Emmanuel Update.

Sweet Emmanuel, smiling after a day full of school and playing outdoors.

Participants in the Emmanuel Project, created by volunteer Josh Farrar, were able to raise enough money to sponsor Touch A Life child, Emmanuel Degbe, for an entire year. They achieved this goal in just a few short weeks, collaborating to raise $1,800 to pay for Emmanuel's food, shelter, clothing, education and medical needs for the next year. We are so grateful to these people for uniting to sponsor this sweet boy.

While on a recent trip to Ghana, consultant Emily George was able to get an update on how Emmanuel is doing. She wrote the following in an e-mail:

• Emmanuel continues to grow in leaps and bounds, but still does not grow weary of being held, cuddled and carried around like the adorable five-year-old that he is. He is reading and writing English very well. Emmanuel loves to play football (soccer) with his friends when he gets home from school. He most recently stated that he wants to be a soldier when he grows up.

To those of you who participated in the Emmanuel Project, you can take ownership in the development of this incredible boy's life. Because of your financial contribution, Emmanuel will undoubtedly become a leader within his community. 

Emmanuel acting out his dream of becoming a soldier.

Emmanuel and Emily.

Children Helping Children.

One of our partner organizations is Kids Caring 4 Kids, a non-profit organization devoted to raising awareness of the fact that despite their youth, children are some of the most important catalysts in paving the way for change. The members of the organization encourage children, regardless of age, to get involved in causes that matter to them, reminding them that the littlest act of service can sometimes go the longest way. 

It seems that the mission of Kids Caring 4 Kids is catching on. Recently, Touch A Life consultant Emily George was able to educate a class of students on the injustices occurring on Lake Volta. Via Skype, an online communication server, she taught a group of third-graders in Alberta, Canada, about the children who were working as slaves on the lake. Inspired, they decided to hold a popcorn sale to raise money for hygienic products, especially toothbrushes and toothpaste. They managed to raise $60.00, which allowed them to purchase 57 toothbrushes and 62 tubes of toothpaste. 

The point isn't really how much the children raised. Instead, the beauty is in seeing these young hearts come alive with the desire to make a difference in the world. It has been ingrained within them that even the smallest of donations can change lives. The world is theirs for the taking, and we are so proud to be affiliated with children with such generous hearts and giving spirits.

Tema Beach Day.

Emily and the children from the Tema program at the beach.

Emily George, who has spent the past month in Ghana, enlisted the support of her family to sponsor a beach day for the children of the Tema program. None of the children had ever spent time at the beach, and they were ecstatic that they got to participate in such a fun excursion. They spent the day soaking up the sun, playing in the sand and enjoying time with one another. Here's a huge thank you to the George family for sponsoring this amazing day for the kids.

Kete-Krachi Update.

The beautiful six-year-old girl rescued off of Lake Volta this past weekend.

As previously mentioned, Emily George is traveling to the Touch A Life programs in Ghana, collecting statistics and writing reports on human trafficking. Most recently, she made the trek up to Lake Volta and to the Village of Life (located in Kete-Krachi) and was able to part of the rescue of a beautiful six-year-old girl.

In Emily's words, here is the account of the rescue and transformation:

• Yesterday, we rescued our first trafficked girl. She cannot be more than six years old and is an orphan. At first, she was very frightened and was crying. Johnbull (the Director of the City of Refuge) was holding her and she was lying listless on his shoulder. She did not understand English, so I stood there touching her arms and tracing her face and kissing her hands and whispering into her ear and I witnessed the miracle of love. She slowly came ALIVE. Her eyes started shining. She started smiling. When I would stop touching her, she would hold out her hand and grab me. If I walked away, she would look at me from afar and beckon me to come back to her. She then started kissing my hands and laughing and playing. Johnbull carried her to the boat and I sat with her as she consumed almost a liter of water in just a few minutes. We drove away as the sun was setting, and by the time we arrived back at the shelter, she was dancing and laughing and playing. It was a MIRACLE...and just like that, another child was free.

Emily also wrote about lead rescue volunteer, George Achibra, and about the graceful influence and gentle power he exerts in Ghana:

• During these visits [to the island communities], George would have all the community leaders and assemblymen sit in a circle and he would begin his teaching. He would talk to them about trafficking and slavery. He explained the law to them. He explained the work that he is doing--that the children he has rescued are now receiving an education and vocational training. He explained the way trafficking destroys the future of Ghana. He invited them to participate in his alternative livelihood and microlending programs. He honored several of the fishermen who are no longer using children and still doing very well in their business. George is a health and development dream. And my hero.

Thank you for checking in on our updates on Emily's trip.

Tema Update.

Emily and the kids in the Tema Program.

Emily George, a member of Touch A Life's volunteer staff, is spending a month in Ghana, conducting research on human trafficking and collecting statistics regarding the problem on Lake Volta.

She has spent the first part of her trip at the City of Refuge in Tema. She's gotten the opportunity to connect with the children, and she even raised enough money for them to take what was, for most, their first-ever field trip to the beach. Here's an excerpt from Emily's e-mail updates, which detail her activity in Ghana:

• The kids continue to amaze me daily. It's beautiful to see how capable they are of giving and receiving love after everything that they have been through on the lake. It's a miracle. Our evenings are filled with singing and dancing and chasing and teasing. I even had the privilege of judging a song and dance contest the other night. It was fantastic!

Keep checking the blog for more posts about Emily's trip!

Ghana Trip.

On March 11, seven women will depart to Ghana to chart the progress Touch A Life is making in Africa. Pam Cope, Tara Seidman, Leah Cypert, Sheryl Gaskie, Dana Rector, Emily George and myself will fly out of New York into Ghana. We will have the opportunity to first stop at the Village of Hope Orphanage to check on the children in school there. From there, we will move up to the Lake Volta region. We will be able to observe the new buildings at the Village of Life, as well as connect with George Achibra, the director there. We will then move on to Tema to note the progress being made at the Touch A Life program in that city. 

I'm so excited to explore parts of Ghana that I've never seen. Out of our group, Pam is the only one who has been to all three locations so it's clear to me that so much learning is going to be accomplished while in Africa. My hope is that we can return to the States with a greater understanding of the needs of the children our organization serves.

Rachel