Volume 2 | Number 1 | January 2014

New Beginnings - New Managing Directors for HCV & HCA

USA P. O. Box 670394 Dallas, TX 75367 Tel: 817-523-4419 Tel: 817-677-8647 [email protected]

GHANA P. O. Box GP 18169 Accra, Ghana Tel: 233-24-431-3404 Tel: 233-20-823-2585 [email protected]

Village of Hope Management Team Seated Second from Right is Kwaku Sarkodie, Managing Director of Hope Children’s Village Seated Second from Left is Ebenezer Sackey, Managing Director of Hope Christian Academy

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lease join us to thank the Lord because, at long last, the search is over and two people have been found to replace Gladys Bulley and Roland Bulley in their management roles at Hope Children’s Village and Hope Christian Academy respectively. Thank you very much for your prayers and for your concern for the continuity of the work. Kwaku Sarkodie replaces Gladys Bulley as the Managing Director of the children’s home. He has a Bachelors Degree in Mathematics and a Masters Degree in Business Adminstration. In the past, he taught Mathematics and ran a family poultry business. Kwaku has been a member of the church of Christ in Bantama, Kumasi nearly all his life. He has taken on many roles including church secretary and Sunday School teacher.

Here to run Hope Christian Academy is Ebenezer Sackey who became a member of the Winneba church of Christ as a teenager and is well-known as an experienced song teacher and leader of campus ministries among the churches of Christ in southern Ghana. He has worked in the field of education for over thirty years, holds a Bachelor of Arts in French with a Diploma in Education; as well as a Master of Philosophy in French. Most importantly, both men are passionate about Village of Hope and what we stand for. We have the conviction that, with these two joining the team, Village of Hope can continue forward on the way to making Fetteh the compassion capital of Africa and making an eternal impact in the lives of the children that we care for.

OVERSIGHT Village of Hope is under the oversight of the Elders of Springtown Church of Christ, Springtown, Texas, USA and the Elders of Vertical Centre Church of Christ, Community Six, Tema, Ghana.

MINISTRIES Hope Children’s Village Hope Training Institute Hope Christian Academy Hope Christian Hospital Church of Christ School Hope College Hope Farms Church of Christ at Village of Hope Ayawaso Church of Christ Evangelism Church Planting and Strengthening

A Word from Doug Bryant I visited the Village of Hope in early January. When I say that I visited the Village of Hope, it is a larger statement than it seems at face value. I was able to spend time at the Church of Christ School in Nkwatia, the Hope Training Institute in Ayawaso, and stayed at the Village of Hope campus near Fetteh where I spent time in the children's village, the academy, the college, and the hospital. The Village of Hope is alive and strong, and so is God's presence there. Hope. A more fitting name could not be given to this mission work. When I travelled to Ayawaso and to Nkwatia, and travelled through all of the cities and villages in between, it was difficult to find hope in the great disparity between the “have's” and the “have not's”. Through this work, hope is being given to the orphaned, to the abandoned, to the deserted, to children and teenagers for whom hope would otherwise not be a word in their vocabulary. Doug Bryant is an Elder at Springtown church of Christ in Springtown, Texas. He has also, in the past, served the Springtown church as a Deacon and Youth Minister.

A new dynamic that I witnessed in contrast to written and verbal reports in the past is the number of older children at the VOH campus. While efforts still continue with young children, the Village of Hope is serving an aging population. The number of teenagers has now increased. What were once small children whose primary need was to be clean, to eat, and to learn, are now 12 or 14 or 18 teens, living together under the same roof, trying to become adults. What once was only a primary school serving children in grades KG through 9 has now added an additional campus for grades 10-12. I have been raising four sons, the youngest of which is now 14 years old. I have worked in the past as a Youth Minister at my church. I now work at a public school. I understand the challenges that come with teenagers. I hope that you also understand, either through children of your own or memories of your youth, the different dynamic this brings in discipline, in finances, in relationships, and in spiritual formation. The task only becomes more difficult for the staff as the children become older.

