Ghana Mission Trip

 On May 24, three Trinity members, Pat Anderson , Janet Burkhart and Joan Cooper, will be traveling to Ghana.  Also traveling from Ohio are Sandy Lindahl, former member of Trinity and Scott Gregory, a member of the Thursday breakfast crew.

Link to photos

Seating - Janet, Pat Scott.  Standing Sandy.  Taking picture - Joan.

May 24, 2023

We’re on our way!  Here’s the Ohio group (minus one) hanging out at the Cleveland airport, waiting to board our first leg, to JFK airport in New York.

May 25, 2023

There are no pictures today.  Sorry.😞   After a 10 hour flight from New York and a 10-11 hour bus ride, we finally made it to our hotel.  It was 10:00 when we arrived and it was great to be able to stand up and walk around.  We are four hours ahead of Ohio.  I’ll have pictures tomorrow.  😊

May 26, 2023

Today was a day full of Ghanaian culture!

    We visited a wonderful batik artist. She and her artists cut designs in foam, dip them in very hot wax, shake them off and print the wax on cloth. The cloth is then dyed and laid out to dry. The process is repeated for multiple colors. When the design is finished, the batik is placed in boiling water which melts the wax out of the cloth.

    Then we were able to look through piles of batiks and tie-dye to buy some material.

    After lunch we visited a Kente cloth weaver. His name is Paul and he was the tailor who made the ties that we sold at Trinity years ago to raise funds for Koenig. Paul showed us items that he had made from his handwoven Kente cloth.

    Two young men were weaving Kente cloth, which is 5 inches wide and from 5 inches long to 70 inches long. The designs represent the culture of this area of Ghana.

    After supper we meet with a seamstress, Irene, who will design a piece of clothing for us and create it with our batik material (without a pattern!).

    Such talented people!

Pat Anderson

We also met the the Paramount Chief of Kpenoe, as we were welcomed to their village in a wonderful and grace filled ceremony. It was a busy and beautiful day.

Joan Cooper 

 Saturday May 27, 2023

Today was a day of sightseeing. We went to the highest waterfall in Ghana, called the Wli Waterfall. It was absolutely beautiful!!  When we finished enjoying the falls, we traveled to the village of Tafi and saw Mona monkeys at the monkey preserve that is there. In this village the Mona monkey is considered spiritual, so they are cared for by members of the community. Visitor are allowed, and money from admissions is used to help better the Tafi community.

Joan Cooper

Link to Pictures

Sunday May 28, 2023

Today we spent the whole morning at church. We actually went to two services. One service was at the Paramount Chief’s home. It is very interesting to be part of a service where you don’t understand the language. After we were done there, we went into the village of Kpenoe, to Trinity EP Church,  to worship there. It was again so interesting to see a service that is so different from ours. The church that Trinity UCC helped build is beautiful!  We had lunch at Prosper and Angelica’s home. I think Prosper and Angelica came to Trinity many years ago. The afternoon was spent sorting the donations to take to Kpenoe tomorrow.

Joan Cooper

Link to photos

Monday May 29, 2023

Today was  a wonderful day.  We started the day with a community meeting in Kpenoe. This includes most of the village (Students though are in school.)  Meetings are held to inform the villagers of important events in the village  Today’s meeting was held for us to present the village with all the donations we brought along.  There were 15-20 bags and suitcases.  It is definitely a heartwarming experience. The rest of day, the four Wooster people worked in the schools, while Sandy met with the Paramount Chief about issues of food and hunger. One of our group, who is an OB-GYN, witnessed a birth at the clinic, with some of our donated supplies!

Joan Cooper

Tuesday May 30, 2023

I visited the primary school in Kpenoe. I taught an art lesson with 9-11 year olds.

First they drew animals and wrote the English word under them. Then they created a crazy creative animal with play dough using different parts of the animals. The students were very creative and we had fun!

Pat Anderson 

Link to pictures

Wednesday May 31, 2023

Today was a very emotional day for me.  We started the day going to a market to buy food for the cured leper village.  The Amenyo Foundation supports the village with food.  After shopping, we traveled to the village to meet members of their community.  The village includes people who who have been cured of leprosy, family members who help care for them and many children related to to family members who provide care.  What was incredible and emotional to me was the smiles on their faces and the joy in their eyes.  They have gone through so much, yet they still found joy.  As one woman said to me, “God is good all the time, all the time God is good”!  What more can be said!

Joan Cooper

Link to pictures

Thursday June 1, 2023

Today was a tourist day. We first went to The Market. It was huge, loud and crowded!!  It had everything from fish to clothing, pottery to handmade musical instruments, spices to toilet paper. I’ve never been to any place like it before.  It was almost sensory overload, but I loved it!  When we finished at The Market we went back to the hotel long enough to drop off our purchases. At the hotel, we picked up Paramount Chief Togbe Kotoku XI of Kpenoe, who joined us as we went on to a bead market. It is what it sounds like-beads of every kind, in every color. You could buy single beads or bracelets, earrings or necklaces. The trip to the bead market was long, and made even longer, because the bus broke down and the roads had potholes the size of Ohio. It was a fun and exhausting day!

Joan Cooper

June 2, 2023

Today was our last official day working with the people in Kpenoe.  The morning and part of the afternoon was divided into three groups to talk about health issues. The day was organized by the Paramount Queen Mother, Mama Ga, Dr.Terri Vandelinde and Marcia Christensen.  The first group was the women from the village. The second group was 9-12 year old girls and boys, separated.  The third group was junior high girls and boys separated.  The groups discussed health issues related to gender.  The girls were given supplies to use when needed.          

    In the evening we were honored to eat dinner at Chief Togbe Kotoku Xl. It was an evening of fellowship and a wonderful way to end the day.  Tomorrow, some of the group will go to Kpenoe to meet with men in the village about health issues.    

Joan Cooper     

Listen to Joan Cooper about her birthday     

Fun on the bus going to market               

June 3, 2023

Today we walked around and through the village of Kpenoe to see what life is like. We watched a woman cooking yams ( She actually showed us how to do it…a cooking lesson. 😊).  As we continued to walk, we saw lots of children playing, a “casino “, a store, and a beautiful girl carrying branches. It was enlightening.     

Joan Cooper 

Sunday June 4, 2023

Smiles, laughter, wonder, friends.

Hopes, dance, prayers, stories.

Yams, fufu, omatuo, guava.

Lives touching, hearts opening, dreams forming, scholars beaming.

God touching lives.

God changing lives.

Mission accomplished.

Jim Christensen 

First picture is Jim with Rev. Ledo. He preached at Trinity while Jim was in Ghana on sabbatical.

The second picture is Marcia and Jim standing in front of the plaque of the chapel that Trinity helped build in Kpenoe.

Links to pictures

June 7, 2023

I’m sitting on the plane, ready to go home.  As I reflect on my time in Ghana, I realize how blessed I was to make this trip.  The people I met were so gracious, kind and joyful.  This helps me remember the goodness of others even in chaotic times.  The memories I have will be with me always.  I am forever grateful for this opportunity.

Yesterday was very interesting and informative day. We first went to Kakum National Park.  While there, we did a canopy walk that was beautiful.  We then went to Cape Coast to see the Cape Coast Castle.  The castle is one of approximately 40  forts and castles that were part of the slave trade in Ghana who, after being imprisoned in the castles and forts, were then sent to the Americas.  The tour was very informative and emotional.  As hard as it was to listen to the information, it was a tour I would highly recommend.