News from Ghana - Spring 2008

Hello from Tema Ghana - Frank Miller, April 16, 2008

Well I finally have somewhat reliable internet service today, so I thought I would shoot off a quick e-mail.  Have been here a week now and in some ways it seems much longer, but Dave and I are feeling anxious as to how fast it is going, and the amount of ground to cover yet. Today is an "off" day as we are not traveling. I was not feeling too good this morning, but am better now. A little gastro-intestinal distress! Something I ate somewhere - it wasn't too bad though.

We met with Kris Klokenka, plant manager of the ADM shea nut processing plant here in Tema, and learned a lot about the process of gathering the nuts in the north, and what would need done to get the nuts to the plant here. The main use of the nuts is extracting the oils that will be shipped to Germany for production of Chocolate (and I as most thought all we needed is cocoa!)We will travel to Tamale, in the north of Ghana, on Friday for about 5 days which is the region where these nuts grow. We are hoping to organize the peoples in this any so as to harvest these nuts efficiently, and provide much needed income to these people groups. This can make a huge difference in these people's lives. Pray for us as the temperatures in this region can go as high as 120 in the heat of the day! We have been in some hot situations already, but nothing near this hot. At the house here in Tema I have gone to sleeping without the air, so as not to get "too use to it" :-), and be able to tolerate the higher temps to come.

We have visited some of the other on-going projects here, and I find there is still much to do!!  Some projects are doing very well and some are still struggling. I wish I could say conditions have improved a lot since my last trip, but unfortunately not! ‘Still a lot to do for the Ghanaian people. The good thing is the church plants are doing well and the people's faith remains strong!!! Many people are being baptized, and the Kingdom of God is growing in Africa!  One young pastor we visited with has had 60 baptisms in a little over a year. Most of these are people coming from an idol-worshipping background! Most of the Pastors are FIRST GENERATION CHRISTIANS!! It is amazing to hear some of their stories!
 
I hope this e-mail finds all of you well,

I will try to write again sometime - but no guarantees :-)

Frank <><

Frank Miller is from Columbus, IN. Frank’s role is to help David evaluate the needs and the progress of this, his 2nd trip to Ghana.

Greetings - Dave Douglass, April 25, 2008

Greetings! In about 5 hours, we'll be heading back up to the northern regions of Ghana for several days. I doubt that there will be any inter net (it's been pretty spotty here as it is) access, so I just wanted to share a few thoughts with you. (we've also lost power several times and combined with internet problems, its been very hard to up load pictures and videos).

As a first time visitor to Ghana, I’m hesitant to draw any conclusions from my observations and experiences so far. While I have been here for more than a week now, I find that I’m still processing all that I have seen and done so far.

Although I’m not a particular baseball fan, I can’t help but be drawn to some baseball analogies while digesting everything that confronts me when visiting Ghana for the first time.

It seems like so many ‘hittable balls’ are tossed at you everywhere you turn. Each ball demands your attention and seems hittable enough, no matter the size of your bat. Each ball also serves as a distraction, the old ‘win the inning but lose the game’ type of thing.

As the balls come sailing by, one must be guarded against the very real temptation to consider one’s own selfish motives to hit every ball ~ ie: if I hit a home run, won’t I really be ‘significant’ in their eyes and I the eyes of those back home. And in a sense, there’s a real temptation to play ‘God’ with resources that, while scare everywhere, must seem a kings ransom in the eyes of most Ghanaians.   I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Jesus faced the same temptations in the desert.

Not being a baseball player, I’m not  aware of the strategy involved in base hits, sacrifice outs, bunts and walks. But I know batting involves the bigger picture – not just the moment and not just the current batter – but rather the team as a whole and playing good defense and offense. To put it all together takes a good manager and a team willing to head his direction, even when it differs from your thoughts and desires.  Like in baseball, here in Ghana, the distractions are plenty. The needs are so great and immediate.  Should you take the easy base hit, losing sight of the home run? Does the time and energy and resources required for a home run ignore the immediate needs? At what price is the base hit ignored? Is a walk bad if it’s two more batters till the clean up man is up to bat?

I guess you get the idea – so many immediate needs, so many opportunities to help those in need. Even the many that have been already been helped by MRI need follow-up, guidance, encouragement, direction and prayer. Some need additional resources. Who to pitch to and who to pinch-hit?

Thankfully, we can look to Jesus as our ‘manager’ to guide us and to the biblical principals we find contained in the scriptures. These are key as we confront our own biases, cultural norms and expectations as they clash in this society.

While so many scriptures might apply to the many situations I’ve seen so far here in Ghana, I find Luke 6:33-37 constantly boiling to the top.

"If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' lend to 'sinners,' expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

"Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."


