Will I work for CRS the rest of my life (I’m in my early 30s)? Who knows? If I do end up back in the States, I think it will be hard to adjust to a life that isn’t as emotionally intense as this. I hear a lot of very personal stories. To find these and document them is immensely fulfilling. It could be hard to not have that as part of my life.

Thanks for your question,
Lane Hartill, CRS West Africa

In April 2009, 45 caretakers of orphans and vulnerable children graduated from a two-week program in food processing, sponsored by CRS’ partner the Catholic Diocese of Tanga and funded by an PEPFAR project. Photo by Debbie DeVoe/CRS

When the women break into song as we enter the room, it’s not just a welcoming greeting. It’s a song of thanks for the help they are receiving starting small businesses.

Up in Tanga, on Tanzania’s northern coast, scores of children have lost one or both parents to AIDS, leaving them to face enormous challenges:

• When one parent dies, the other is left as the sole earner and is rarely able to cover the family’s food and schooling expenses.

• When both parents die, the children are often taken in by relatives whose resources are already stretched exceedingly thin to support their own families.

• When no relatives are available or willing to assist, the eldest orphan can end up caring for his or her younger siblings, becoming the head of their household even when as young as 14—and likely dropping out of school to do so.

Catholic Relief Services through funding through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) is helping to support thousands of orphans across Africa. A key aspect of supporting these children is helping their caregivers earn a better living.

Recently, 45 women in Tanga graduated from a two-week program in food processing. They learned how to make and package multiple products, including sauces, juices and jam. These single parents and guardians of orphans can now use these skills to earn additional money.

Individual grants of about $40 are also giving the women needed capital to purchase initial supplies and equipment for small businesses of their choosing. The grants and training, along with significant educational support for the orphans in each household, are enabling families to escape daily hunger and keep children in school—changing their lives in ways most Americans simply can’t imagine.

— Debbie DeVoe, CRS regional information officer, East Africa

A member of St. John Mary Vianney parish near Seattle greets schoolchildren on a visit to northern Ghana. The parish led an effort to help CRS build nearly 20 wells throughout northern Ghana.Photo courtesy St. John Mary Vianney parish

While visiting villages in northern Ghana, members of a Seattle parish were confronted with the realities of extreme poverty.

One image that stayed with pastoral assistant Jan Kline is when a mother thrust her baby into a parishioner ‘s arms and gestured for them to take the child with them.  While it may seem unfathomable for a mother to entrust her child to strangers, Jan explains: “She was indicating that she wanted them to give her child a chance.” And she had reason to.

In the three northern regions, 76 percent of Ghanaians are illiterate-the highest rate in the country. Villages here have long lacked access to clean drinking water, which led to a spread of the guinea worm disease.

Upon arriving in villages throughout northern Ghana, Jan says she was struck by the number of children selling items on the roadside.

The poverty “really blasts you,” she says. “It’s not something that you really process until all these things start adding up.” Then you understand why this mother did what she did.  “Every mother across the planet wants the best for their child,” she says.

Members of St. John Mary Vianney parish helped CRS build wells throughout northern Ghana.

shekinah clinic

The Shekinah Clinic fully embodies the Catholic Social Teaching principle of Respect for Life/Human Dignity. Supoorted by Catholic Relief Services for several years now, here care comes in the form of love first with medical care secondary. The 35 volunteers who work in the clinic and surrounding communities validate the concerns of their patients. Everyone who works for the clinic including its founder Dr. David Abdulai, other licensed doctors and nurses, caregivers to those in the hospice homes and the surgical nurse who learned through practical experience, not formal training, receive compensation in the form of small amounts of food and the sharing of donations such as used clothing. All of these people are volunteers and theirs is a mission of love.

Surrounding the clinic are huts built and maintained by villages for patients to stay in when they are far from home. Unfortunately some of the modest huts stand in disrepair from neglect by their contributing communities. The clinic has a laboratory but can’t find a technician willing to volunteer his or her time to run it. With 165 patients living at the clinic and the 60 people it sees on a daily basis, the clinic is a very busy place.

This clinic provides its services free of charge, a radical concept here in Ghana. Dr. Abdulai became a bit of an outcast when he opened the clinic in 1991. Many shared the common thought, “There must be something wrong with a man who provides free services.” This clinic, his clinic, was built out of love. Patients receive care in the form of doctor consultations which always results in an affirmation of the person and in the very least some vitamins, surgical operations, hospice for HIV/AIDS patients with free medical care, meals on wheels for about 80 elderly and mentally handicapped patients, support for abandoned lepers residing at the clinic and weekly care to the prisons which includes free daily meals to the ten most malnourished prisoners. The food support for those living at the clinic is provided by CRS.

