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June 2009 Update by Sonjelle
Hello everybody,This is the last update that I will write, as I am leaving next month to go back to the states and continue my education. The next updates will be written by our new country administrator, Jessy. Jessy is from the Netherlands, she arrived in Ghana in the beginning of the month and has been spending this month familiarizing herself with HardtHaven. She has extensive background in work in West Africa, having spent 5 months in Benin while working on her master's thesis in international public health. This is great as she is already used to the West African pace of life and ways of doing things, so she did not really experience culture shock when coming here (in fact, she remarked that the drivers in Ghana are much better than Benin, and the infrastructure too, the only thing that Ghana is behind Benin in is the speed of the internet). It has been a real pleasure working with Jessy, and I know that when I leave I can leave with a light heart as my children will be in her good and capable hands.
This month was very interesting for us at HardtHaven. Gabriel, Small Emma, Christopher and Small Wisdom got circumcised this month. We had been planning this for a while now, and decided that while we had a lot of volunteers around we should capitalize on the manpower present and get them all done at once. We took them to Margret Marquat for the procedure to be done in the theater there. I'll tell you that is an experience I won't soon forget, holding down each one of them while they were VERY unhappy at me. Thankfully with the proper after care all the boys healed up nicely. Now Donkor really wants to get his done, I, however am somehow skeptical, a 4 year old can handle it, but I am not so sure about a 14 year old.
This month we have had quite a few hospital visits, being the rainy season and all; Small Wisdom, Kafui, Junior, Small Emma, Israel, Big Emma, Ernestina, Rosemond, Lebene and I all had malaria. Junior also had tonsillitis but after a treatment of antibiotics he is fine. Ernestina is still having the chronic chest infections, the doctor ordered a TB (tuberculosis) test, and thankfully the results came back negative.
We still have not received the grades back for most of our children, so once again I am unable to report then to you. Paulina has adjusted well to going to school; although on the days that Gabriel and Emma did not go to school she got off at the wrong bus stop and was walking almost to Fesi! It was a good thing that Edem happened to be driving by and saw her and brought her home! So now we know that Paulina only goes to school if one of the two twins is going as well, this way they help her to get off at the right bus stop.
We have written to the headmaster of Gabi school (the primary school that most of the children attend) for admittance for Donkor and Bright for the next year, so if all goes as planned the two of them will be starting school in September after the last break. I know Donkor in particular is very excited to return to school again, Bright is less enthusiastic but I am sure that once he returns to school he will remember how much fun it is.
Gabriel and Emma celebrated their birthdays on the 2nd of June. They are now 4 years old. Donkor celebrated his 14th birthday on the 10th of June, for both sets of birthdays we had a toffee party for each and ran around pouring buckets of water on everybody. Things were all fun and games until the water started getting poured on the aunties and uncles, at which point the water fight got serious (the hose was brought out at Donkor's birthday, the children forget sometimes that we were kids too once).
Small Wisdom is now eating like a champ; he is now 1 year 5 months! He has 8 teeth grown in. I think that he and Christopher have a competition to see who can poop the most in the day, Christopher was leading for a time, with 5 poops, but he has since slowed down and now wisdom is the solid (excuse the pun) leader with a steady average of 4. Wisdom has gained a lot of weight and can now say a large collection of words in baby speak; 'I love you', 'Ma na wo' (I won't give you), 'atu!' (big hug!), 'auntie', 'auntie Sonjelle', 'bye bye', 'jo' (go!), 'nam' (give!), 'yes'. He is still learning to walk and stand on his own, just right now while writing this I heard a big commotion outside, it turns out that Wisdom is standing and walking a few feet on his own!
We have taken on three new sponsored children this month; Emmanuel a 1 year old from Kpando Kudra both of his parents are dead and he is recovering from severe Kwashikor (protein deficiency), Mabel a 3 year old from Sovie who was recommended to us by the nurses at MMCH who is recovering from severe anemia, and Anita from Amedzofe a 15 year old who is recovering from a 6 month bout of typhoid. It appears that she also suffers from sickle cell anemia Anita and her mother are staying at a house we rented for them in Kpando, and taking their meals from the home. This was we are able to monitor Anita's nutrition and recovery. When she first arrived in our care at the beginning of the month she was 5 feet 5 inches and weighing 30 kilos (66 pounds). We are hoping that with the proper nutrition her body can recover.
