Dear Friends and Family,

We made it home Tuesday afternoon after missing our connecting flight from New York City to Albany on Monday evening.  The plane from Accra to JFK was almost two hours late leaving Ghana on Monday.  As a result we ended up staying at a Ramada on Delta for the night.  We considered driving home but we were just too tired and figured it was not worth the few hours that we would have gained.  We knew that the hotel would have hot, running water.

We mentioned that the school gave us each Kente Cloth last week and that we had dropped Joan's off at a tailors to be made into a suit type outfit.  He had promised to have it completed before we left.  He did - just barely!!  Vera tried to call him several times on Sunday and could not get through.  She reached him in the evening and he said that he was "coming".  He had taken some medicine which made him sleep during the day.  We went to bed at 10 pm and he had not arrived.  When we woke up at 4 am to go the airport he was sleeping on the living room sofa.  Vera had let him in at 3 am!!  The outfit and special delivery cost us about $12. 

We left our home in Akropong at about 4:45 am to go to the airport.  We wanted to avoid the Accra morning traffic and succeeded in doing so.  We arrived at the airport after 6 and checked in very quickly for what was to be a 9:30 flight.  We went back outside (we had not gone through security yet) to say goodbye to Vera, the driver (Kobe), and a student (Janet) who is now living with Vera.  The four of us were squeezed into the back seat as the front seat contained two of our suitcases.  It reminded us of the Field Trip.  We forgot to tell you that returning from the excursion, Harry had a fourth grade boy sitting on his lap sleeping for most of the five hours it took to get back to Akropong.  The flight did not depart Accra until about 11:30. The direct flight took about 12 hours.

We are happy to be home.  Tuesday evening we went out to dinner with Mark, Michelle, Ross, Samantha, and Ryan and had a good time.  Ryan was thrilled to see his favorite toy - Grandma.  We were at their house when he got off the bus after school.  Yesterday Joan picked up Michelle to take her to buy her dress for her Senior Ball.  It doesn't take long to be back in the routine.  Today Harry is going to go the the Koda retired teachers luncheon.  There is a Dinner Dance Saturday night at SUNY Albany to celebrate Ghana's Independence Day so we plan to attend that - contacts, contacts, contacts.  Next Tuesday is a Gowana teachers luncheon so will go to that too.

Thank you for your letters and notes of support!  Some have asked how they can help and we have put you off until we arrived home.  If you wish to make a donation - and many of you already have - make out a check to: Friends of Akuffo Tom School Complex and mail it to 23 Jennifer Road, Glenville, NY 12302.  We are a tax deductible charity.  We are registering in Ghana so that they will be able to import things - like books - without having to pay any duty.  I have the forms and will have our Board of Directors sign within the next week.  We are planning to create a website, a brochure and perhaps a newsletter which will keep us all up to date on the progress of the school. 

Did we make a difference?  Time will tell; however, we are very pleased to report that the school has replaced caning with alternative methods of discipline - some old fashioned things like "I will do..." 500 times.  We left  some material to help them.  We noticed the atmosphere was less tense.  New teachers have to be indoctrinated, but they are working on it.  It's a process that takes time.  Our team teaching encouraged the teachers to try working together, working across the curriculum and integrating other subjects.  The government of Ghana wants education reform and rote learning is no longer the norm.  We were observed often and we had numerous discussions about methods and philosophy.  They are eager to learn and change.

We learned about living simply - about caring for water - about being patient - about sharing and showing love.  We had a blast!!

Love and Prayers,
Harry and Joan