There is more of a story behind Mama Hope’s most recent Stop the Pity video, “African men. Hollywood stereotypes”, then the public knows. It is true that the men featured in the film came to us after seeing “Alex Presents Commando” and wanted to make their own video poking fun at Hollywood stereotypes of African men. But what the public does not know is that one of the men in the film, Benard, inspired the creation of Mama Hope.

Here is a bit more of that story…

Late one night in September of 2002, my mother was watching TV and was struck by a commercial. It was one of those commercials where they showed  children who are orphans and asked for your sponsorship. Most people change the channel but my mother was moved to help and immediately signed up to sponsor an orphan.  A few weeks later, she received a letter with a picture of Benard, a 12 year old boy from Kakemega, Kenya. He was wearing a blue school uniform and an awkward smile. She took that picture out and proudly put it in a silver frame on her mantle right next to a matching silver frame with a picture of me.  She now had two children.

Immediately, they started writing letters back and forth and soon created a wonderful friendship.  My mother learned about his love of Manchester United, the fact that he wanted to be a pilot and the names of his best friends in school.  He learned that my mother dreamed of being a writer, she loved to Salsa dance and that he had an American sister named Nyla. They would sign letters “love, your son Benard/love, your mother Stephanie”. When I would call my her she would give me the update about Benard-” …he is struggling in Swahili but acing Biology. ”  As the years passed, their relationship deepened and even though he lived across the world he became a part of our small family.

When my mom was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2005 the dream that kept her fighting was that once she beat cancer we would go to Kenya to meet Benard. Late during those sleepless nights, we would hold hands and we would imagine this trip to meet my brother. On January 2nd, 2006 my mother passed away and after weeks of grieving I boarded a plane to Kenya to fulfill her dream and meet Benard. I felt an overwhelming urgency to introduce myself and tell him in person that he was greatly loved by my mother and that I was his sister and now we would care for each other.

When I saw Bernard for the first time he was a quiet, shy, 16 year old boy who could not look me in the eyes. In his hand he held a copy of my favorite picture of my beautiful mother. The same one I kept in a frame on my bookcase because in it she is laughing and whenever I saw it made me smile. In this moment however it made me sob and this made him cry as well. Benard had already lost his biological mother and father and now we shared in the loss of our mother.

Then it dawned on me,  I had never had a little brother before. I was an only child raised by a single mother and the day my mother passed I had never felt so alone. I felt like my whole family had been taken from me. Meeting Benard brought me hope because I was not alone in my loss and we had each other to get us through the sadness. That night I promised him, as my mother had promised me, that if he worked hard in high school I would do everything I could to help him go to college. We ended the night, stargazing and talking about the mysterious ways of the world.  We knew that wherever my mother was she was smiling down proudly on her children.

Since then, every time I visit Kenya, I get to see Benard. I have watched him grow, finish High School and make the decision to become a Clinical officer. We no longer send hand written letters to each other but instead send email and Facebook messages. He tags me in the pictures that he wants me to see or posts announcing he has aced his exams or won his rugby match.  He is overcoming all the challenges the world put against him and continuously inspiring me!

People might take one look at a picture of us together and call this post a “white savior” story but the truth is Benard saved me.  Meeting him inspired me to create a meaningful organization that I am completely passionate about.  He also saved me by becoming my family at a time I felt so alone and forsaken. Watching how hard he has worked to become the man he is today inspires me and shows me the true potential and progress that is possible.  It shows me that when people care enough to connect, give and love each other despite everything telling them not to, they can truly change the world.   This is what I learned from my mother.  This is what Benard teaches me.  And I hope it is what you take away from this post.

I often look at that first picture my mother got in the mail of Benard and I think of her putting it in the silver frame. I think about how life is painful and unpredictable but connects us in the weirdest ways if we rise to the opportunity.

Now on my bookcase, next to the beautiful picture of my mother laughing, I have a new picture.  It is of me and Benard. In it he is a man and we are surrounded by his best friends from school and every time I see it, it makes me smile.

Click here to get involved with Mama Hope and donate to our newest campaign: Build the future: $50k in 50 days.

Author Brianna Russell

Graduate Student at USF in International Studies

Foreign Aid Horror Stories: What can be learned from them?

As an humanitarian and international studies student; I, like most people, look for ways to help those in need and hope that my efforts make a positive impact. Recently I came across this article on foreign aid disasters. The article talks about seven of the worst (although there are more) foreign aid schemes that had the opposite of intended effects leaving the country worse off than it was before. The schemes that stood out the most included the “One Million t-shirts for Africa” project headed by Jason Sadler. This project proved ineffective because giving away free stuff is first of all, unsustainable, and secondly assumes that the recipients want these t-shirts. In reality, dumping free or unwanted goods into less developed countries damages their local market economy creating a revenue decrease for local manufacturers and business owners. The same result happened with TOMS shoes as noted in the article. By shipping free goods to these peripheral countries it creates a rift in their markets and does nothing to solidify their prosperity in the long run. Where is the transfer of knowledge? Or the transfer of economic growth in this situation? Why don’t they manufacture the shoes in-country? I’m sure most of these organizations mean well but there are more effective ways to help people out of poverty. The first way is by asking them what they need, not assuming bags of t-shirts, shoes, or wheat is going to solve their problems.
http://http://matadornetwork.com/change/7-worst-international-aid-ideas/

