The members of the GlobeMed at Northwestern GROW 2010 trip with Margaret Asante. Photo courtesy of Reema Ghatnekar / GlobeMed at Northwestern.
When I received a mail from the outgoing executives of GlobeMed 2009 introducing the next batch of students who will be visiting Hope Center in Ghana in 2010, I was really thrilled and at the same time curious. I wanted to know the caliber of students and how they can fit into our activities at the center like their predecessors. Mails were exchanged and my anxiety heightened by each day.
Between 13th June to 25th June Allyson arrived first, followed by Kathleen and Reema, then lastly Joey.
Allyson Westling
I christened Allyson, “Mother Allyson” due to her humility, wisdom and her approach to work; my anxiety and fears evaporated immediately as Allyson, the first to arrive quickly, grasped the whole concept of activities at the center. She soon took charge and started planning activities of her colleagues with such an ease that surprised every staff at the center. Her main objectives were to help develop the phase four of the nutrition program for the center and also help revise the partnership agreement between GlobeMed and Ghana Health Service. She worked tirelessly to achieve the objectives.
Reema Ghatnekar
The ‘wide-eyed’ Reema was full of enthusiasm, zeal and have a great passion to work with us at the center. Her objectives were community mapping, and help with the continuation of phase three of the nutrition program. Her passion for the community work brought her closer to the two rural communities we serve, Ando and Kodzobi where she did a lot of interviewing to project the work at the center to the communities. Her final work is being used as a guide for our programs.
Kathleen Leinweber
Adorable Kathleen’s volunteering spirit brought enthusiasm and youthful exuberance into our work at the center. She was always asking questions that helped her to achieve her objectives in helping to evaluate the Sexual Reproductive Health for Adolescents program and community-mapping. She braced the odds and worked among the rural communities we serve, and also made friends among the children.
Joey Gill
Baby Joey, as I nicknamed him during his stay was the youngest. He continued with the electronic medical records and the community-mapping. He also worked hard among the two communities to bring out the way the community live, type of housing, water and sanitation, food, fuel used and family size. This information is essential for the center and we are using them to guide us in preparing community profile for the rest of the communities we serve.
The GROW 2010 team not only worked on their individual project but helped in most of the child welfare clinics by weighing babies and updating their records in the registers. They really fit into our system and worked very well. How we wish we could have them all year round
Yes, they did really had fun alongside their busy schedule, a trip to Wli waterfalls in Hohoe District, Kakum Park, the castles in Cape Coast, Kpetoe kente weaving town and of course, Kathleen’s birthday party at Sky Plus Hotel.
They were also ardent supporters of Black Stars, our national football team during the world Cup in South Africa 2010. Notwithstanding their “temporal” Ghanaian citizenship, they never forgot home whilst here. On the American Independence Day, I visited them in the house where they lived and we all sang the national anthem of their Home Country, USA. It was really a nostalgic moment!
I can still hear their voices giggling and their crazy music as I look forward to welcome GROW 2011, I really missed them. -MARGARET ASANTE, NURSE IN-CHARGE, HOPE HEALTH CENTER, HO.
Photo courtesy of Allyson Westling / GlobeMed at Northwestern.