Accra!!!!

Time has simply got away from me.  I am over due on sending out a blog post.  We have made so many great friends while serving in Ghana.  They are the salt of the earth kind of people.  We get to know them briefly and then we have to say good bye.  Many are from Utah, so we will see them again.  One of these couples was Ron and Katie Kirk from Blanding Utah.  There will be a little less laughter in Ghana with out Katie here.  We drove into Kumasi to say good bye to them.  One thing I loved about Katie, was that she was saying one day, "you know how some people swim in their money when they are rich?  when I get home I will swim in my grandkids."  She has many grandkids and is very blessed.  

Ron and Katie are the center in the back.  She gave us all a Ghanaian scarf to tie our hair up with

This is our mission President!  He showed us how to tie our hair up.  He had watched his mother and wife do it many times.  He knows how to relax and have a great time with the Senior Couples.  He can go from this to very serious quickly. 

We flew on a little prop plain from Sunyani to Accra

The big news we have is that we were able to attend a Senior couples Humanitarian Conference in Accra for about a week.  There is a Senior missionary couple who live in Accra by the name of Elder and Sister Ostler.  He and his wife are former mission leaders and had previously served in the Manila Philippines mission.  This means they led a couple hundred young missionaries.  They also were in charge of the Missionary Training Center in London and now they are in charge of all the Senior missionary humanitarian couples in West Africa.  Going to Accra is like finding civilization from where we live in Sunyani.  We were really excited to attend.  We had a zoom meeting to prepare to go and Elder Ostler asked if we would like to go to Burger King.  The couple from the Ivory Coast said they had a Burger King where they were at.  I spoke us and said I would love to go to Burger King.  When Elder Ostler picked us up he took me straight to Burger King.  It was so amazing!  It tasted like home!  It was so kind of Elder Ostler to take me there.  He is such a kind humble man.  I didn't even know I liked Burger King that much!

We visited an art market.  This man is weaving a basket!

This man is chiseling a design on a drum

This man is curing a goat hide for a drum

These men are making good use of time playing a ghanaian checkers!

There are 16 countries in the Africa West Area.  The Church membership is not in all of these countries.  Some may have small groups of members, but no branches.  Some are predominantly Muslim.  We have discovered them to be the most faithful people we have met.  We have much in common with these faithful people.

There were 3 other humanitarian couples who flew in from Ivory Coast (The Stott's), Senegal (The Hyde's) and Liberia (The Haddock's).  We are in Northern Ghana and then of course the Ostler's in Accra.

Left to Right Elder and Sister Ostler, Elder and Sister Stott, Elder and Sister Hyde, Louie and I and Elder and Sister Haddock

We were able to go to an endowment session together in the Accra temple.  This really was a great experience to unify us.

This is our group with the humanitarian specialists that work specifically with us.  Marian in the green dress, Isaac on the left end and Ezra who is in front of Louie

I can't sit for 12 hours at a time for training, I probably drove everybody else crazy!

It was a lot of great information!

We ate a lot!  But it was fun to feast.  I did not feel guilty, because we don't ever go out in Sunyani

We visited this school.  This is Louie, I and the other missionaries playing a jumping game with these kids.  They taught us some fun Ghanaian play ground games that I will teach my grandkids when I come home!   The reason why we visited this school is the church did a renovation to it because a strong wind blew off the roof and they were doing a check before the hand over.  

They also treated us to batiking. I made this fabric with these lovely ladies! 

We returned from Accra on Saturday and Elder Fuell became sick and passed a kidney stone Sunday.  That was exciting.  He is doing much better now.  Thank you to Dr. Joe Fuell in Cleveland.  I thought he had appendicitis.  His best diagnosis without an ultra sound or anything was maybe a kidney stone.  He is doing much better and I am glad.  I cannot do Ghana with out him being on his A game.  We traveled to Kumasi on Monday and checked a bore hole (well) getting ready for a hand over.  

It's looking good!  

One of the hardest things to do is when we have to tell people no.  We had a request to help some students get to some testing they needed to get to.  The church does not give money(cash) for humanitarian purposes.  We also really stress self reliance.  We teach how to fish, but will not just give them fish.  Branch President's and Bishops make prayerful decisions about how the church can help in that way for their members under the fast offering funds.  

A shout out to this lovely family.  In our relgion, if we adopt a baby, we take them to the temple and have them sealed to us for all eternity.  That is what Joe, Natalie and Rachel did with baby Hannah!  

Shout out to David and Daria for getting their Master's Degree's from Utah State

Shout out to Lynn and Tammy who will be leaving for Alaska to do some missionary work up there!  God speed.  We love you and will swap some stories soon.

Also, I want to recognize all of my children who work hard everyday going to work, taking care of little kids and normal life.  You are the unsung hero's.  We love you all for the great effort you make to be good humans and serve your fellow men.  

I just want to say that this is the Lord's work and we are so grateful to be missionaries in his vineyard!  We are so blessed to be able to have these experiences.  Thank you all for your love and support!  The Gospel of Jesus Christ is True and available on the earth today.  Seek, pray and find your own answers and ask God if they are true.  He will reveal it unto you!

Love Elder and Sister Fuell