Well-known author and former World Bank Research Economist, William Easterly, identifies a paradox of how imposed free market reforms do not work in developing countries. It serves to endorse my statement that external, top-down solutions are not the best ways to go for international development. He states that, “free markets work, but internationally imposed free-market reforms often don’t. The reason being top down solutions overlook the bottom-up perspective and how western markets don’t function well in low-income African societies. Markets everywhere emerge in an unplanned, free, adaptive way. I think even Adam Smith would agree with this free hand of market evolution. Therefore, the free market emerges from the bottom-up through complex institutions and social norms that aren’t so easily identifiable from an outsider or through a western lens.” (White Man’s Burden by William Easterly: 60-61).

After reading this article on the 7 worst international aid ideas, I was struck by the misguided altruism and paternalism that seems to run rampant in international development. FYI- International Development, broadly stated, functions to promote better, i.e. more equitable, standards of living economically and socially for every man, woman and child. Each one of those solutions held against this definition is a marked failure. In contrast, Mama Hope and other local, on-the-ground organizations that care more about making-a-difference than marketing-a-difference, are making significant progress delivering on the promise of International Development.

Mama Hope does not assume what a community needs, nor do they send market destructive goods that destabilize the economy. Instead, Mama Hope works with preexisting local institutions to design projects that the people want and will be able to manage and operate without international dependency. By working with 100 percent local labor and local community leadership, the people these projects aim to assist are able to provide better standards of living for themselves. In this way, the solutions last longer and continue to grow and adapt as the community dynamics change. Sustainability and self-sufficient projects are at the core of Mama Hope’s philosophy; they identify with the people and their ability to create their own solutions. Larger organizations, including the World Bank, lose that sense of locality when creating projects they believe solve the world’s problems with blanket solutions or . . . t-shirt and shoe solutions . ..Mama Hope is about sharing resources, cross cultural exchange, and working to assist in the building up of local African communities.

Learn more about the story of Mama Hope:

Mama Hope works in close partnership with local African organizations to connect them with the resources required to transform their own communities. So far, we have achieved our mission by funding the completion of schools, health clinics, children’s centers, clean water systems and food security projects impacting more than 76,000 people.

Hi everyone,

I recently wrote a new blog post with some updates about what’s going on in Bawjiase, including fundraising updates for new projects!

www.laurenghana.blogspot.com

For those of you who want a quick update, we have recently launched the
new United Hearts Website!  A great aspect of the new website is a blog, where I will be posting most of my updates
from now on.  Please check it out, share it with your friends and family, and give us your feedback!  www.unitedheartsghana.org

And, current fundraising updates: We have $880 and 3 days left to grant my birthday wish for the United Hearts Fish Pond!  I am fundraising $2,400 for my 24th birthday on March 1st, which will pay for about half of this sustainable project.  For more info, please take a look at my birthday wish, and consider donating to help enable a sustainable community for the best kids I know

http://wishes.causes.com/wishes/445295?bws=fb_stream_wish

Thank you to everyone who has donated so far, and has spread the word about this new project and our new website!  I am constantly amazed at the tremendous generosity of all of my friends and family, you are making such a difference at United Hearts!

Lauren

Greetings, my name is Lauren Wright and I have just spent 9 months in Bawjiase, Ghana in partnership with Mama Hope for the past year in order to build the new United Hearts Children Center.  Thanks to the amazing support of friends and family, I was able to raise over $35,000 for the new United Hearts orphanage, in which our children and staff moved into their new home on December!  This has been such an amazing journey; and it’s thanks to all of the amazing people who support United Hearts that this home is now a reality!

Now I am embarking on a new project, one that will continue to support the amazing children and staff at United Hearts.  I am fundraising to create a Sustainable Fish Pond, which is a project that will not only support the dietary needs of our children, but will also bring our center a viable source of sustainable income and support the local economy.  I will be returning to Bawjiase for 9 weeks this summer, and hope to complete this project while I’m there.  If you would like to read this project proposal, or read more details about the fish pond, shoot me a message!

While the total project will cost around $4,000, I am hoping to raising $1,000 for my birthday on March 1st.  I believe that through supporting United Hearts in becoming self sufficient, we will create a future community of adults that are dedicated to the future development of the Bawjiase community.  And it’s people like YOU who can make this a reality.

For more info about United Hearts, check out our new website: www.unitedheartsghana.org.  Thank you for continuing to support these children, you are unlocking the potential of an amazing community!