And with that I leave off for now. I have no profound insight or observations that I’m sure haven’t been shared or made by the many who have one before me.  There is a desperate need here and the conditions of all kinds imaginable that Ghanaians are living under are staggering. Theirs is a society in which the majority of the population lives in (by Western Standards) unbearable and intolerable situations. Yet when we contrast the US with Ghana, we find the US has significantly higher rates of divorce, teen suicide, drug and alcohol abuse, domestic violence and mental illness. And education.

And amidst all of their turmoil, desperation and need, God is sufficient for the Christians here. I can’t help but wonder how many of us could make that same statement and have our actions, attitudes and thoughts justify it.

In all humility,

Dave Douglass

Dave Douglass is from Muncie, IN and his interest on the trip is to survey the possibility of a logistics operation to aid in transporting the shea nuts in the north to the processing plant in the south.

Ghana - Spring 2008 - David Ketchum

Tuesday, April 8 - David Douglass, Frank Miller and I arrived at the Kotoka International Airport in Accra, Ghana to the “Akwabaa” welcome sign and the smiling faces of Kris Klokkenga (Mission Resource board member and manager of the new shea nut processing plant in Tema, Ghana), Enoch Nyador (Director of Ghana Christian Mission), Emmanuel Akorli (financial accountant for GCM and field rep for Mission Resource), and Bob Thomas (missionary working with GCM).

Each time I get the privilege of returning to Ghana, it feels more and more like home. Arriving at 8am rather than 8pm made a huge difference as Frank Miller and I were able to accompany Enoch to his home village of Akplale to visit his mother, Teresa, interview pastor Ernest and his wife Patience about ways to help them with a small enterprise, and to see Ernest’s recently planted moringa trees.
Wednesday, April 9 - Began early as we left for the Divine Pineapple farm in Enyeme about a two plus hour drive through Accra and its horrendous traffic and then out into the semi-remote village where there are now 80,000 sugar loaf pineapples in different stages of maturity. It is hard to believe that the farm is approximately 5 times its original size. In fact, there is discussion about greatly enlarging it. We briefly stopped by UBKACC farm, the “piggery” on the way home to deliver some much needed donated veterinary medicines we brought with us thanks to vets Steve Newton from Columbus and Larry Rueff from Greensburg, IN.

Thursday, April 10 - We did not begin early as we felt we needed to catch up on our rest a little. We went to visit Wisdom Korsina and to see the plot of land they had put a down payment on. The two plots were paid for from income from the onion/pepper/watermelon farm, monies the church raised on its own as well as a new loan that we gave them that day to finish the payment for the property. It is pretty exciting to see how the new church plant is growing in only a year and a half. They have had over 50 new conversions and now have two plots of land to eventually build their building on. Not too far from Kasseh where the church is located is the mouth of the Volta River.Frank, Dave and I took a motorized canoe ride and saw many fishing villages, the beauty of many islands. It appeared that we would be caught in a storm as the clouds rolled in, but we only experienced a sprinkle.

Friday, April 11 - In the morning we left early for a trip up the eastern side of the country (including a ferry ride on the river) to interview a number of pastors to help them with small loans that will make a huge difference in their lives. They need extra money for their children’s school fees and expenses. The cost of living in Ghana has greatly increased in the last couple of years. Bread and most staples are probably triple what they were in 2004 when we first came as a family.

April 11-13 - Between Friday and Sunday evening we traveled nearly 500 miles, interviewed 7 pastors and their wives and worshipped at the chapel in Nkwanta that a group of DePauw students helped build in 2003. Sue and I, both DePauw alumni, had seen it previously, but we did not get the opportunity to worship there.

Monday, April 14 - The primary purpose for this visit is the Ghana Shea Nut Project, of which we are working with Kris Klokkenga, of Ghana Specialty Fats Ltd. Kris, who came to visit our projects last spring with his father, Jim, is now the General Manger of the large processing facility. We wanted to spend time with him and get his ideas on how best to go about collecting the nuts that can possibly help people in need that we know in the northern Muslim villages and the plant as well. We may be able to link many villages. The other exciting part of this opportunity is the introduction of the BUV (Basic Utility Vehicle) that may enable more nuts to be collected from the most remote areas.

April 15-17 - We had additional meetings on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. One of the key visits was with Ghana Evangelical Mission Association and their micro-finance arm. The president/founder of GEMA is on the Mission Resource Advisory Board and has agreed to help in the training and management of additional Mission Resource loans. Frank, Dave, and I attended one of their training session, which greatly impressed us. They are currently meeting in a building with only a partial roof and no windows.

