This past September my son, Jake, went to Ghana. A trip originally planned as 3 weeks turned into 5. Jake went to Ghana a little nervous and I have to admit that, as a mom, I was nervous also.
There had been a few countries he was interested in visiting but I pushed him towards Ghana because friends had visited a few years back and were in awe of how welcome they felt by the people. They described a country in which they felt safe and welcome no matter where they went. It wasn’t just the safety but the love in which they described Ghana upon their return that stuck with me.
So after looking over a few IVHW programs, all which seem wonderful, Jake decided on Ghana as well. It just seemed to call to him. He had never been away from home before and even for a 20 year old leaving home to go to another continent alone can seem daunting.
My son fell in love with Ghana and through him; I fell in love as well. From the time he was picked up at the airport until the time he left, he felt cared for by the people of Ghana. It was an amazing experience for any young person and one I highly recommend all young people do.
The family Jake stayed with treated him wonderfully. He enjoyed going to the market with Patrick or just being at the house with the family. His time spent with the kids meant a great deal to him. They amazed him and when we spoke by phone he was incredibly impressed by children who were so happy for even the smallest things. It was an education for my son but also a chance to give of himself in a way that mattered.
The other great part of his experience was the travel he did on the weekends. My son can be a bit of a couch potato at home but in Ghana he was constantly traveling. He rented a phone there and texted me every day or called. I was always able to reach him which eased any separation anxiety I may have had. My little couch potato was now navigating the travel system in Ghana whether it was during a lunch break or a weekend away. He visited a monkey sanctuary, swam in waterfalls, walked a canopy walk, stayed in a beachfront resort, and walked around villages. It is an experience any parent would want for their kid.
The IVHQ staff was fabulous. At one point Jake called me to say he needed a phone number. He had taken a wrong turn while walking and didn’t know how to get back. First, I want to point out that he was able to call home, here in New York, while lost in Africa. I sent a message on Facebook to some former volunteers asking them what I should do and within minutes I received a message from Edward Adeli telling me that Jake was back at the orphanage. The response time was minutes, something I never would have expected from any organization. I never even had a chance to panic at the thought that my son made a wrong turn somewhere.
The support system is wonderful. I joined a group on Facebook that the volunteers all joined. I joined it as a concerned mom who wanted to be sure that this was the right organization and right country to send my son. I spent weeks talking to people who had been there and felt at ease by how many young women had traveled alone and spoke of the safety and the love of Ghana. Those same people kept in touch with me throughout his trip asking how he was enjoying it and are still in contact now that he is home. I could not ask for a better support system than that.
For any parents who are worried about safety...I won’t poo poo safety concerns but I will say that the world we live in is a big place. Things can happen anywhere including our own home towns. Everywhere my son went he was welcomed. People sought him out on the street to talk to him and offer him tips on what to do and where to go. Never once did he ever feel unsafe. He did not want to come home and it was only because the airfare change a second time was too expensive that he came home.
He is home for a month now and told me yesterday that he misses Ghana and wants to go back. I don’t know many 20 year olds that would pay for their airfare, program fees, change fees to change airfare, travel expenses, and then come home and want to do it again. That alone should tell you what a wonderful program IVHQ has in Ghana.
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