To give to or share Lauren Wright’s Birthday Wish, follow the link below:
http://wishes.causes.com/wishes/445295?bws=email_to_friends&m=1ac83f93

The Mama Hope team is now in Kisumu, Kenya. Yesterday we went out to visit the 87 women who work in the Mama Hope garden. I think we surprised them by showing up, because upon arrival they saw us from across the field and thought we were just a bunch of tourists… as we came closer they recognized us and the greetings of smiles and handshakes began. An African handshake is very different from how we greet in the U.S, and the handshake varies depending on the tribe you are visiting. It reminds me of when I was little and had a secret handshake with all my friends in order to enter our secret clubhouse. The main tribe in Kisumu is Luo and their handshake consists of 2 hand twists and 3 different had positions. It takes a couple times to get it down.

The women shucking away

When we got to the garden, half of the 3 acre field of corn had been chopped down and was in piles on the ground. We quickly learned that today was harvesting day. They do not have big machines to harvest crops as we do in the U.S. so everything is done by hand. The men were in the back of the field chopping down the corn stocks with machetes and stacking the stocks into 6ft tall piles. The women were gathered around the piles removing the corn cobs from the stock. The women were certainly excited that they were going to have two more helpers… because in Africa, when you are accepted as part of the group, there was no sitting on the sidelines and watching. They quickly put us to work shucking the corn. Now this in theory sounds easy… you take the corn stock, find the corn, break it off and then you’re done right?… Wrong. Here is how it’s really done. You grab for a stalk on the very top of the pile so it’s not buried and easier to remove. The stalk is bigger than you in height so it is pretty awkward to pull it out of the pile and stand it up without hitting the person next to you. I learned this lesson fast when I hit Pauline, one of the Mama’s next to me, in the head with my stalk. Thankfully she did not have a baby on her back. Then you find the corn cob which is covered in husk. To un-husk the corn you take a nail and cut the top of the husk, this is because the husk is a lot thicker than it looks and it would take forever to split it with just your fingernails. Once you cut a hole in the top of the husk, you begin to peel back the layers like an onion and tear them off one by one. Once you have done this comes the hardest part, getting the corn off the stock. The Mama’s made this look easy, but for me I would twist and pull as hard as I could and eventually it would come off. The Mama’s all got a kick out of this. They were probably thinking to themselves “Little American… why are you so weak?” Apparently doing office work at home in front of a computer has not prepared my arm strength for corn husking. After that day I questioned the renewal of my gym membership, thinking to myself “some good my working out has done.”

The men and their machete's

Corn husking in 90+ degree weather with no shade is not easy. I have to give it to the women for being the hardest workers I have ever seen. They started husking at 7am and by the time we arrived at 11am they were half way done with the field. By 2:00pm the entire 3 acre field (the size of 2 and 1/2 football fields) was harvested and being loaded into a truck to take to the mill. Once at the mill they pick off all the individual kernels of corn with their hands and then put the loose kernels into a machine that mills it into a finely ground flour which they call maize flour. The women use the maize flour to make numerous Kenyan dishes to feed their families and then sell the surplus at market to generate income. There is actually a shortage of maize in Kenya right now, so cost’s are a lot higher then normal which makes it an even more profitable crop. Corn is a staple of a Kenyans diet. The profit made from the garden allows the 87 women who work in the garden to support an average of 6 children, which includes paying school fees so they are able to get an education, an opportunity these women didn’t have when they were young. It is very interesting to hang out with the families because most all the women are uneducated and do not speak English but their children are fluent. So we often ask the children to be our translators. It is wonderful to see this new generation of youth living up to their potential.

The meal we ate for lunch with the women. The brown dish is Ugali which is made from the corn flour and eaten with almost every meal.

our witches brew...

As we stood around the boiling stew of purple dye and old table cloths, I laughed to myself and thought, “Wow, this is the most random 4th of July I’ve ever had.”

It all started last Friday when we visited the New Jordans Womens Bank in Isiolo, Kenya. All of them are big mamas with huge smiles and loud laughs. They see us and clap their hands shouting “Karibu tena!” (Welcome back!), kiss us and hug us like we are their children returning home. We are at the Mama Joanina’s house, the biggest mama of the group and my favorite. I remember the first time I met her I thought “Well here is the embodiment of Mama Hope.” She spends her time visiting and comforting the sick and eveything she says is heartfelt or flat out hilarious. We have come to Joanina’s to attend New Jordan’s weekly bank meeting. In 2007 when we first trained these 15 women in community banking, I told them that Mama Hope was founded in honor of my mother who passed away and they all hugged me and said “Well WE are your mothers now!” And believe me they take this role very seriously. Before we are even seated all of them start in with the questions. “Ny-eela, how is the USA? How is your family? Why are you so skinny? Do they not feed you in your home? Why are you not married yet?…etc…”

Meet the New Jordan's Women's Bank

After the initial grilling ends. Everyone gets quiet as Madame President (Geraldine) calls the meeting to order. They each take turns paying their dues to the bank. Each women has her own business due to loans from their New Jordan’s bank. Five years ago they started the bank with 330 Ksh ($5). And over the last year they have saved over 104,000 Ksh ($1,195). They also have used 39,000 KSh ($500) to bring food to people in the communitiy with HIV/AIDS, pay school fees for children who cannot afford it and pay for the transport of sick people to the hospital.

