Ghanaians are known for their friendliness and hospitality so I was not surprised to be welcomed with open arms at our recent volunteer project: an orphanage called Royal Seed Home (RSH) in the tiny village of Ofaakor, Ghana. Yet the greeting from the orphange’s founder and director, Naomi Amoah, went beyond mere hospitality. Naomi’s vibrant smile, captivating eyes, and warm embrace set the tone from the beginning and we instantly felt like family because to Naomi, we were family.
Immediately after arriving to RSH, we were given a tour of the grounds: a walled complex with housing for over 160 orphans (ranging in age from just a few months old to 18), a school, and a large paved gathering area used for everything from playing pickup soccer to practicing the bongo drums. More importantly, we were given our first introductions to the smiling, innocent, amazing children. It didn’t take long to realize that we were in for a life changing and perspective altering experience at RSH. After volunteering with kids at three different sites in Asia, Mike and I had expected a similar experience in Ghana at our fourth project. However, I can honestly say that our brief week at RSH was the volunteer experience we had been looking and hoping for. We forged incredible relationships, immersed ourselves in Ghanaian culture, and were finally able to see where every single dollar was going…straight to bettering the lives of these deserving children. What really made this experience stand out was the opportunity to actually live with the children and become a part of their day to day lives.
Royal Seed Home was founded in 2002 by Naomi. She started in a tiny bamboo room that served as a bedroom, kitchen, and school with just four orphans. Over the years, Naomi has taken in over 160 abandoned and disabled children and is now their “Mama” and support system. Mike and I were amazed at how RSH had grown over the years solely from donated money and, according to Naomi, a lot of love and prayer. The bamboo room now serves as the RSH office. And the entire complex now consists of an 8 classroom school (in the process of expanding further), eight dorm rooms for the toddlers and other children to sleep in, and a kitchen.
Our days at RSH were often long and full of hard work. While the orphanage is completely self sufficient, volunteers enable the full time staff a well deserved break. Mike and I would wake up each morning at 4:45am and walk the 400 meters from the volunteer house to the orphanage to help out with the morning routine. Most mornings, we worked with 20 toddlers. We would clothe them, bathe them, feed them, and generally manage chaos until school started at 8 am. Some days it was crazy…like the day we dubbed “poop brigade” when seven toddlers all told me they had to poop at the same time and I was wiping butts and changing diapers in broad daylight. As soon as I would finish with one, another would come running up to me asking for help. I was riddled with cries of “Obronui”, the name, literally meaning “white person” that they would call me and Mike if they forgot our names. Overwhelmed, I had to call in Mike for reinforcements. He eventually found himself actually IN the stall helping several tots and trying to convince them that there was no witch at the bottom of the toilet. He later had to clean up some poop on the sidewalk and on one of the kid’s shoes (there is not enough hand sanitizer in the world).
Other days were extremely humbling. The first morning while I was still getting my bearings, I was handed a screaming baby and left to fend for myself. I had no idea what to do in this unfamiliar setting, but luckily I noticed that a ten year old girl nearby (who I later dubbed the “baby whisperer”) was successfully soothing another baby. I sheepishly walked over to her and asked for her help. She immediately made a bottle for me and showed me the way the baby, Kofi, liked to be fed. When Kofi got fussy, she assertively told me to stand up and then proceeded to put him on my back and wrap him to my body – Africa’s version of a baby bjorn. When I reflect back on that first morning, I can’t believe that I was taught how to care for an infant by a girl a third of my age. I learned, however, that this was part of the magic of Royal Seed Home: children helping children and raising each other in the process. If one of the toddlers were crying, I would frequently witness one of the older children comforting him or her. When a disheveled child was rushing to get to class, I would see another help them wipe their nose and tuck in their shirt. It was touching and beautiful to see the unconditional love bestowed upon the children from both the hired care takers and their peers.