Friday, April 18 - This morning we caught a 6:15am flight to northern Ghana. We made it to Tamale in one hour and fifteen minutes. Last year I made the trip by bus twice, and each time it took me more than eighteen hours. That made the trip really nice. We met with Kris, their procurement officer, and with our other ministry partner in the north, King Hammond. We learned more about the shea nut business, how it is collected, the transport, and processing that is done at the village level. It appeared as we talked throughout the weekend and as we visited a few villages that there is great potential to be involved.

Sunday, April 20 - Dave Douglass and Emmanuel Akorli, the field representative for Mission Resource, flew back on Sunday after church. Dave preached at Sanga, a village that King had worked with for many years before he went to minister in the northern region. Frank and I proceeded to drive to Salaga, a town where Frances Addae, one of our beloved friends works as an evangelist. Frank and I visited Chamba, another village about an hour or so away Sunday night where we visited with Kingsley and his wife Mercy, whom we helped with a loan a couple years ago. They were so happy to see us.

Monday, April 21 - Frank and I helped evaluate the “cold store” opportunity as well as interview two drivers who may be involved with two of the BUVs in the Salaga area. Both men are in the Salaga church. One has experience driving a farm tractor, and the other one was one of the first converts when Frances went to Salaga. We had to get to the Volta Lake by 10am for a 1pm launch to get in the queue. Currently there is only one trip per day, and there was great concern that if we did not get there early, we might not get on at all. Fortunately we made it with no problem, but there were certainly more vehicles on it than the last time I made the trip! The pickup truck we were driving was packed in so tightly, I could hardly get out of it. After arriving, we met with Pastor Samuel Mensah and many of his church leaders from the Yeji Christian Church. On the “pontoon” we met a young Swiss couple and gave them a ride. They ended up hanging out with us for a couple hours, hearing about the BUV, getting fed a great meal along with a “mineral”, the Ghanaian word for soft drink. The church leaders took them in as their guests and arranged for them to get a room for the night. Frank, Augustine (one of my closest Ghanaian friends), and I headed to Kumasi where we arrived around 10pm that night.

Tuesday, April 22 - The morning began with egg sandwiches and tea at the Mount Olives Guesthouse where I had stayed before. Unfortunately the power was off until the wee hours of the morning, and the night was not nearly as pleasant as I had anticipated. The previous two or three nights had been without power and quite hot as well. Anyway, we were able to see the Garden City Christian Church. Mission Resource helped with the building of the foundation that now has columns that the Chapel Rock Christian Church of Indianapolis helped erect in January. It is so marvelous how God works! I know it is the power of prayer, as the leadership of this congregation gets up to pray before dawn nearly every day of the week. Pastor’s wife, Ruth, was in her shop when we arrived, and we were able to pray with her and greet her. Pastor Paul was in the south of the country preparing for the burial of his senior brother. Death seems to be so close to life here in Africa. The life expectancy is not nearly what it is in the US.

Wednesday, April 23 - was a day filled with a meeting at the US Embassy with the senior commerce officer Diane Jones who was quite helpful. We then had a great “business” lunch with Prince Akpesey, another one of our Mission Resource Advisory members, who just learned in the last couple of weeks that he was one of four scholarship recipients to go the UK to get his MBA. Even though he was reluctant to share it, there were 600 applications. He will be given a leave of absence from the Atlantic Merchant Bank. Some day if you like, I will share with you this young man’s journey from the “village” to becoming a rising star in the investment banking business!

Thursday, April 24 - Today afforded us two great meetings. We met with a director of the Ghana Investment and Promotion Centre to learn more about business in Ghana. We then had a remarkable two hour meeting with Vanessa Adams, the enterprise Development Director for West Africa Trade Hub. She was extremely knowledgeable about shea nuts, as well as many other enterprise opportunities here - pineapples, baskets, etc. We pray that she will be a tremendous resource in the future.

Tomorrow will be a full day as we will spend the day exploring the opportunity to expand the pineapple farm and looking at potential land leases and acquisitions. Tomorrow evening we are planning to spend it with Jones Abbey at the Just By Grace Enterprise. That is the wholesale Nestle business. He is selling Lever Brothers products along with a host of other smaller household goods producers, as well.

We are looking forward to doing several more interviews throughout the weekend, worshiping with Ernestina on Sunday at Good Shepherd, and then having a concluding meeting with many of the potential leaders/pastors/evangelists from the north to learn even more about the potential in the Ghana Shea Nut Project.

I am sure each of you who heard that I would try to write regularly on this trip is disappointed. Please excuse me, but we have not had internet connections for most of the time. In addition, when we should have had it, it has been erratic or the power has been off. I have found out, though, that with one of the Ghana phone services, a Blackberry can provide pretty good coverage throughout the country. Perhaps I should consider that for the next trip.

All Because of Jesus,

David

David Ketchum is President/Founder of Mission Resource International.