Then Madame President announces proudly, “We have learned to Tie and Dye!” Everyone else nodds with excitement. She tells us that a man came and taught the bank how to tie dye old clothes and make them new again. She also says that, “No one else is doing this and these tie and dye clothes are now in high demand in Isiolo! We want to come together and have a Tie and Dye shop where we could sell our clothing!”  Bryce suggests they should name it “Haight Street” Again everyone nodds excitedly and then they invite us to come tie and dye with them on Monday.

-

In college, I used to run a summer camp so tie dying is something I have done many times before and I thought I knew what to expect. A couple buckets with colored dye, some old tshirts and rubberbands. I was totally wrong! This was like extreme Tie Dying!

We all sat around with a bunch of old clothes, some twine and a butcher knife. The women started tying the twine around the clothing and we started to mimic them. They laughed at us and told us “No you need to make the twine TIGHT or it won’t work.”

The women showing us how to tie the twine TIGHT

Outside a few women were preparing purple dye in a pot of water being boiled over fire wood. Once the the clothes were ready they were are all submerged into the boiling pot and stirred with a giant stick. The fire was crackling and spitting, threatening to set our skirts on fire. I felt like we were a bunch of witches over our cauldron. Once everything was at a steady purple boil, Hadija looked at her watch and said “Now we wait 45 minutes”.

During the down time Amy and I decided to teach the women how to do the Macarena. They loved it and in return sang us a song and taught us a traditional Kenyan dance. We were all having a great time when the buzzer went off. Everyone then headed outside, pulling their items straight from the boiling hot water with their hands. Then they put fire wood on again and started boiling the water for the blue dye.

Needless to say Tie and Dye is an all day activity. And right around 3:30pm we finally got to see the results of our work and they were really beautiful. Everyone stood around admiring their old material transformed into new bright beautiful sheets, shirts and skirts.

Admiring our work

Look at our purple and blue hands

At the end of the day Mama Joanina came out dressed from head to toe in Tie Dyed clothes dancing around and cracking everyone up. She then took me, Amy and Bryce and gave us each matching tie dyed outfits while all the other Mamas clapped proudly for us like we were their children. Bryce said it felt like camp graduation. Amy and I just could not stop smiling.

Our mamas cheering on our new look

Tie and Dye family portrait

In the combined 7 months that I’ve spent with Kweku, this is what I’ve learned.  He is what I would define as “preciously cheeky” meaning he is capable of being a really big brat, but he’s so cute, half the time don’t even care.  Even when I want to smack him on his particularly round behind, he could just smile at me, and I would give him whatever he wanted.  I’m pretty sure he’s aware of this, which is why he continues to laugh and be a little poo whenever anyone is trying to discipline him.  Many volunteers claim Kweku as their “favorite”, and after you meet him, it’s easy to understand why.

Kweku is the smartest of all the kids his age, and will quickly demonstrate his counting skills if asked.  He can count to 100 almost without taking a breath, and every time he sits on my lap, he counts my bracelets multiple times.  He also likes to inform me of how many I have, multiple times.  He has a big belly, and a round booty, and enjoys dancing to ghana music (like most of the kids) and is a better dancer than I’ll ever be.  He can bath and dress himself rather efficiently, especially if he is competing with Kevin as to who will finish bathing and dressing first.  Kweku is  pretty competitive, so he usually wins.  Unfortunately he is also a sore loser, and he pouts and cries when he doesn’t get his way.  But within 10 minutes or so, he’s over it, and goes back to playing.  He recently told me that his best friends were Joe and Kevin, and they have a new fascination with toy cars that Chelsey recently brought for activity time.  They have races (of course) and for some reason, Kweku’s car is always the winning car.  This could be because he likes to give himself a head start, and because of his sneaky intelligent advantage, Joe and Kevin don’t always notice.

This past weekend we went to the beach again, and Kweku sat on my lap in the tro tro on the way there and back.  For some reason this happened the last time we went too, so I’ve had a bit of time to observe his behavior when we leave the orphanage.  While many of the other kids fall asleep on the way home, Kweku stays awake until the last possible moment, till his eyes possibly can’t stay open any longer.  He doesn’t just sit, he looks.  He looks at everything.  He observes everything that passes by, sometimes without blinking for what seems like forever, and takes everything in until his eyes can’t stay open anymore.  As he sat on my lap and I fed him plantain chips, he didn’t stop for one second to look at me or anyone else in the tro tro.  He was looking outside, taking in all his surroundings.

This made me wonder, what else has Kweku seen?  What else have those precious little sneaky eyes observed?  I’ll never know.  What I do know, is that he’s probably seen and felt things that we have never seen and felt, and that we would never wish upon a 5 year old.  And there is no denying that his life has been different than probably any child you know, and his eyes have seen things that you will never have to see.

