Wednesday, August 13, 2008

OXFORD VOLUNTEERS REHABILITATE KUMASI CHILDREN'S HOME (PAGE 24)

A group of young volunteers from Oxford, in the United Kingdom, has rehabilitated the main block of the Kumasi Children's Home to improve the living conditions of the inmates.
Known as the Themish Volunteers, the group which is made up of young men and women, painted the block to give it a new outlook, and also replaced three water closets that were in a very deplorable state.
They also rehabilitated the showers, replaced broken louvre blades that had exposed the inmates to the vagaries of the weather, especially when it rained. The group of volunteers also donated a gas cooker to the Home to facilitate preparation of meals for the inmates.
One of their leaders, Mr Paul Stockley, told the Daily Graphic that their attention was drawn to the plight of the inmates through a Ghanaian friend, Mr Isaac Nketia, who was resident in Kumasi.
He said they were in the country to learn the culture and traditional values of Ghanaians, but "we decided to assist the inmates of the Kumasi Children's Home and establish a bond of friendship between us".
"The walls looked very bad when we came and their toilets and showers were not the best, so we immediately decided to contribute to fix them before we leave for the United Kingdom," he noted.
Mr Stockley said the main floor of the block was also in a deplorable state and this could cause some of the young ones to get injured anytime they wanted to play "but since we do not have sufficient funds to rehabilitate it we have decided to go back and raise more funds to rehabilitate it during our next visit to Kumasi".
"With a new outlook at their block, the inmates will look more comfortable and enjoy their stay. This will make it possible for them to grow and develop their potential to enable them contribute to the development of society," he stressed.
The Supervisor of the home, Madam Victoria Asumgnya, commended the Themish Volunteers from Oxford for their gesture, and called for more of such assistance to enable the inmates feel more at home.
She said prior to the fixing of the louvre blades, for example, the inmates always felt uncomfortable anytime it rained.
She said the toilets were also in a very deplorable state, "but thanks to the volunteers they now look better".
She also commended the volunteers for providing them with a gas cooker and "that will make it easy for us to prepare meals for the inmates".

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