Ghana 2009 - Day 8
Today we got a lie in, getting up at 8:00am rather than our usual 6:00am, which was gratefully received! The morning was spent where the remaining wheelchairs were being stored. There were only a handful of wheelchairs left but our job was to sort through them and fix them up as needed. We also had a waiting list of a few people who were still yet to receive a wheelchair, so we attempted to see if any of the wheelchairs would be appropriate for them. We managed to make use of all but three of the wheelchairs (all of them specialist chairs). I then got summoned by some of the Light Outreach Team to go to the market with them. I realised when I got there that they were planning to make us all an outfit as a gift to remind us of Ghana, and they wanted me to help them pick the material. I attempted to pick out some material for each of the team members, none of it particularly subtle!
Late afternoon we were taken up to the mountains to the wood carvings market. It was our chance to be tourists! It took a while to get there, so before we knew it we had to leave, but there was just enough time to buy a few items, including for me an African drum! Fortunately we had some of the interpreters there to help us barter. It was great to see all the beautiful carvings, even if they did try to convince us that some of it was real ebony, when the black shoe polish could still be seen nearby!
Tonight we were presented with our outfits, which we wore to a meal in our hotel with all the team, including our Light Outreach colleagues and all the interpreters. It was lovely to get together and celebrate the end of a very productive and highly worthwhile trip.
Ghana 2009 - the final distribution day
We headed to Ofoase which was up towards the mountains. It was such a change in scenery - much greener than further south. After setting off at 7:00am on what we were told was to be a 2-3 hour journey, we finally arrived at 12:20pm! There was no time for lunch as we were conscious there were at least 80 people to see before sunset. We set up as quickly as we could and began work. The day was a bit of a blur to say the least! Apparently we saw 84 disabled people that afternoon. And this is proof of just how perfect God’s timing is...despite having our torches ready to carry on working after dark, the sun literally set just as the last person was being seated!
This was another day where clearly God was in control. Many people gave their lives to Christ, including several of the children who spent the majority of the day just standing at the window watching what was going on. We got back to the hotel at 10:30pm. Fortunately, we had phoned the hotel on the way back and they had agreed to leave some food out for us, as we hadn’t eaten since breakfast!
Ghana 2009 - Day 6
Today we had another fairly long journey to our distribution site, leaving again at 7:00am. We were based in a church in Asesewa. I think many of the team will agree with me that this was the most challenging day of the trip so far. I remember the awful feeling of ‘I don’t know if I can do this’ after walking in to an exceptionally hot, stuffy church following a long bumpy coach journey (I was feeling a little travel sick by this time!) and seeing almost 200 people waiting for us. Admittedly several of them were friends and relatives of the patients we were there to see, but it was still completely overwhelming, and many people were beginning to get slightly restless. One of the other team members was desperately trying not to faint in the sheer heat and humidity she found herself faced with as soon as we stepped into the building. I remember just in that moment standing there begging God to give us the strength to get through the day, knowing it was going to be one of the hardest day’s work we had ever faced. I was so grateful when two of the men stopped setting up for a minute to pray with each of us therapists, for energy and wisdom to carry out our roles effectively. It was also encouraging to know that there were people praying for us back in England.
Despite the challenges of the day, God really did give me the strength to get through. Overall, we persevered at a pace and energy I never even knew was humanly possible – we all agreed that it was only made possible in God’s strength. In total, I think we managed to see 104 patients that day. There certainly was a sense of accomplishment when we realised everyone had been seen! We arrived home just before 8:00pm - a very long day.
The day became even more special when I later heard that several people were healed that day following hearing the Gospel and receiving prayer! Many of the people who had turned up in the morning were blind and had come in hope of receiving a white stick. Some of the team had explained that unfortunately we are not able to give out white sticks, but that they could pray with them before they left. Following prayer, several of those individuals either had their sight fully or partially restored. They had come for white sticks and gone home healed – Praise God!
Ghana 2009 - Day 5
We left at 7:00am for a distribution in Winneba, just over two hours away. We were based in an open space outside the council offices. For me it turned out to be my favourite distribution of the whole trip — it had such a lovely warm village atmosphere, and everyone seemed to care so much for one another.
Once again, I saw many people crawling in on their hands and knees, and going away with a restored sense of dignity in their new wheelchairs. There were also some people who arrived in what I can only call ‘makeshift wheelchairs’ - basically plastic garden-style chairs with wheels attached! It was certainly very creative although maybe not so good in terms of comfort, posture and stability!