After Mike and I finally got the toddlers off to school each morning, we would enjoy breakfast on our own before heading to the kitchen to help prepare lunch. The kitchen was a large, covered area in the back of the school where the cook, Felisha, spent hours working over hot, open flames preparing meals in three cauldrons. Mike and I were taught how to make pepper sauce, the traditional red sauce eaten at almost every Ghanaian meal. We chopped vegetables, scooped out portions of steaming hot rice, and served as lunch ladies when the kids came through the line. It was eye opening to see how RSH could serve so many kids with so little and inspiring to see how grateful the children were with their two scoops of rice and sauce per meal. While they always had enough to eat, I felt sheepish when I thought back to the days when I would complain to my mom for not packing me extra cookies for lunch each day.
In the evenings, Mike and I would simply spend time with the kids before helping prepare and serve dinner. We delighted in learning their games, songs, and hand claps. When we were lucky, we would get a chance to see the children’s unbelievable talents on display. RSH has a cultural group that often performs authentic dances and bongo drum ensembles at weddings and we were fortunate to catch a few rehearsals. The school also has a regimented marching band called the cadets that welcomes guests and opens every school day by playing the national anthem while the flag is being raised. It made me so happy to see that RSH fosters an environment where, in addition to meeting a child’s basic needs of food and shelter, talents are encouraged and skills are developed.
After serving dinner, we would head back to the volunteer house exhausted, but extremely content and eager to share stories with one another. We would inevitably fall asleep early and prepare to do it all again the next day. Even though we only spent one week at RSH, I already find myself missing the children. They welcomed Mike and I into their home with open arms and hearts. As the week began to draw to a close, I started to get sad about leaving the little ones. Having the chance to live, eat, and play with the kids enabled us to become close to them very quickly. The only way I was able to cope with leaving was by making plans to stay involved with RSH in the future. Naomi asked us to help with their website and we promised to collaborate on ways to bring in more volunteers. We even had the chance to see the long term plans for RSH. Because the orphanage is overcrowded (and growing), Naomi used a large donation to purchase a big plot of land with the hopes of building several homes for the children. That way (per regulations from the Department of Social Welfare) the kids can go to school at one place and live at another. And, while Mike and I enjoyed sharing in her excitement, we couldn’t help but notice what a big project she had ahead of her. We can only hope that our contributions and the continued donations of others are enough to not only keep RSH going but also bolster growth.
We don’t know what the future holds for Royal Seed Home but I am certain that I will be a part of it in some way. I hope to go back one day to see how it has changed and how our little toddlers have grown up. I pray that Mike and I can construct a website and help market this special place to worldwide volunteers.
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Hi Kat & Mike! We last saw each other in the airport as you were headed out on your next adventure and we were headed home after spending time with our son at Royal Seed. It’s good to reconnect with you here. I love the pictures!
Brooke Breeze
Sounds like this is truly a highlight of your worldwide tour. Those little angels are so precious and deserved all the love you both gave to them.
Unbelievable guys. Truly inspiring. And funny…I might be pushin’ 30 but ‘poop brigade’ is hilarious. Keep up the good work you two! Can’t wait to see you in two weeks!
Those little smiles! You are doing amazing things! Naomi is a living saint.
I am so touched by learning about Royal Seed. Please let me know how you plan to help them in the future. God Bless You, Love Grama Mary
i am a volunteer worker at royal seed home school and i can certify that its really an interesting experience when you are with the kids, honestly i didn’t think that i will spend this much time with them, i was only planning to be here for just over six months but i am in my seventeenth month here and every day here is intriguingly interesting, i just cant leave them a day. here is the directors mobile phone number +233244805364,or contact this email address paapafio@hotmail.com or rhseed@live.com. any of these options will be glad to have your help, hoping to hear from you soon. thank you Mary Grama
Those are the cutest little faces I have ever seen! What a great opportunity for you guys and the children!
So proud of you guys, sounds like this is a place where you can (and already have) make a difference. Such an amazing volunteer experience.