Week 42

A dear friend of mine Diana is a teacher in a 'rough' downtown Toronto school and is one of those people who always seems to be on an adventure!!

So it came as no surprise when she told me that she was heading to Ghana to volunteer for six weeks in a little village called Dekpor where the population lives well below the poverty line. The school is overflowing with students who come from around the local region to attend class, many orphaned but despite this, they have made school a priority in desire to better their lives through education. There is no electricity or running water in the village, let alone a proper school building.

Diana along with other teachers were heading over to help finish build a library as well as classrooms. The kindergarten class is held underneath a tree and there are 140 children in that ONE class!!

So where does Paige fit into all this, well Diana was looking for donations of anything; school supplies, books, summer clothing, etc.. so when talking to Paige, her response was "Well don't we have lots of clothes and books?" Paige along with Oliver, Brendan and I decided to go through the boys clothes and make a pile, we covered everything from newborn up to size 7 (a lot still with tags on) and trust me the pile was HUGE!! Along with the clothes, we gathered school supplies, books and baby supplies and along with all the clothes made a big care package for Diana to take to Ghana. Paige was so proud of how big the pile was....the boys were a little concerned where their stuff was going...

Paige was a little upset that she didn’t get to go to Africa and see all the kids (well maybe one day), but Diana was thrilled and has said that the village was blown away.

The headmaster at the school told Diana that this group of volunteers was the first in history to help this village and told them of a Ghanaian saying

“god helps tail-less animals” meaning that animals who have tails are able to swat the flies from their backs on their own but god doesn’t forget about the animals who don’t have tails and steps in to help" They felt that god intervened and sent them as help (i'd like the think Mer had a part in it too!)

The village now has a library filled with books and the classrooms are in a more presentable state thanks to Diana and friends. I’d like to think that because of that one afternoon spent ‘making piles’ we’ve put a smile on a little boys or girls face that will last a lifetime.

I’ve included some photos of the school and the village rather than Paige standing by a pile of clothes so we can see how fortunate we are here with our education! More information can be found on their website http://dekporschool.org

Thanx Paigee

Mel xo

Week 41

So I know we don't normally post two pictures but I thought it was important for you to see just how much trouble we had making something that I thought was simple!

In thinking of something for Paige and I to do, a very nice girlfriend, Donna, thought of this great simple idea! To make dog treats, and then take them over to the Animal shelter to visit with the dogs and have a tour. Donna was even nice enough to bring all the cooking materials and ingredients over to my house for us to do with Paige.

So Jack, Emma and Paige mixed and measured all the ingredients together, but they were so mushy and messy! Paige thought that they were just disgusting! Anyhow, finally we created some sort of shapes out of the goo. Paige dared Jack to taste our blend, and he did!! GROSS.

Needless to say we baked them and they didn't turn out so well. Braddock (our family dog) gave them a taste and he was looking for more so they must have been alright! Our baking took a little longer than normal so we still need to do the visiting part for this week!! We will keep you posted!

Week 40

Paige and I were talking about all the wonderful things she has done with all her friends by paying it forward. She gladly told me them with a cute little grin and a sparkle in her eye. Olivia and Reese (my girls) sat back and listened to all of Paige’s opportunities and wanted to do the same. How great is this! Thanks Paige…xo.

Today is February 10th and Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. I told Paige that I have the opportunity to make people smile every day. She looked at me puzzled and asked, “how”? I told her that I am a nurse for many Long Term Care homes who have many wonderful people live in them. I told her of a man named Jack who once earned medals by helping us save our country and is now living with his wife in one of our villages. I also told her of all the special caregivers that care for people like Jack and his wife by cooking meals, taking them shopping and even take them on special trips. I then asked her if she would like to pay it forward by giving “candy grams” to all our residents and caregivers at our villages for Valentine’s Day. Paige thought this was a great idea and then the fun began….HA! Paige, Olivia and Reese we so excited to put together these candy grams. I have to admit they enjoyed a few treats of their own as we made over 50 candy grams. Way to go girls!!

Thanks for a great day Paige!! All our residents and caregivers are thankful for you and your amazing heart…xxoo.

Melanie