The mutual respect between the clients and the volunteers was quite evident. As we made our way around the clinic, Mr. Shaibu Muniru, a very thorough clinic staff, introduced his patients in hospice care and those suffering from leprosy living in small rooms by name. This clinic is a living testimony to the power of love!

An afterthought. Solidarity is all about listening. It is saying, “I am here for you.” It is not strategizing, forming opinions or telling the other how to solve her or his problems. Where is the dignity in that? Shouldn’t the answers come from the experts, the ones affected most? It is asking, “What can I do to help you?” And genuinely mean it. Solidarity is saying, “I am here for you.”

FOJ 2008 delegation pose with Thomas, Jonathan, Williams and Baba at the grounds of the Jesuit Retreat Center in Cape Coast, Ghana.

As we leave Ghana and begin to make our long journey back home – a journey marred with anticipation and anxiety, excitement and trepidation, sorrow and joy – I cannot help but recognize that our Frontiers of Justice delegation is not the same group of people who arrived in Baltimore on June 25, 2008. Like the soil used by countless farmers in Burkina Faso and Ghana, our hearts, minds and lives have been turned and tilled unearthing in each of us a new way of seeing the world and transforming the way that we hear, see and experience the Gospel message lived out in the ordinary and extraordinary. Like Peter, James and John (Luke 9: 26 – 38), we have had a transformative mountaintop experience and are now faced with the prospect of beginning our descent down the mountain and returning home to our families, friends and communities.

Seeing the world through the eyes of our brothers and sisters in Burkina Faso and Ghana, we are called to share our renewed vision with those who have the eyes to see. Listening to the world with a heartened sense of compassion and understanding, we are called to share what we have experienced with those who have the ears to hear. Through our Frontiers of Justice journey in Burkina Faso and Ghana, we have encountered:

• A world in which the stranger is always welcome and two worlds can become one.
• A world in which the visitor is cherished, highly anticipated and the visit is rarely forgotten.
• A world in which the words "You are Welcome" are genuinely offered as a greeting and a rich symbol of hospitality.
• A world which invests in the human person as an integral and authentic part of human development.
• A world in which natural resources are cultivated and shared in promotion of the common good.
• A world in which nothing – and I mean nothing – goes to waste.
• A world in which the Catholic Church works in partnership with CRS to bring hope to people without hope and food to people without food.
• A world where school administrators like Fr. Francis and Mrs. Gamma have learned to do more with less, accomplishing much with limited resources.
• A world in which we are called to share our poverty and our wealth with one another.
• A world formed by the loving hands and heart of our Creator, to be cared for, cultivated and shared with all members of our one human family.
• A Eucharistic world where, by sharing our brokenness, we can cross the borders that separate us and live in solidarity as brothers and sisters in Christ.

"You are welcome!" What does this mean? In American culture we usually shorten the phrase to "You’re welcome." The vast majority of time when I reply "You’re welcome," I say it because that is just what you say as a response to someone after a thank you; I don’t give it much thought I just say it.

However, I think I can speak for all of us in the Frontiers of Justice 2008 delegation when I say that ,"You are welcome!" took on a whole new meaning while in Ghana. Whenever we encountered new people their very first greeting was always "You are welcome!" with the warmest smiles. At first that seemed out of context and a bit strange, yet we quickly grew accustomed to it and we truly knew that, yes we were welcome!

We were indeed welcome in Ghana. Sometimes, we witnessed the "You are welcome!" visually. We were constantly greeted by the children alongside the road or working in the fields with a huge grin and an exuberant hand waving hello. We were welcomed with a round of applause at mass. We were welcomed in schools and homes. We were welcomed in the most remote villages.

We were welcomed by the CRS staff especially Thomas Awiapo who coordinated our Ghana visit and the excellent CRS drivers Baba, Williams and Jonathan who did not fail to greet us "You are welcome!" each morning as we set off on another day of travel.

At the sites we visited (schools, orphanages, HIV centers, diocesan offices) we were greeted with a personal handshake. This handshake was full of life, love and warmth. The phrase "You are welcome!" was repeated time after time, from person to person. Yes, we were strangers in a new land but we instantly felt we were part of one human family.

Finally, we were welcomed by the people CRS serves—the most vulnerable and under served in society. Even from those that have little, they welcomed us as if we were long lost family. At the end of our visit we were given guinea fowl eggs, peanuts and even live chickens. Yes, we were welcomed by the most inspiring, hardworking, hope-filled people we’ve ever met even if they struggle to live day by day.

Now the phrase "You are welcome!" is no longer foreign or unfamiliar. It is one that is enduring, real and an invitation to take part in a family that extends past our own families, nations, ethnicities and religions. "You are welcome!" truly embodies the CRS mission of global solidarity.