But I can tell you what Kweku sees now.  He sees 3 meals a day, and his big belly going to bed at night nice and full.  He sees his best friends Kevin and Joe, and 23 other brothers and sisters, who look out for him and act as role models.  He sees toys, clothes, and a safe bed.  He sees school, where he learns more and more everyday.  And he sees a new house, a new house that still isn’t finished, but is on it’s way to being his new home.

And this is all thanks to a pretty great man named Pastor Elisha, some really great orphanage staff, some willing volunteers, and people like you, who have donated to build him a new home.  I’ve said it 100 times, and I’ll say it again: Tell everyone you know about Kweku, and all these beautiful children.  We owe it to them.

Do you know Kweku? Support him. 

~ Lauren Wright

It’s been awhile since my last post, mostly due to the fact that Bawjiase internet is never working, and I have limited money for traveling to Kasoa.  Spending 30 cedis during the month of March has proven to be rather challenging, so here are some of my thoughts:
- Due to the new year and increase in oil prices, things are becoming more expensive in Bawjiase.  Everything from pure water, to food, to tro tro rides have increased, and until my one cedi per day endeavor, I didn’t really have to think about it.  I can understand how prices increasing by even 5 or 10 pesewas makes a difference, and it makes living from day to day more difficult.
- While it’s relatively easy for me to save money for a couple days to buy phone credit or go somewhere, I definitely wouldn’t be able to do this if I didn’t have all my meals provided for me, medicine if I need it, and a house to live in.  My little challenge is nothing compared to how most people actually live, and while it’s challenging for me, it’s not my life. And I often find myself thinking about how I would feel if it actually was my life.
- There is a spirit in Bawjiase of generosity that I haven’t found among people anywhere else, and I’ve now realized how amazing this generosity actually is.  While I find myself being protective over my one cedi, people here are always lending each other money, sharing food, inviting people to stay with them.  I’ve been challenging myself to spend at least a small portion of my money on someone else, and it’s  harder than one might think.  I have an always-expanding admiration for the people here.

Overall, this exercise is proving to fulfill it’s purpose: It’s challenging and making me think!  And I would recommend to anyone to embark upon a similar challenge.  It’s good for the soul you know?

In other news: The roofing sheets are going up this week for the new building!  VICTORY!  My computer won’t let me put pictures up, but I promise I will soon!  Unfortunately, the roofing sheets were more expensive than expected (due to price increases, and some needed modifications of the original estimate).  So please continue to tell others to donate!  Right now we have enough money in the Mama Hope account to finish the roofing, but we still have to finish the inside (doors, cupboards, floors, etc).  While I’m waiting for the modified final estimate, I can tell you that now more than ever we are in need of donations!  Thank you SO MUCH to those who have donated so generously, without you we wouldn’t have gotten this far!https://secure.piryx.com/donate/EbcRnaW8/Mama-Hope/refugeorphanage

In other exciting new: My family is coming tomorrow!  My mom, Dougie, and Wes will be arriving in Accra tomorrow afternoon, and I am so excited to see them!  They are coming with many suitcases full of donations from Covenant Presbyterian Church, and I am so grateful for the generosity of the people of this congregation!  You’re making a difference in the lives of  some beautiful children

Other things worth mentioning:
- March 6th was Ghana’s Independence day, and there was a great parade from different schools, organizations, and businesses in Bawjiase.  Grace and Mary marched for Presby school, and Vlad took some great pictures that can be seen on the United Hearts facebook page.  They were so proud, and they should be.  Ghana is the best country EVER.
- In the past weeks I’ve tried some interesting food.  While Gus, Vlad, and Sophie, all ate significant portions of this food, I only took a small bite of each (I’m not as brave as my fellow volunteer pals). We ate Grasscutter (a giant rat that is considered the best meat in Ghana) and snails.  Grasscutter tasted like pot-roast with an after-taste of poo, and snails tasted like the bottom of lake Michigan. yummmy.
- For all of our friends who may be wondering.. Spencer is alive and well in Ghana!  He got here on Tuesday, and is adjusting very well!  He’s doing great here
- Our dear friend Vlad is leaving next week, much to my distress and dismay.  He’s been here for the past 8 months (but in total from all his trips to Bawjiase, over a year!).  He has done such amazing work at the orphanage, and he will be greatly missed. meh soo papapapa! (I will cry!)
-This past week, Chelsey and Sophie took Agogo to the psychiatric hospital in Cape Coast, to get him new medicine for his epilepsy (we realized before that his previous medicine was ineffective).  Since we were all leaving early that morning, Agogo came to the volunteer house for a sleep-over, and he slept with me in my bed!  He spent most of the night with his giant head resting on my belly

Well, that’s all I have for now: Next time I will add pictures!