Sadly this month we have also lost some. Francis O, the 9 year old boy from Amfeoga died at Amfeoga Catholic Hospital on the 5th of this month, due to an infection. Francis was a quite boy who lived with his grandmother. He rarely spoke but when he did he had the cutest softest voice. We also lost three of our palliative care patients who lived in Nkunya, a woman who had breast cancer, a woman who was ill and refused to take her medicine and an old man. We can only hope that we helped make their last days on earth as comfortable as possible.
We have hired a second matron, Mabel, who has been working at the home for the past 2 weeks now, so far it seems that she is doing a very good job. She sleeps in the girl's room (which is nice, because now at 9pm the girls actually turn off the light and go to sleep instead of talking and playing until 10 or later).
As this is the time for volunteers, we have had a large number come through Kpando and HardtHaven this month. Sarah O, who lived at the home and worked both here and at Konda elementary school returned to the US, she was a great help here and will be missed. Jonathan, a volunteer who first came with the Virginia state group in January, arrived in the end of May and will be staying until the end of July; he is working on small business development with some members of the district assembly. He also stays at the home and is a big help around here. He donated a large amount of protein powder. His sister, Rose, joined him for two weeks and is teaching at Konda Primary while staying at the home, she brought with her a large amount of baby's formula, diapers and gloves. Emma, a nursing student from the US arrived and stayed for one month, she was doing outreach work in surrounding communities with our sponsored children and palliative care patients. Arbor, a volunteer from the US, is working at the Kpando Health Clinic and working with 3 of our palliative care women. Emma and Fiona from the UK worked at the Kpando health clinic and came by in the afternoons to do tutoring work with Juliet and Donkor. They brought with them medicine for the children. John and Demi a father and daughter from the US, arrived and volunteered for one week, working at HardtHaven. They donated a large amount of children's clothing and toys Charlise, a teacher from the US, arrived and was supposed to work at Konda primary school for two weeks; however she fell ill with Malaria for the whole time she was here. She donated a large amount of books and learning materials. Alex and Tanner, two volunteers from the US arrived and volunteered at Konda primary school and HardtHaven for two weeks. They donated a large amount of baby wipes, hand sanitizer and formula. Catherine and her son and daughter from the US arrived; they will be staying for 3 weeks, Catherine who is a teacher in the US works at Konda primary, her 10 year old son Sam comes by the home and plays football with the children.
If you have a face book and are not a member of the HardtHaven cause page, please join! The more people we are able to reach and spread the message to, the more we can accomplish here on the ground in Ghana!
Well, I suppose that is all for this month. I cannot believe that I am returning home in only 10 short days! I cannot express how much my time at HardtHaven has meant to me. Having the opportunity to see these children grow and change, seeing some of them go to school for the first time, take first steps and say their first words, recover from health problems that at first we thought were irreparable, has really allowed me to see the wonder and hope in this world. There have also been many worrying times when a child was sick and we were not sure if they were going to make it, Christopher when he first came, Ernestina last summer when she was very ill, thankfully they managed to pull through. And of course the devastating times when we lost children such as Mary, Jemima, Bismarck, Ndonchala, Prince and Francis. This experience has shown me that the joys of life come from the simple acts each day, and often time we ignore these gems as we are struggling ever on ward for the future never taking time to sit and see what is around us in the present, the soft nights when the children are lying on their mats in the courtyard telling stories, the late afternoons when Tassi and the girls are in the kitchen singing and chatting preparing dinner, the loud days when all the kids are hyped on life singing and dancing, pretending to be soldier men. I hope that I am able to stick out my school so I can come back to Africa in a better capacity to help people, but I have a nagging suspicion that I'll last a year at most before I come running back to Ghana to live the good life once again!
Well, for the last time, thank you,
Sonjelle
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