Sunyani All African Service Project

The day began early--way before dawn.  We had loaded the gloves, vests, masks, rakes and tools in the truck the night before.  The streets were eerily quiet and were just starting to come alive as the sunrise was peaking over the tropical forests on the outside of town.  We parked at the top of Old Station, that section of Sunyani which is always bustling with vendors, taxis and shopkeepers.  But in the very early morning the street seemed unusually peaceful--almost quiet.  Our task was to assemble the members of the Church throughout the District and clean the gutters and streets of sewage and rubbish before the town erupted with its daily hectic African city life.  It was a tall order and a very optimistic undertaking.

As the members arrived, each was given a bright yellow vest that said "Mormon Helping Hands".  We passed out the gloves, masks and tools and off they went, attacking the garbage and debris with a vengeance.  Along each side of the streets of downtown Sunyani are deep cement gutters which are anywhere from a foot across to two feet and sometimes as deep as three feet.  They carry human waste (remember there are no public restrooms), garbage or anything else that needs to be discarded.  It really would be a fairly good system except there is no way to flush the gutters out, so everything just sits in the ditches and stinks, ferments, and gets rotten.  The stench is overwhelming--hence the masks.  It was truly a disgusting job but the members actually seemed to be having a good time.  Catherine exclaimed with a little giggle, "I never knew picking up rubbish could be fun!"

We had expected about sixty members to actually participate, but when we handed out the 91st vest, we hurriedly ordered more refreshemnts so we would have enough.  They were young and old, male and female, and even some who were not feeling well and were sick.  They all wanted to be involved.
The whole project took about three hours and by the time we finished, the market and street shops were busy selling their wares and in full swing!  They all truly appreciated our efforts and there were many "medases" (thank yous). 

We all met after at a nearby school that we had previously arranged to use, had meat pies, koko and refreshments, laughed, took pictures, played singing games and then had a huge futbol (soccer) game.

Our three main goals had been met and even surpassed all expectations.  We had helped to clean up the streets of Sunyani; we had demonstrated that the LDS Church wants to support the city and give community service; and the entire District had a memorable activity where the members worked together and bonded as friends.  It was a great day!