Lauren Wright

This is something I hear quite often while I’m walking in town, something that typically irritates me.  Cedis (for those that may not know) are the ghanaian currency, with one cedi being the equivalent of about 75 cents, and 100 pesewas equaling 1 cedi.  For comparison purposes, it’s easier to think about 1 cedi being 1 dollar, and pesewas being the equivalent of cents.

The fact of the matter is, many people in Bawjiase, live on about one cedi per day.  Now, you might be surprised with the number of things you can actually buy for 1 cedi.  For example, I could buy 10 oranges, or 2 egg sandwiches, or a coke and 3 mini bags of peanuts, or 5 small bags of laundry soap. Things here are much cheaper than in the U.S., and when you first get here, it’s fun and exciting to see how much you can get for as little money as possible.

But the fact of the matter is, I never really have to think about money.  I can pay for things with 5 or 10 cedi bills, buy whatever I want at market, and get as many cookies and cokes and as much phone credit as I want.  If I wanted to travel (which I never really do, I’m a little home-body) I could basically go wherever I want.  I don’t have to think about paying for my meals, my clothes, my housing, my medicine, supporting a family.  If I were to ever need anything, I could ask my parents to help me out (like they haven’t done enough for me already). Like many people my age that I know, I am a product of a unearned advantages.  And this is something that I think about and struggle with all the time.

So, starting March 1st, I’ve decided to set aside 30 cedi (about $25) for the month of March, and only spend 1 cedi per day.  Now this is no where near the equivalent of how many people in Bawjiase are living, considering I have clothes, meals, housing, and access to medicine.  It’s more the equivalent of how the Orphanage staff live from month to month.  Fifi makes 30 cedi per month, but eats at the volunteer house/or orphanage, and has clothes, a phone, and a place to sleep.  So for practical purposes, Fifi will be my standard.

What this means is: If I want to go somewhere (like Kasoa for example) I will have to save up for 2 days, because a tro tro is 90 pesewas each way.  If I want to buy phone credit, I will also have to save up, because it’s only sold in units of 2 cedi.  I have also decided that I can’t eat any food from outside of Bawjiase (which means no shoprite), and when my wonderful parents come in March, and bring me a variety of protein bars and candy, I’ll have to wait till the end of March to eat them.

I can still buy anything the orphanage needs, and things for the kids and orphanage staff.  I have also decided that I won’t count the internet time I am using to blog, since I’m accountable to all of you wonderful Mama Hope donors for updates on the new building.  But if it’s anything personal, I can’t spend more than my allotted 30 cedis for this month.  I will keep you updated on how it goes!

Speaking of new building updates…. The roofing is continuing to progress!  Here is a pic:

ROOFING HAS OFFICIALLY STARTED! VICTORY!  While we were thinking that it was going to start about 2 weeks ago, we are happy to report that the carpenters are working diligently to put a roof on our building! Here is a picture :

WOOHOOOO! It’s so amazing to watch the progress, and it’s thanks to people like YOU that we are able to put a roof over our children’s heads!  Our number one priority now is finishing the new building, and Katherine and I have over $5,000 more we need to raise to make this a reality.  So please keep on telling others about this project!  Donations keep rolling in, and any little bit helps!  Thank you (always!) for your support!  https://secure.piryx.com/donate/EbcRnaW8/Mama-Hope/refugeorphanage

In other exciting news, United Hearts new website is officially up and running!  Check it out! http://unitedheartschildren.org.  This site will continue to be updated with information on our current projects, and we appreciate any and all feedback!

More information about the sustainability projects will be coming soon… We’re still waiting for estimates for goats and chickens, and prices are continuing to climb after the new year.  But these things always work themselves out, even if it takes awhile (T.I.A.)

Things are continuing to go GREAT here, the kids are beautiful and wonderful and happy  This is a pretty short blog, but I’m pretty hungry so I’m gonna go home and eat. hehe.  More updates soon!

Lauren Wright

I’ve been wanting to write about specific staff members and children for quite awhile now, so I’ve decided to talk about two pairs: Sister Hannah and Ernestina, and Fifi and Toffic.

Sister Hannah is the cook at the orphanage, and Ernestina is her 3 year old daughter.  Sister Hannah has been at the orphanage longer than any other staff member, and cooks for about 40 people, 3 meals a day.  This is quite the task, but she’s quite used to it, and doesn’t mind bossing people around and telling them what to do. She’s also quite funny, and likes to yell at me in a high squeaky voice (one that she believes sounds exactly like my own).  Overall, she works really hard, and our babies would be pretty hungry without her.
Ernestina is Sister Hannah’s daughter, in every way imaginable.  Not only does she look just like her beautiful mama, she’s just as sassy, and even more bossy.  Ernestina is not afraid to let you know who’s boss, and enjoys telling everyone what to do.  She also enjoys walking around with her giant belly sticking out, and throws giant tantrums if she doesn’t get her way (I think my mother will confirm that this is what I was like as a child).  Overall, these are two beautiful sassy people, who make the orphanage a pretty fun place to be.