Two things impressed me during my recent visit: sustainability and local oversight. Most of the efforts in education are becoming self-sustaining. With only money for some capital improvements, such as buildings and buses, a plan is in place for the schools to be able to be independent of financial support from outside sources. This goal is being quickly realized. I was also privileged to meet with the elders at Vertical Centre church of Christ in Tema. The Village of Hope has grown and become known in Ghana through their oversight. It is a blessing to have strong churches in Ghana to support a Ghanaian ministry to children. Where the Village of Hope exists in Ghana, it is God's hands, feet, mouth, eyes, and ears. May he continue to bless his work there. And may he continue to bless you through your support of his work. “This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord's people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, others will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. And in their prayers for you, their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!” (2 Corinthians 9:12-15, NIV ) -Doug Bryant

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Breaking the Cycle of Poverty and Hopelessness for Street Teenagers Scenes from the Quarry - Children, Teens & Adults Break their Backs

Like Teens Everywhere: Teens of the Quarry Have Plans for the Future

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ife can sometimes be cruel for teenagers who, through no fault of theirs, find themselves on the streets of Accra – Ghana's capital – without education, jobs, money, food or hope. These teenagers are not criminals. They are not involved in drugs or other substance abuse. They are on the streets for survival because families that are too poor to provide them with the basic needs of life have left them to fend for themselves. In the city of Accra, many of them engage in menial jobs such as shining shoes or selling on the streets to get enough money for food; sometimes, just for a meal a day. At night they sleep in front of stores (that have closed for the day), under market stalls, at street corners and literally anywhere they can lay their heads in the slums of the city where crime rates are high and they often get their little earnings stolen. Sometimes, some of the girls are raped, get pregnant and give birth to children whom they live with on the streets. In the recent past some of these teenagers are moving out of the city-center to work in quarries at the outskirts of the city where they feel somewhat safer.

Breaking rocks is a backbreaking job. These teenagers have to bend and crack the rocks with hammers in the hot sun all day. Many times they crush their own fingers with their hammers but have no money to go to the hospital when they are injured. They work and live under very harsh conditions but the worst part is that crushing rocks also crushes their spirits. They see no prospects of a better life ahead of them beyond the daily grind of a job that was once reserved for prisoners. Indeed, they see themselves as imprisoned in a cycle of poverty. With their spirits crushed, they live in hopelessness. It is this hopelessness that we at Village of Hope are working hard to break. Through the sharing of food, Bible teaching and counseling, we help these street teenagers to be free both physically and spiritually. Those we help to move off the streets are trained to acquire vocational skills at Hope Training Institute and to live productive independent lives after their training.

Some of the Girls who Work at the Quarry

At the beginning of 2014, the street teens program coordinators asked the teenagers from the quarry site to share their dreams, hopes and goals for the New Year. Their thoughts were insightful. Two of the girls went beyond sharing their dreams; they pleaded for

immediate help to realize those dreams. Mary asked for help to enable her become an auto-mechanic, an unusual request to be made by a girl; as, in Ghana, the field of automechanics is considered the preserve of men. But she is determined and is pleading for help. Edem aspires to be a caterer. When asked to explain further, she rattled a long list of Ghanaian, continental, Chinese and other foreign dishes and pastries that she wants to be able to prepare for her future clients.

Mary: Future Auto-mechanic

Edem: Future Caterer

With your help, we can help Mary and Edem, not only to move off the streets but to realize their dreams and aspirations. Hope Training Institute added auto-mechanics to its training programs about five years ago and Mary is likely to be the program's first female student. Last year, Hope Training Institute began teaching catering and so we are now in a position to help Edem. Any gift you give towards the street teenagers program goes a long way to feed, teach and train some teens on the street and help them move off the streets. We currently have 60 students training at Hope Training Institute at Ayawaso and are feeding about twice that number on the streets. Please help us so we can move Mary and Edem off the streets and help many more like them.

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Homecoming

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2013

When the school holidays began in December, everyone started trooping home. Before Christmas, the majority of the children of Village of Hope were in Fetteh for yet another reunion. It was all fun and fellowship straight into the New Year. Together, on December 31, we gave praise and thanks to God for his blessings in 2013 and welcomed 2014 with the traditional bonfire. Happy New Year!

