Today was a "lights off" day, which means no electricity. Apparently ECG is working on putting a fence around the transformer. It's kind of ironic, I had just commented on how we had consistent electricity for a few days when shortly after, it went off.
Well, there are 2 events I recently had the opportunity to attend that I'd like to share with you.
The first was the Handing Over Ceremony of the Prampram Health Clinic. A few years ago, the clinic was started by the Prampram Traditional Council. It was furthered through donations from various individuals, including Bishop Miller and OITC. Bishop Miller had the inspiration to build a wall around the clinic, as goats and other animals could wander freely throughout the wards. Our churches helped with raising the money and the wall was built! We also supplied the clinic with other donations, including an ambulance. Recently, the wife of Ghana's President Mills (who is from Prampram), Her Excellency Dr. Ernestina Naadu Mills, collaborated with Chinese company Huawei Technology to officially finish the clinic. So, the handing over ceremony was held in recognition of her part in the completion of the health clinic.
Something that's really neat about any kind of special event here is their use of fabric. They take massive pieces and drape them around poles, hang them from tents, etc., fastening them together in big knots. It looks so beautiful and I've seen all kinds of colors. The Health Clinic was decorated with red and white fabric on many tents with seats for the guests. When we arrived, we were seated in a section with the clinic nurses and other special guests. One of the Chinese men from Huawei Technology asked me if the Brennans were ambassadors, I think he was surprised when I said no. At one point he also invited me to stand with the press, which simply meant standing under the shade of a big tree near the sound system. But at least it was a little closer to the action!
It was a pretty big event - the MP of the area was there, E.T. Mensah, and the wife of the Chinese Ambassador, as well as the traditional council, which included the Mankrolo and the Chief of Prampram.
When the first lady arrived, everyone was cheering and calling out. "mowei mowei!!" (pronounced moo-aaaaaaaay), which means "you are very welcome!"
After she had been formally announced and seated (which took a very long time), the ceremony began (which also took a very long time). Ghana TV was there and it was kind of funny - they would come with their huge camera and put it right in my face and just stay there recording. Talk about uncomfortable! Thankfully I was able to move around and take photos/video after a while, which I will now share with you!
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| The Entrance to the new Recovery Ward |
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| Some of the Prampram Traditional Council |
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| Ghana's First Lady |
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| Ghana TV - maybe I should apply for a job?! |
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| A "Cultural Display", as the program called it |
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| Lots of attendees - see the fabric? |
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| The "ambassadors" speaking with a representative from Huawei |
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| After a few hours in the heat, this is what I felt like doing!! |
Yesterday, we went to Action Chapel International, a MASSIVE church in Accra, for service. We arrived for the 10am service. The worship and message were both great, it was really an awesome experience to worship God in a different way halfway across the world, yet still know that He is the same here, back home, and everywhere in the world. I'm so thankful for a God that doesn't change or is too far away from us to hear us when we call to Him. Archbishop Duncan Williams knows Bishop Miller and has a great respect for her, so when the Brennans come to his church, he always invites them to his office in between services and wants to know how Bishop is doing. This time, he invited us to lunch at his house, which leads me to the second event that I want to share with you.
In this service, which was televised, a group of about 100 people from Mercy Ships were in attendance. I had never heard of the organization Mercy Ships, but it's pretty interesting. You can find more about it by clicking RIGHT HERE. Action Chapel is possibly going to be an anchor church for them, so they spoke a little bit about the organization and recognized all of the people. After service, as we were getting ready to follow the man who was to take us to the house, we realize that the Mercy Ships buses were behind us. We were going to be eating lunch not only with Archbishop, but with the entire Mercy Ships group! Needless to say, we chose a good Sunday to stay for lunch.
We were lead to Archbishops house, which was in a very nice section of Accra. The house was beautiful. We ate in the chapel located on his grounds, and then went into the house for dessert and coffee. It was really nice to talk with some of the people who are with Mercy Ships, it's really an amazing work they do around the world. Here's a few pictures.
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| Madame Susie and I |
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Tomorrow I hear from the seamstress if my pieces are ready, so hopefully I'll have some new Ghanaian clothing to wear. I want to say a special thank you to Pastor Nancy for my beautiful Global Mamas dress I wore on Sunday!
Well, thanks for reading, hopefully it wasn't information overload/boredom. Have a great day!
