby house mother) village just south of Bolgatanga (church [Proclaimer group], school, her son’s home)

-- shop at the craft market and bookstore, if not done on Wednesday

Saturday 19th – go with Nurse Bertilda to the village where she runs the Presbyterian Clinic. There we will visit the three boys we are collectively sponsoring. Also we will visit Victor the teen Rachel’s family is sponsoring. I may not be able to visit Lamisi, the deaf teen I am sponsoring, as her school is way out in the boonies.

Sunday 20th – head south to Kumasi; stop there for the night to visit with Bright’s family (Bright is a Ghanaian who is a member of my church in Sequim, WA)

Monday 21st – complete the journey south to Accra


Friday 11th

Five days after the last water flowing in the pipes, those who take care of the children still had some water left. Water flowed again today and all containers were filled. The only hiccough was the kitchen. They must still rely on water from the huge ‘estate’ tank. Romana is still trying to work out a schedule for satisfying the kitchen needs.

In the meantime, the water filter systems were allowed to run dry because there was no water in the kitchen tap from which the filters could be filled. The cook and I did a toe to toe grumble session and came away with a solution that we think will work. Tomorrow I will purchase a 5-bucket size container to be placed in or near the kitchen that will be filled whenever the water is flowing in the pipes and will be used only for the filters. Mercy (cook) has promised this will happen.

Our little seven year old came home from hospital today able to walk on her own, but still looking pretty miserable. She will go back to hospital on Monday for more tests. In the meantime, she will sleep in Romana’s room and will be kept away from the other children. There is no provision for isolation of a sick child in the present property. The new Beacon House, if/when it is built, will have an isolation room.

Little miss ‘G’ giggles when she sees me now … most of the time. The exceptions are when she has to do something she doesn’t like to do and when strangers are about. Such a refreshing change. She will be a blessing to the family fortunate enough to adopt her.

Saturday 12

Vero, Faustina, and Isaac all ran my legs off at the Medina market today. We accomplished a lot, but oh my goodness the miles we walked. At one point Isaac and I were trying to find a toilet seat to replace the flaky, grungy one in the baby house bathroom. He finally asked directions; he said it was just down the street. We walked easily a mile before finally scoring. I suggested we reverse the mile via taxi. Isaac said we could take the short cut. My response: ‘But isn’t the short cut just as far as the way we came?’ ‘Oh no, it is not just as far.’ Well he was right … it was not just as far. It was much farther … or so it seemed.

Purchases …

Fish 90 $61.64

Eggs 42 28.77

Onions 24 16.44

Cabbage 12 8.22

Fruit 21 14.38

Total food 189 $129.45



Hose & fittings 40 (for running water to tanks and general use)

5 pencil cases 18 (for sponsored children)

Biscuits 7.50 (for snacks for the children)

Water container 15 (storing water for the 5 filters in the kitchen)

3 buckets 12 (continued solutions to water problems that are improving)

Toilet seat 10 (the previous one was despicable)

Clothes pins 20 (unpinned clothes just blow off the lines and get dirty)

Dash (tip) 2 (the poor women who carry the heavy loads and the old men who help load the taxis sometimes get a dash or tip from me)

Pens, erasers, rulers 2.80 (for sponsored kids)

Total other 127.30 $87.19



Sunday 13th

During testimony time at church today, one man said something that reminded me of event of yesterday at the market …

‘You, Lord, turn mourning into dancing

You, Lord, turn sorrow into joy’

Yesterday, as we were walking though the area of the market that is covered with charcoal dust, I noticed folks dancing to loud music and having a grand time … shoppers and venders alike. Vero came back to me and explained that a vender in that area had just died and the people were celebrating her life.

I think next Medina market (in two weeks), I will do some video clips with the camera beside my right eye so you can see what I see and hear what I hear while walking through the market.

The electricity was off from soon after we arrived home this afternoon until about a half hour ago and the Internet is still not available. The sending of this will have to wait until tomorrow to send.


Bernard thought he could get me a universal gizmo that would allow me to be on the Internet without a hookup or nearby router. If that comes through, I will be in touch while in the north, otherwise it will be one or two times at an Internet café.


Monday 14th

I was greeted this morning with many ‘Happy Love Day’.

Another day without Internet and some power outages.

I made a side trip into the countryside and was in mango territory. I bought 30 Ghc worth which is enough to do 3 fruit snacks for every child.



Tuesday 15th

There is never enough time on Saturday to find all of the things on my shopping list, so Dinah and I went to Medina market via TroTro. Oh how I dislike this conveyance, but she is trying to make me more frugal. Here is the purchase list:

40 small bowls 10 (so bowls can be properly washed between uses)

10 plates 19 (never enough)

12 kitchen towels 14 (the current ones were rags)

5 clothespin bags w/pins 30 (so clothes don’t fall off into the dirt)

Large metal bowl 35 (the baby bathtub that Rachel and I purchased has served them well, but will not last until I return next year)

Powdered milk 22.50 (so the babies/toddlers can have an afternoon snack of milk now and then)

6 wooden stools 24 (2 for baby side, 2 for boy/girl side, 2 for kitchen)

Total 154.50 $105.82



I am giving Vero the usual food money so that she can make the purchases on Saturday …

Eggs 42

Onion 24

Cabbage 12

Fruit 20



Peace and Joy to all,

Grandma Judy Griffin