SV soph spends summer in Ghana
CRANBERRY TWP — One Seneca Valley High School sophomore had a life-changing experience after a summer trip to an orphanage in Ghana.
The connection she made with the orphans and villagers is so strong that Chloe Roy, 15, is already planning to return next summer.
“Truthfully, going into it I had no idea what to expect,” Chloe said. “I never expected to grow so close and so in love with the people and the culture.”
Chloe traveled to the rural village of Awutu Bawjiase in Ghana, Africa, and stayed from July 29 to Aug. 14 with her godmother, Jeanette Valentine. The village is about two hours from Accra, the capital of Ghana, said Amy Roy, Chloe's mother.
Chloe has been looking for ways to volunteer in Africa for years, especially to work with children, she said. Finally she found an opportunity through the Global Volunteer Network to work in an orphanage in Ghana. After researching the region and the culture, she knew it was the right place for her.
The orphanage houses people from age 4 to 22 and had a number of self-sustaining projects, like a farm and a school, Chloe said.
Days were spent working on the farm and doing other projects around the orphanage. She buddied up to the children, especially those near her age, to help them wash clothes, clean dishes and cook, Chloe said.
During the trip, it was just her and her godmother volunteering at the orphanage, which Chloe thinks allowed her to connect more with the kids.
“It was unique being immersed in their culture, but at the same time they were so open when it came to getting the full experience of the food, the language,” Chloe said. “They wanted to know everything about where I came from.”
The lack of a language barrier surprised her. Chloe said while the children grew up speaking Twi — a variety of Akan that is spoken by about 7 million people, mainly in Ghana — once they began school they learned to write and speak English. So the older children especially were fluent in English, she said.
Chloe also was surprised by how quickly she was able to pick up Twi while being immersed in the language. She began learning the language formally after she came home to prepare for her return trip next year.
“It's very culturally different, but Chloe made some very good friends while she was there,” Amy Roy said. “Even though these people are from different walks of life, she was surprised by how much she had in common with these kids.”
After Chloe returned home, the village and children in Ghana were still on her mind. Chloe wanted to send supplies back to the kids, but sending items through the post office to Ghana was not possible, the Roys discovered. However they did find a Ghanian shipper who sent items to the country in bulk.
So the Roys filled a 55-gallon barrel with school supplies, clothes and other supplies and sent it to the village.
Chloe also was struck by the lack of access to good medical care in the area. There was a clinic that was understaffed and lacked basic medical equipment and a village medicine man, she said. Her new goal is to raise money for the clinic by the time she returns next summer.
“We want to be able to get them basic medical equipment that can benefit dozens of people,” she said.
Chloe hopes to return for at least a month during her summer break to continue the work she started last summer. It's one of the only things getting her through the school year, she said.
