Worship - Celebration - New Friends

Today was a wonderful day in Accra. Breakfast under the awning at the Sun Lodge pool then a short walk up the street past the taxi car wash and into Tesano Baptist Church for their English language service which begins around 7:30am and ends somewhere around 10am. We were shown to seats by TSB ushers wearing blue kente sashes and cordially welcomed by the service leader and the morning's pastor. Senior pastor, my friend Kweku Hazel, was out of town today so once again I missed seeing him (I wonder why he always seems to be gone when I come to Accra?) The service was wonderful, the music invigorating and the pastor's sermon on the 3 P's of a father to his family: Priest - Provider - Pattern, very challenging. It was nice to see folks I recognized from previous visits and to be so warmly welcomed by the 1000+ people in attendance.

Following the service, we traveled by Sun Seekers bus to Quarshie section of Accra where we were graciously hosted by Paul and Gwen Amamoo, two of Paul's brothers, and the Amamoo's extended family. Paul and Gwen are Birmingham, Alabama residents who have a lovely home in Accra. Paul and his brothers grew up in Accra but Paul left for Birmingham for college, med school and to eventually to establish his pediatric practice. Gwen is the chairperson of the Birmingham, AL-Winneba, Ghana Sister City Committee and will be hosting a group of 6 high school students on a visit to Ghana beginning next week.

So, how did CSU get connected with these folk? Well, it's all due to my good friend Bettina Boateng, former TV reporter with WCBD-2 TV in Charleston and for the past several years the morning news anchor of the WVTM-13 TV in Birmingham. Bettina's mother is from Ghana and in 2004 Bettina spent a week with the CSU Teaching & Learning in Ghana team filming our activities and then producing a week of news reports on her return to the country of her family's birth. Bettina will be traveling with the Birmingham group and she shared our work with Gwen and Paul who decided to invite us to their home during our brief weekend in Accra. It was a very special time for us and we were honored to have been invited and to have been treated to such a delicious lunch: fish, rice and sauce, palava, steamed vegetables and FRIED PLAINTAIN!!


We're looking forward to meeting Bettina her Birmingham girls and Gwen at Kakum Rain Forest Canopy Walk in two weeks when they come to Cape Coast for a few days.

Tomorrow we will visit the W. E. B. Dubois home and the U. S. Embassy. Then we'll travel along the Atlantic 2 1/2 hours to our home for the next 5 weeks: the Fair Hill Guest House in beautiful Cape Coast!