Don’t be fooled by the red, dusty road leading into the diocese of Damongo, they are paving roads of a very different kind there, roads of hope and solidarity! Damongo is a large diocese in the northern region of Ghana. It is a poor area, often affected by long droughts or the ravages of flooding, but it is making impressive strides in two important areas, girls’ education and peace building and conflict resolution.

Bishop Philip Naamah spoke to us passionately about St. Anne’s Girls Senior HS and how it came into being. When the bishop first came to Domomgo in 1995 he found that 96% of all the women were illiterate – unacceptable to him. During colonial times, missionaries were not allowed in the area and we learned that the British mainly saw the area as nothing more than to provide a workforce for the mining industries of the south. Even when primary education was introduced, he saw that most of the girls finished Primary 6 and were married off soon after, leaving the question in many minds, “Why educate girls at all?” To combat the problem the diocese opened a girl’s boarding school and found that, with the absence of the typical female evening chores of collecting water and firewood for the family, the girls scored extremely high in the state exams. The bishop joked that people were amazed, it suddenly dawned on them that girls were intelligent after all! He also spoke about how the school sparked multi-ethnic friendships, with people forgetting all about tribal disputes in the midst of their studies. This all led to the opening of St. Anne’s HS eight years ago. In its first year 28 out of the 30 girls enrolled went on to third level education. An undeniable success!

The second project I mentioned is the Center for Conflict Transformation and Peace Studies (CECOTAS). Appropriately the center sits in a very quite area, surrounded only by great trees and the sounds of the birds. The goal of the center is to introduce peace building and conflict resolution in an area plagues by tribal disputes, and questions of succession and land ownership.

The center works closely with the diocese (and CRS as a partner) and states that its mission is “An enabling environment created for authentic human development through the internalization of the culture of peace in all communities.” Fr. Lazarus spoke about the colonial legacy of minor and paramount chiefs and how their various rights and entitlements have never been clearly stated in law. As we have heard so often on this trip the issue goes back to poverty where the paramount chiefs will overtax the minor chiefs, who they see as subjects. The cycle continues and often ends in violent disputes. In one of the worst cases in 1994, 2000 people dies, 200,000 were displaced and 144 villages were destroyed. Fr. Lazarus and the center reach out to the different groups and engage them in talks about perception and the true meaning of justice. They have proved success in mediation and bring groups together to “drink from the same calabash.” They have also been successful in individual cases and cases of domestic violence. He also spoke to us and how everyone needs to learn to tread carefully to avoid new disputes, whether it’s priests, teachers or NGOs trying to decide where to drill the next borehole.

I think we have a lot to learn from the great work being done by the in this quiet corner of the world. peaceful solutions exist, sometimes we just need a push in the right direction.

Sometimes, after hearing the struggles of people facing extreme poverty, you begin losing sight of hope. Your eyes become fixed on the dehumanizing images and your mind can only focus on the stories of grief and hardship. After one week of traveling where we visited a malnutrition center, microfinance projects, HIV/AIDS education and clinic, and a few centers that have taken in abandoned or shunned women and children, I have found small miracles of hope. These miracles of hope are seen in the local CRS staff members and their partnerships with other community and church leaders who have empowered people, especially women, and as a result they are able to live better. Whether it has been a woman telling me she now can feed her children and send them to schools, or another woman who has been ostracized because the accusation of witchcraft now finds refugee in a center where she meets 400 other woman with the same story, or woman in a rural area having access to food and ARV drugs, all of these woman have been miracles of hope. What I have learned from these women is if we choose to live, then we must choose to hope. It takes risk and a leap of faith to hope. To hope in our God and to hope in each other. How does one pay gratitude for this lesson?

Before and throughout this whole trip, I have been challenged by the question of how we live in solidarity with one another. Yesterday, the 10 of us had mass outside on a hill overlooking beautiful trees and in the distance we heard the drums of a celebration in the village. Fr. Roger spoke about how there are about 40 wells because of a partnership with parishes in Michigan. These communities have safe and clean drinking water, because of help from others, perhaps another miracle of hope. As we shared together the Eucharistic prayer, it was then that I forgot where I came from. I forgot I was white. I forgot I was a woman. I forgot I was American. I forgot I was a teacher.

All I knew was that I was a child of God. It was a moment that moved me deeply. A moment that made me realize it is our dignity as children of God that unifies us even when the world around us divides us. While the reality of the world creates gaps, my love and concern for our human family grows closer. This is one reason why I was lead to be here. To learn, to question, and to empower our youth to work towards justice. How does one live solidarity? And is it possible? I do not know the answer. As the poet Rilke says, “Live the questions. And one distant day you will live into your answer.

Sinead Naughton, a member of our delegation and a CRS fair trade ambassador learns how to weave a basket.

