Two new residents for PCC!
The new year has had a good kick-off.
It is no ordinary year, no, 2017 is a very special year: the year of the 25th anniversary of our Community. The Silver Jubilee!
This year won’t pass unnoticed, certainly not. But, more about that later.
The year has had a good kick-off, because at the start of this Jubilee year 2 new children have come to PCC, namely Solomon, a little boy of about 3 years old and Sara, a girl of about 9 years old.
On the 11th of January they arrived from Kumasi Children’s Home (KCH) in PCC. Last October Baffo, Jeannette and I paid a visit over there. We know in the mean time that there is no attention for disabled children in children’s homes like KCH. Their main concern lies in “normal” children who have no home any longer for one reason or another.
Sara was found wandering the streets a few years ago when she was near the huge Kejetia market in Kumasi. Her parents or other relatives were never found and that is why she was brought to KCH.
Sara is autistic and suffers from epilepsy. She likes keeping herself to herself, which was not appreciated in KCH. Therefore she had a hard time in this particular home, we have noticed this with our very own eyes. She was aimlessly wandering the premises, even her food was put outside the building for her and she had a lonely and sad life there.
Because various European volunteers approached her carefully and friendly and tried to give her a happy time she has developed a preference for Europeans. A number of those volunteers have also pleaded for her admittance to PCC. And now she is here and it feels good when she is immediately taking our hand and walking around with us like we have known each other for ages.
Sara, we sincerely hope that you will have a life here full of love and warmth and that you will become very old just like the Biblical Sara.
This year won’t pass unnoticed, certainly not. But, more about that later.
The year has had a good kick-off, because at the start of this Jubilee year 2 new children have come to PCC, namely Solomon, a little boy of about 3 years old and Sara, a girl of about 9 years old.
On the 11th of January they arrived from Kumasi Children’s Home (KCH) in PCC. Last October Baffo, Jeannette and I paid a visit over there. We know in the mean time that there is no attention for disabled children in children’s homes like KCH. Their main concern lies in “normal” children who have no home any longer for one reason or another.
Sara was found wandering the streets a few years ago when she was near the huge Kejetia market in Kumasi. Her parents or other relatives were never found and that is why she was brought to KCH.
Sara is autistic and suffers from epilepsy. She likes keeping herself to herself, which was not appreciated in KCH. Therefore she had a hard time in this particular home, we have noticed this with our very own eyes. She was aimlessly wandering the premises, even her food was put outside the building for her and she had a lonely and sad life there.
Because various European volunteers approached her carefully and friendly and tried to give her a happy time she has developed a preference for Europeans. A number of those volunteers have also pleaded for her admittance to PCC. And now she is here and it feels good when she is immediately taking our hand and walking around with us like we have known each other for ages.
Sara, we sincerely hope that you will have a life here full of love and warmth and that you will become very old just like the Biblical Sara.
Solomon is a very sweet little guy of about 3, who can walk, but doesn’t talk and who only eats – although he is 3 years old – liquid food from a bottle. We are going to work on this.
Solomon is strikingly paler than most Ghanaians and soon after his arrival in PCC he was called “obruni” (=White).
Solomon was abandoned at a market in a village (Manso Agroyesum) in the Central Region when he was only a few weeks old. First he was put in the care of a foster family, however, when they noticed that he was intellectually disabled he was transferred to KCH and now a year later he has come to PCC.
We see a small boy with a serious and sometimes a somewhat anxious look in his eyes. We haven’t seen him laugh yet. Undoubtedly he needs time to get adjusted to the new situation because nearly all has changed in his life since he came to PCC. We most certainly will give him ample time to feel at home and welcome here.
With the arrival of both Sara and Solomon we are nearing the number of 100 residents in PCC: there are 95 now. Who knows what this Jubilee year has still in store for our Community?
Sara and Solomon are meanwhile enjoying the pool; they do not get cold feet at all. Well, cold water is not something to be expected down here….. A hearty welcome to Sara and Solomon and good luck in PCC!