Let’s Dance!

Yesterday, after devotions and breakfast, we attended the dedication service for the new Carpenter church. Dressed in our Sunday best, we joined in the celebration of thanksgiving to God for this beautiful facility. Hundreds gathered in a modern, spacious, high-ceilinged church with beautiful lighting, air-conditioning, wall fans, a full band, and a sound system. It is spectacular. Just moments after the singing and dancing began, we lost all power, but our African friends didn’t skip a beat—they carried on as if nothing had happened. The skies soon opened up, and a torrential downpour began. David, dressed in a striking green traditional chief’s robe, explained that the heavy rain greatly answered their prayers. The land was so dry and dusty due to lack of rain that NEA was about to pay big money to hire tanker trucks to come and soak the massive dirt lawn in front of the hospital, where thousands will gather under canopies on Sunday.

It was a unique service which included greetings by Pastor Dawson from Canada and Pastor Whitaker from the US, moving testimonies, enthusiastic singing, special acknowledgements, and lots and lots of dancing. Everything was translated into English or the local language. Our team performed a resounding rendition of “Great is Thy Faithfulness,” accompanied by Linda Dawson on the keyboard. We sounded awesome and are thinking of taking it on tour. One of my favourite parts of the Ghanaian church service is when the different groups dance in front of the church in a large circle. First, the women dance, then the men, followed by the pastors, the young women, the young men, and then the kids. Sadly, I forgot to prep my husband Graham about how that system worked, so when I rose to dance with the women, he jumped up to follow, joyfully oblivious. Finally, after quite some time, kind and gentle Mumuni pulled Graham to the side breaking the news, “This dance is for the women only, Graham”, —ushering him back to his seat. “COMEDY GOLD” was the way Anne aptly put it. It may take Graham a while to live down his “lady’s dance,” but he is proud to be joining the ranks of Dr. Martin and Dr. Francois, who, in years gone by, made the same embarrassing mistake.

The service ended a little later than expected (at 2:30 pm) just as the rains stopped. When someone asked Brenda how long church usually goes, she replied with a smile, “We go until we are finished!” Each day in Ghana has always brought a new challenge to me. Today I can’t stop thinking about how the Ghanaian people make time for that which they prioritize. This is one of the busiest weeks of their life, yet, they don’t skip their daily devotions, and they don’t skip a 4.5+ hour church service. Tasks can wait when something of importance should take place—especially if it involves people or relationships. You would never hear anyone around here saying that there are not enough hours in the day. They use each hour very strategically and very wisely and trust the outcomes to God.

Two of the final 20-foot containers of hospital equipment from the UK (the emergency department equipment and most of the computers) arrived at the compound midday, so after our late lunch, our team headed to the hospital to help. Within 2.5 hours, the containers were unloaded, equipment was assembled, and departments were set up by this seasoned health care team. It is so special to see how everyone chipped in as Tim, the CEO of Medical Aid International, directed us. As I walked around, I heard some hearty laughter down one of the corridors, only to find Dale and Bob (the two pastors) and Dr. Josh (our optometrist) having a blast assembling hospital beds. One of them looked at me and said, “What could go wrong here?” While I was walking down another corridor with Amanda, our hospital pharmacist, we passed Daniel, our biomedical engineering technician. He was working so hard that his shirt was soaked through with sweat. Amanda’s response? “Daniel… is on FIE-YA!!” Floors were re-mopped, theatre walls scrubbed, and windows washed. Abraham (Leyaata Hospital administrator), Dr. Ben (Leyaata Hospital Medical Director), and Amanda and I mapped out the tour route for the Office of the President. When the sun set, we returned to the NEA compound to enjoy a delicious roast beef and potato dinner. Ghana beef is way better than Canadian beef in my opinion, which brought a big smile to the face of our kitchen staff. David arrived in the dining room wearing a sweatshirt and pants, complaining that we had brought our weather. Evening temps are dropping to about 22-23 degrees!

As the big day approaches, more and more visitors are arriving in Carpenter. Excitement is building. Brenda likened it to the twelve days of Christmas as each day gets bigger and better and more exciting. Today we were reunited with our dear colleague and friend Ernestina, who has been on every mission with us since 2007. She will be a senior nursing leader at the Leyaata Hospital. Linda and Sherry welcomed Emmanuel, the Mensah’s nephew, another Leyaata Hospital pharmacist.

Our day ended under the gazebo with round one of a euchre tournament. Anne, Margaret, and Carol were new to the game, but thankfully, three of our GRID Board members, Jacques, Brigitte, and Wende, stepped in and were amazing coaches!

Today, it’s all hands on deck to put the finishing touches on the hospital and some key leadership meetings will take place throughout the day. Our time is passing quickly, but we are determined to make the most of every moment as we serve, celebrate, dance, build relationships, and prepare for the next chapter of our story here in Ghana.