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Let’s Put Church of Christ School on its Feet

$50k Ministers, Children and Staff of Village of Hope

CONSIDER THESE FACTS: - Church of Christ School is ranked third in the county. - Children from almost ten communities in the county are enrolled at the school. - The school has two very old and small buses that break down frequently and drain the school’s finances. - The nursery section is overcrowded for lack of classroom space. In 2000 we asked for help to construct of a building for Hope Christian Academy with the promise that the academy would become self-sustaining when the infrastructure was provided. Today, it is indeed selfsustaining. Now, Church of Christ School needs your help for two school buses and a four-classroom nursery building. If that can be done then this school will also become self-sustaining. We are making a request for a one-time assistance to raise $50,000 for 2 buses and $8,000 per classroom to build a fourclassroom nursery building.

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per classroom

Visit from Springtown Elders

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Mike & Doug Meet with Elders of Vertical Centre Church of Christ in Tema

At the Street Teenagers Program’s Counseling Center at Katapor

In the Office of the Managing Director of Hope Training Institute

ithin a seemingly short period of time, it has actually been a year now since the oversight of Village of Hope in the United States was transferred from Ghana West Africa Missions to Springtown church of Christ in Springtown, Texas. Therefore, after a year of such partnership and successful cooperation between the Springtown church and Village of Hope in Ghana, it was not out of place for Mike Hall and Doug Bryant, two elders of Springtown church of Christ, to make a short trip to Ghana to visit the work and learn as much as they can in preparation for the year ahead. Mike and Doug’s itinerary was pretty packed and, within the one week that they were in Ghana, they had the opportunity to spend time with the children, staff and management of every ministry of Village of Hope. The two elders also met with the elders of Vertical Centre church of Christ who have oversight over Village of Hope in Ghana. Some of the Boards of the ministries of Village of Hope were able to get together to speak with Mike and Doug to give them a sense of their vision for the next few years. In all their interactions, the two elders encouraged the staff in many ways. The young children and teenagers also received their share of fatherly advice pointing them in the right direction especially with respect to their education and their conduct. It was particularly interesting because many of the teenagers and college students were in elementary school the last time they met Mike Hall.

Mike & Doug Interact with Staff of Hope Children’s Village

Staff of Hope Christian Academy Spend Time with Mike & Doug

Village of Hope Management Team Poses with Mike Hall & Doug Bryant

At the end of the visit, the elders of Springtown church and the leaders of Village of Hope were on the same page on the direction of Village of Hope for the next three to five years. We hope that the relationship between Village of Hope and Springtown church of Christ will be strengthened in 2014 and beyond. Mike & Doug Speak with Bright & Samuel During a Visit to the Farm

At the Church of Christ School in Nkwatia, Eastern Region of Ghana

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2013 Honor/Memorial Contributors List IN MEMORY OF... Johnny Augustini Dave & Diana Best Edith Howard Marifred Johnston Dianne Shull Dave & Diana Best Virginia Westerman George Westerman John & Earlene Meacham Keri L. Murphy Norman & Giuseppina Scaglione William J. Sowerby Gunther & Jane Schlender Robert & Beverly Blair Timothy & Mary Lewis Anonymous Donor Wilfred D. & Linda S. Merkel Michael & Sandra Parker

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IN HONOR OF... Mr. & Mrs. Fred Asare Lyle & Clara Johnson Gary Brantley Betty Berry Mr. & Mrs. Roland Bulley Lyle & Clara Johnson Jill Fainter Barbara Meador Todd & Jill Griffith Glenn E. & Susan T. Griffith Jim Hambrick Sandy Oster Rose Merry Brown Mrs. Wanda Hayes Jerry & Dorothy Escue Linda Meador Barbara Meador Rich and Tracey Roth Anonymous Donor

Anniversary Joe & Mary Lou McKissick's 61st Patricia Hernandez Birthday Alexis Hackmann James B. & Mary K. Seymour Daniel E. & Darcy L. Glidewell Ashley J. & Thomas S. Margulis Jacob J. & Hilary W. Cedergreen Hadley Hackmann Daniel E. & Darcy L. Glidewell Blake & Kathleen Birchfield David & Anna Poger James & Jami Cohen Wedding Michael and Rae Santos Cheri Blomquist