Fifi and Toffic are not related, but anyone who sees them together would think they’re brothers.  Fifi is our cook (and my best friend), and he’s been living at the orphanage for about a year and a half.  He is one of the best people I know, and I don’t know what I’d do without him.  Not only is he the best cook ever, he remembers exactly what Vlad, Becca, and I like, and will make us our meals accordingly:)  He’s great with the kids, and can always be seen with Toffic, who he refers to as his “boss”.  Toffic is 12, and is one of the most mild-mannered and hardworking kids at the orphanage.  He is always at the volunteer house helping Fifi cook and clean, but they also play together too (like with slinkys in the picture above).  Fifi always eats his food with Toffic, and anything Fifi gets, you can bet Toffic will get some of it too.  Basically, they’re the sweetest boys ever, and I spend a lot of my time hanging out with both of them.

Lauren Wright

As of late, I’ve come to the realization that after one lives in Bawjiase for an extended period of time, there are certain aspects of my life here that I consider to be completely “normal”.  Because Becca, Vlad and I have all been here for extended and multiple periods of time, we’ve sort of forgotten that these things may not be considered “normal” in our countries of origin.  In light of this realization, I’ve decided to dedicate this blog post to describe what I now consider to be normal.

Our well has completely dried up, (due to the fact that it hasn’t really rained in about 2 weeks) so we are living with very limited water.  Lucky for us, the orphanage well is much deeper than the one close to our house, so we’ve been going to the orphanage to bath (on days when we consider it necessary, like if I’m covered in mud from working on the farm).  It’s interesting how when you live with limited water, you  forget that you come from a place where the water never runs out.  It may be fun for you to try living for an entire day only using one bucket of water – this is something many people in Bawjiase are doing right now.

There has also been an abnormally high infestation of bugs in our house as of late, and they’ve been turning up in some pretty inconvenient places (aka… giant spiders in my bed and in the toilet paper roll, cockroaches in the bucket I’m using to bath, and ants in our food).  While the cockroaches (which are about the size of a  frog) are pretty gross, I’ve considered our house insects pretty normal, and have given up trying to kill them.  I even talk to them occasionally.

I’ve become unfazed by multiple marriage proposals per day, and men in the internet cafe staring at me without blinking for extended periods of time. Yesterday, I was walking with Fifi to go get food, and a man stopped him and asked him if I was his property, and if he could purchase me.  Lucky for me, Fifi informed him that I was not for sale.

If you have to pee, it’s completely normal to just squat in a field or behind a tree, or to pee in somebody’s bathhouse outside.  It’s also completely normal to see people peeing in the street or behind a building.

When you’re walking through town, it’s completely normal:
-  to almost be hit by cars multiple times
-  to see naked children running through the streets
-  to hear about 20 people call you by name, even though you only know about 5 of them
-  to be laughed at simply because you’re white and you live in Bawjiase
-  to have small children run up to you and hug you, or to have small children scream and run away in terror because they have never seen a white person before
- to trust that the food you are buying from a box on someone’s head is delicious and won’t give you any sort of food poisoning
- to cram 20 people in a 10 person vehicle where there are no seatbelts and the doors don’t close all the way
- to buy all the food you eat from a local market, where generous portions are always given, and sellers will lend you food if for some reason you don’t have enough money to buy it.
- to have at least one moment everyday where you observe emotions that are completely genuine – whether it’s anger, sadness, happiness- there is something about living here that seems much more real than living anywhere else.

So, these are things that make living in Bawjiase… well… living in Bawjiase. And I wouldn’t change a thing!

Lauren Wright

It’s been awhile since I posted pictures, so I have decided to dedicate this blog to documenting the great things that happen over here in Bawjiase   FIRST, BUILDING PROGRESS!  While we have yet to start roofing, they are doing a lot of plumbing and electrical work on the inside of the building, which takes some time.  This week we took the kids to the site, and they had a long of fun playing around in their future home!

Future Dining Hall

Future toilets and showers

Hallway to the kids bedroom's

I am so excited about everything that’s happening at the site!  The progress is great, and the kids and staff at the orphanage are excited too.  We’ve also decided to invest in more land surrounding the building, hopefully to build structures that could hold goats and/or chickens.  They have started digging a well on the new building property as well, which is very important (can’t live without water!)

The start of the well

Recently I’ve been going to the farm in the afternoons to help water the cabbage.  They are doing such a great job, Nana (the orphanage secretary/teacher at the school) goes every day, and Pastor Elisha usually does too.  Pretty soon we should be connecting with a real farmer who will take charge, but we haven’t had the best luck with farmers in the past.  It’s great to see how committed the staff and kids are to working at the farm, they are doing such great work!  The cabbage should be able to be harvested in March, which (if all goes well) will bring about 1,800 GHC to the orphanage! (about $1,500). Sustainability in the making!

Cabbage

Well that’s about all I have for now!  This blog took me about 3 hours, my computer died twice, haha.  Hope everyone is doing well, more updates to come soon!