At the end of the day the President of the village called us together to say thank you and to pray for us. It was a really special moment. Everyone seemed so genuinely grateful and it was such a pleasure to be able to be a part of it. We arrived back at the hotel at approximately 7:00pm, after what had been a very rewarding and enjoyable day.
Ghana 2009 - Day 4
Today the team went in pairs to several different churches. This enabled the word to be spread more widely about the work of ‘Wheels for the World’. Between the whole group, we experienced a whole range of churches across many different denominations. Some were livelier than others although I think all of them shared the practice of dancing while taking up the offering! I think our church was the only church that stuck to just one offering — the others all took up two or three!
In some churches, there were other unfamiliar practices, such as men and women having to sit on separate sides of the church, regardless of whether or not they were married - I think this came as a particular shock to Caroline, who was separated from both her partner and her male interpreter! At the church Mark and I went to, the service was based around the induction of the new vicar, and appeared to overrun by an hour and a half compared to their usual length of service! Still, it was a great experience and fantastic to be able to share in worship with the local Christians...even if I couldn't tell whether the vicar’s address was in English or not (apparently it was in English but with a very strong Ghanaian accent!!).
This afternoon some of the team stayed behind at the hotel to regain their strength, whilst others took the opportunity to explore a coastal town about an hour away. One team member even managed somehow to get invited in to a baby naming ceremony!
This evening, we went out to work alongside the Light Outreach team. They have set up the equivalent of a Sunday School on a Sunday evening for the street children. It was great to see the work Ellen and the team are doing there. In total there were 108 children and young people who turned out. The younger ones met in the community centre and the older ones had chairs set up outside. Between us we taught them a few songs and they attempted to teach some to us. At the end we managed to hype them all up by setting off some rocket balloons, which they loved! Before they went home, the young people were given a slice of bread and a small water bottle about a quarter full of tea. It was humbling to see how grateful the young people were for this and to see how several of them chose not to drink it there and then, instead choosing to take it home and share it with the rest of their family.
At the end I was able to talk with several of the children, who were fascinated with my fair skin and long hair — they wouldn’t stop wrapping my hair around their fingers! When I came to leave, particularly as the rain began to fall, it suddenly hit me that they were going back to sleep on the streets, some of them as young as four or five. Some of them were asking “Can I come back to England with you?” - I felt completely helpless. At the same time though, it put a smile on my face seeing their genuine faith in God. When teaching them ‘Our God is a great big God’, we sung how God holds them in his hands—we realised how much that was true! Still, it didn’t stop a few of us shedding some tears when we got back to the hotel...
Ghana 2009 - Day 3
Today we headed to Teshie for another distribution. We were due to be based outdoors but fortunately we were offered some shelter so we didn’t all end up with heat stroke! It was another busy day, seeing a variety of people in need of wheelchairs or walking aids. The village chiefs turned up and were there most of the day to keep an eye on things. We also seemed to acquire an audience of children, which made things even more interesting!
Mid-afternoon I was asked to go on a home visit with one of the technicians, Phil, to see a man in a village nearby who was in need of a wheelchair. By this time in the day, the only adult wheelchair we had left was missing footplates and we were unsure whether it would even be the right size for him. We took as many accessories and tools as we had with us and headed out with an interpreter to see him. The only information we had was that he was thought to be paralysed from the waist down, and we weren’t even sure if this information was accurate!
We had a fair walk to the man’s house, through tiny streets and across many open sewers. We were struck by seeing the extreme poverty the man was living in. The man’s ’house’ was a small brick-built hut, measuring no more than three by three metres. He seemed to have no furniture or possessions other than a blanket and one or two items of clothes — it was basically just a small empty room. There was no electricity or running water, and it was very stuffy and dark inside. We got him outside so we were able to assess his needs in the daylight. Although we could not be certain, from his descriptions and presentation it appeared that he may have contracted polio as a child, which had resulted in his inability to walk. He had some strength in his legs, but this was very minimal, and nowhere near enough to stand.
Despite the lack of footplates available to us, we managed to make some with the help of an extended back rest, lots of tape and cable ties. We tried bolting it on but one drill wasn’t strong enough to get through the metal and the battery on the other drill ran out! Still, we managed to get the footrests secured adequately, and 38 year old Laryea seemed very happy with his new wheelchair. It had been a challenge trying to get things right, in sweltering heat with no shade, but it was well worth it to see the smile on his face. I think for me, it definitely has to be one of the highlights of my overall trip.