On the seventh day of the Frontiers of Justice visit, the group visited Trade Aid, a fair trade association of basket weavers in Ghana. After spending three wonderful days in Navrongo meeting Catholic education officials and visiting high schools including the St. John’s Integrated Technical High School, one of three secondary schools for the deaf in Ghana where the deaf students gave a sign name to each member of our delegations we moved on to Bolgatanga where we visited Trade Aid, a fair trade association of basket weavers that works in partnership with A Greater Gift.

Here is Sinead Naughton’s reflection on the visit with the basket weavers of trade aid.

After being introduced to the concept of Fair Trade by CRS a few years ago I often talk to people about the value of “Shopping with a Conscience.” That said the concept has never been as clear to be as today with a short trip to a shed in the middle of a field to visit the basket weavers of Bolgatonga. The ladies (and one gentleman weaver) we met there are all a part of Trade Aid, an NGO based in this Upper region of Ghana.

Trade Aid Integrated was started as a college economics project in 1995.  Nicholas Apokerah and his friends watched as some prospecting was being done in their region and were fearful of environmental degradation.  In an area that has little agricultural success or other enterprise, they wanted to find a way for the locals to make a decent living.  The local indigenous livelihoods provided them with the answer they needed.

Today the organization provides training, supplies, marketing and business support for the people, in basket weaving and some small agricultural projects.  There are 225 weavers currently involved (81% are women) earning a decent wage for their skills.

We spoke to some of the weavers who were happy to be able to have a steady income at last to pay for their children’s education and health care needs from these earnings.

As I left there with my beautifully woven bright green handbag, I felt such a strong connection to the weavers through the object.  It had taken two days to weave the bag, and had passed through many sets of hands, each with their own skill – pattern design, dying, weaving and so forth.  Making a Fair Trade choice gives dignity back to the world’s workers and as I have often heard the most important thing about work is that it is done by a human being.  My bag is unique and special and gives the true meaning to the “Work of Human Hands.”

Please check out www.crs.faritradre.org to learn more about Fair Trade or to buy goods from these weavers or from many other Fair Trade projects worldwide.

We awoke at 5:00 A.M. this morning. It was necessary to do so if we wanted to join the students of Notre Dame Minor Seminary/High School in Navrongo for morning Mass at 5:40 A.M.. Having visited two primary schools in Burkina Faso, we were all looking forward to our first visit to a Catholic secondary school in Ghana.

Notre Dame, one of three Catholic secondary schools in the Diocese of Navrongo-Bolgatanga (one of the northern-most dioceses in Ghana), has been providing a quality Catholic education to boys throughout this region of the country since 1960. A boarding school for 260 boys, the students are served by an incredibly dedicated faculty, staff and administration made up of two priests, one religious sister and several lay men and women. Fr. Francis Kodelgo–the Rector/Principal of Notre Dame–was the first to welcome us upon our arrival on campus.

On this, the feast of St. Thomas the Apostle, Fr. Francis challenged us and the students to remain curious, not be afraid to ask questions, and, like St. Thomas, allow what we see to transform our hearts and strengthen our belief. Like St. Thomas, we have witnessed firsthand the presence of the Lord, made known to us in the students, faculty and administration of Notre Dame.

A student at St. John’s Integrated School thanks the group for visiting their school through sign language

We have seen and we believe in the teaching mission of the Catholic Church in Africa. If not for the French Missionaries that first established this school in northern Ghana in 1960, many of these students, and those who have graduated prior to them, would not receive the education necessary to escape the cycle of extreme poverty. Ranked annually as one of the best performing schools in the country, Notre Dame continually produces young men who go on to serve the nation of Ghana as doctors, teachers, politicians, civil servants, etc…How blessed the Church is to have people like Fr. Francis, Sr. Martina, and the dedicated lay men and women who make up the faculty of Notre Dame Minor Seminary/Secondary School to shape and mold these young men by sharing their knowledge, faith and lives with them.

We have seen and we believe that miracles can and do happen when students receive three meals a day on as little as eighty-cents (US) per day. Many of these boys know of CRS as they participated in the CRS feeding programs in their primary schools. With their plate, fork and cup in hand (taken from their simple wooden locker), the students gather in the dining hall and gather around the table for breakfast, lunch and supper. In three weeks, however, many of these same students will go home for a two-month vacation and only have one meal a day to nourish their bodies.

We have seen and we believe in the fraternity of brotherhood – a bond that these young men share as they live together, laugh together, share meals, sing and pray together. How blessed they are to be forming life-long bonds of friendship with one another in a strong faith-based community!

We have seen and we believe in the joy of a student’s smile, the excitement that comes from learning, and the hope that the gift of Catholic education provides for their future.

We have seen and we believe!