May 11th 2009

I was met at the airport in Accra this evening by our good friend Dr. Akunzule. I suppose he’s just my good friend now. Of the 8 NAU volunteers who embarked on the last implementation, I am the sole returner. The rest have graduated or moved on. It won’t be a problem for me so much as for the new volunteers. They have big shoes to fill.

The new team will break up into four groups to tackle the various tasks we have planned. Bryce Gillies will lead the Drip Irrigation team, Conner Ricket the Borehole Repair, Jessica Lum the Assessment, and I the Clinic. Kate Dorrel will serve as Documentarian and Dr. Aaron Denham our cultural advisor.

The construction at the clinic will occupy most of my time for the coming weeks. Considering the scope of the task at hand, I’ve chosen to stay in country for a full six weeks, two weeks longer than the rest of the team. So, this time I travel alone.

It’s a familiar scene at the airport. The flight was late and so was the baggage. I’ve learned by now to pack as though I’ll never see my luggage again; so I was prepared for it. In three years, our bags have never made it to Accra on the same day that we did. Today, however, both of them made it safely to the conveyer belt at Kotoka International…even if they were two hours late. I take it as a good omen.

For those unfamiliar with the project, our chapter of EWB has worked in the remote village of Yua, Ghana for the past three years. The community has no electricity, plumbing, sanitation, adequate medical care, and very limited access to clean water. On the previous implementation trip, the team constructed a mechanized solar well at the Yua market, a solar lighting system at the junior high school, and sponsored the drilling of an additional borehole at the clinic.

This year we have a larger project, 3 fewer volunteers, and half the budget. We’ll have to run things a bit differently on this one.

-John Yatsko