Following this, we headed back to the distribution site to meet the others who were just finishing up. We then all clambered into the minibus and headed back to the hotel, with a short 20 minute stop at the beach. It was liberating to watch the beautiful sunset over the beach after what has been a very busy, challenging and yet deeply humbling day.
Ghana 2009 - Day 2
Today, we carried out our first wheelchair distribution locally in Tema. We arrived at our destination around 9:00am, where there were already several people waiting for us and a sense of anticipation in the air. We set up our base in the grounds of a local Anglican church; our workstations ended up being quite squashed together as there was limited shade available and we were all feeling the heat! The therapists who were new to the team, including myself, shadowed a more experienced team member for the first assessment, in order to get an idea of the process. After this, we quickly got to work carrying out our own assessments, with the much appreciated help of our interpreters. The 'techies' also quickly got to grips with things. In fact, we were all working extremely well together as a team, considering we were almost strangers when we met at Heathrow airport only two days before!
It was interesting to get our first glimpse of the impact of disability in a third-world country. Many of the 42 patients we saw during the day were forced to crawl about on their hands and knees, often only with flip flops to protect their hands. They were lacking the basic dignity and independence we so often take for granted. Several of them had developed sores from so much time spent crawling over all the rough terrain. Many of them had also developed quite severe contractures, something you would seldom experience to the same degree in England, as preventative measures would have been put in place much earlier down the line. It was amazing that through the small gesture of giving people a free wheelchair, it was able to make such a big difference in their lives.
Following receiving their wheelchair or other mobility aid, each individual was given the opportunity to hear the Gospel and be prayed with. I was surprised and pleased to see how keen people were to accept this opportunity – not a single one of the people I saw opted not to receive prayer. They seem to count it such a blessing! One woman sat for ages after receiving her free Bible, just reading it, unable to put it down. It was great to see her for the first time in her life having the opportunity to fully immerse herself in God’s word. It made me think how we are so blessed in England to be able to afford our own copy of the Bible and yet, so often we take it for granted and it just spends far too much time sat on the shelf.
Following the wheelchair distribution we grabbed a late lunch, before visiting the Shekinah Children's Home in Tema, which is home to 28 children. We were welcomed with smiles and laughter! It was great to meet the children and see all the love and support the staff at the home provide. All the children wanted to show us around and point out which bunk bed was theirs - they seemed so excited to have visitors. The children also loved having their photographs taken and viewing the photos back – in fact, you could say it made them a little hyperactive! However, despite the smiles on most of the children’s faces, I couldn’t get over the sadness on the face of one of the young girls, who just sat quietly on Glenda’s lap for the whole of our time there. I’m not sure she ever spoke – you couldn’t help but wonder what was going through her mind. Another thing that struck me was how hot and stuffy it was in all the rooms, particularly the middle room which had no windows – it was like a sauna. Apparently they’ve been saving up for a fan in the middle room, and some money donated was able to help them towards this.
Ghana 2009 by Lucy Wood
After arriving late last night, today was spent mainly sorting through all the wheelchairs and mobility aids. They were already colour-coded into sizes. However, we needed to divide them up into the different distribution days. Three of the therapists spent some time looking through all the application forms already received (at least 150 of them!). From this, we were able (in theory!) to gauge approximately which size wheelchairs we were likely to need more of each day, and roughly how many crutches/walking frames we should take to each distribution. It wasn’t that easy in practice though, particularly as many of the application forms provided little information other than “walking disability”! While we were doing the sorting, the other team members worked hard fixing any wheelchairs that had been damaged during shipping, and re-attaching parts that had gone astray such as footrests etc.
Once we had checked all the wheelchairs and decided which we were taking to each distribution, these were labelled up and arranged in storage in the correct order. In total, there were just under 200 wheelchairs, 100 pairs of crutches and several walking frames. It felt a particularly long and exhausting day, with all of us taking a while to adjust to the heat and humidity. However, it was very satisfying when all the equipment was finally sorted ready for the distributions ahead.
"User-friendly!"
We received the following positive feedback from our training session on including disabled children at Adeyfield Free Church:
"Saturday's Disability Course was brilliant... It was very professionally presented without being intimidating, you might say 'user-friendly'!"
"It was ALL totally of interest and relevance"
"The only improvement would be to maintain the current high standard – thank you SO much!"
"Important ‘first’ session and so much more to look forward to!"
Ghana 2009
On October 28th a Wheels for the World team of 11 set off for Ghana, to work with the Light Outreach, distributing wheelchairs and other mobility aids along with Bibles. The team also plan to help in feeding and ministering to homeless people during the evenings.