Lauren Wright

There isn’t too much new to report, things continue to be great over here.  This past weekend Vlad and Becca went to Butre Beach, and I stayed behind in Bawjiase.  For some reason, I have a really hard time leaving Bawjiase, even it’s just to travel around Ghana, haha.  So I stayed back at cleaned the house with Fifi and Toffic, ate fufu at the orphanage, and fetched 8 buckets of water in a row! VICTORY!  The kids are all doing great, healthy and happy:)  The building is continuing to progress, The next installment from Mama Hope comes in today so they will start roofing.

Some new and exciting news: Another previous volunteer, Melinda Beyer, has decided to partner with Mama Hope to raise money for United Hearts School!!  This school will serve over 250 community children, and will eventually (hopefully) include a Library for the community as well. Vlad and some other volunteers started building a school in summer 2009, but we had to stop construction once we learned we were going to need a new orphanage.  Melinda spent 6 months in Bawjiase, and started out by doing the agriculture program for the farm at the orphanage.  She is a wonderful and dedicated individual, and you should check out her page on the Mama Hope website! http://mamahope.org/United-Hearts-School.html

Construction of the school as of now.

Other Mama Hope News: I am currently working with Pastor on organizing proposals on sustainability projects for the orphanage!  Mama Hope has some money set aside to invest in projects that will bring continued revenue for the daily needs of the children and staff.  Our top three ideas include the Pineapple farm (which would be the biggest investment) Chickens, and Goats.  If we decide to invest in either chickens or goats, it would be a lot more formalized then attempts in the past.  We would buy land, build structures for the respective animals, and most likely hire individuals from the community to help with there daily care. While our first priority is finishing the new building, it’s great to be a part of organizing for the future sustainability of the orphanage.  Through working with communities and being a means for connecting people with resources, we can create the most significant change. And this change doesn’t come through charity – it comes through investing in individuals who know what they need, and working  to connect them with resources so those needs met.

I firmly believe that I have a responsibility to connect the people here with these resources, and that this only comes through working as a community.  In the words of Brooke Fraser, “Now that I have seen, I am responsible”.  Anyone who has met these children, or knows their story, shares this responsibility.  So if you’re reading this blog, that includes YOU!  Many of you have taken on this responsibility, and have done amazing things to create awareness for the orphanage.  But it’s interesting how many previous volunteers “miss the kids soooo much”, but have yet to make an effort to create awareness of this cause.  I believe that the only way we are going to create systemic change here is through working together. This is something that the people of Bawjiase know how to do: work together to create a sustainable community.  Let’s all learn from them.
http://mamahope.org/refugeOrphanageFinal.html

Lauren Wright

Lots of fun and exciting things have been happening at the orphanage, (as usual).  This past Monday we went to the beach, was SO SO SO fun.  We piled about 50 people in a 30 person tro tro, and made it to Kokrobite without any problems.  As soon as we got there, we spent the rest of the day playing in the water, burying kids in the sand, making sure no one was drowning, etc.  A lot of the staff came a long, and they seemed to have a great time too!  Here are some pictures:

It was a really fun day for everybody:)  The drive back went pretty smoothly as well (which is uncommon for beach trips).  Agogo was sitting on my lap and peed all over me, but that’s pretty typical.  Our tro tro driver also decided to buy a fridge and stick it in the back of our already crammed vehicle, which was both annoying and funny.  TIA (This is Africa)

Since then, things have been pretty normal.  The kids don’t go back to school until next monday, so things are a little out of “routine”.  Yesterday during activity time, we took the kids to a park that’s by the orphanage, and it started thunderstorming.  The thunder was SOO loud, that meshack (who didn’t have any pants on, as usual) pooped himself because he was so scared.  After cleaning him off with some coloring book pages, we all sat under a wooden structure for a little while, and then RAN home.  The kids were actually pretty scared, it was the biggest thunderstorm we’ve had in awhile.

Some other exciting news… We’ve officially decided to rename the Orphanage United Hearts Children Center!  We had to come up with a new name that met social welfare guidelines (which couldn’t have the word “orphanage” or “home” in it) and we wanted something that represented many people working together.  Becca, Vlad, and I brainstormed for quite awhile, and since all of us “left our hearts in Bawjiase”, we decided that United Hearts would be a good name!! And Pastor agreed!  VICTORY!!!

In other news, the building progress is going well, though they haven’t worked as much over the holidays.  Here is a picture of the current progress on the building:

In the coming weeks, they will start roofing!!  We’ve officially raised over $20,000 for my Mama Hope account, and Katherine and I together have almost $40,000! This is the bare minimum for what we need to finish the building, so please continue to donate and tell others to do so as well! I can’t say it enough, THANK YOU to all of you who have participated in this project!   Bawjiase continues to be the happiest place on earth, and I will update again soon about the progress of the new building

Click link to Donate Now : https://secure.piryx.com/donate/EbcRnaW8/Mama-Hope/refugeorphanage