Fir Vale School go to Ghana

Fir Vale go to Ghana
Fir Vale go to Ghana

Story: Fir Vale Ghana Team 2014

After ten months of preparation and fundraising, students from Fir Vale School eventually topped our £28,000 target. Fir Vale were off to Ghana!

Final preparations completed, bags packed and malaria tablets taken, a full day's travelling and we arrived in Accra. As we stepped off the plane into the humid air, we knew we had made it to sub-Saharan Africa with a bang.

We arrived in the hostel to no electricity. Attempting to assemble 20 mosquito nets in the dark with nothing more than palm leaves and a head torch, Fir Vale students showed what they were made of. Not one of the team of 18 moaned or complained as they became accustomed to their first few hours of Ghanaian life.

As the sun rose on day two, we saw an expanse of urban Ghana, with corrugated iron roofs and not a Diet Coke in sight for Miss Cassy. We were filled with excitement as we drove out of the city and along uncomfortable roads, through lush vegetation and small terracotta villages on the roadside. We were greeted by the Prince of the village and the local drumming troop as we settled into our home for the following week.

The next few days were full of laughter, excitement, positivity and challenges, from walking through the rainforest to dancing in the streets, from feeding monkeys to swimming under waterfalls. But we were not just here to have fun. We had an important job to do, helping build an orphanage. We mixed cement, by hand. We made, carried and laid bricks and carried endless litres of water. We never faltered under the Ghanaian sun. Mr Power felt most proud to lead a group of Fir Vale students.

After ten days had flown by, it was, unfortunately, time to pack our bags and say our goodbyes. This was the most incredible experience from start to end, a project the whole school community should feel proud of, a project that has made a difference to our students, staff and governors and to the lives of children in Ghana.

Congratulations to all involved!

Logged in users of the website can add comments to this page.
Login to this site if you'd like to add a comment. Sign-up for an account if you are not currently a member.

<< | Up | >>

Print version

The content on this page was added to the website by Graham Jones on 2014-05-29 15:50:29.
The content of the page was last modified by Jamie Marriott on 2014-06-03 16:29:58.

Follow us on Twitter @TheBMessenger

All content is copyright © Burngreave Messenger Ltd. or its voluntary contributors, unless otherwise stated, not to be reproduced without permission. If you have any comments, or are interested in contributing to the Messenger and getting involved, please contact us.

Burngreave Messenger Ltd. Abbeyfield Park House, Abbeyfield Road, Sheffield S4 7AT.
Telephone: 0114 242 0564. Email: mail@burngreavemessenger.org
Company Limited by Guarantee: 04642734
Registered Charity: 1130836

The Burngreave Messenger is a community newspaper with editorial independence, funded by the Big Lottery, Foyle Foundation, Trusthouse Charitable Foundation, the Garfield Weston Foundation, the Scurrah Wainwright Charity, local residents and our advertisers.

Help the Messenger with a donation