Bakers in Ghana

We have to start this post with the best part of our week: the arrival of our handsome grandson, Henry! Henry weighed 8 lbs. 4 oz. and was 19.5 inches long. We are absolutely over the moon that he is here safe, sound, and healthy. Matt, Megan, and Matt’s mom were so sweet to keep us updated with messages, pictures, and videos. His big brothers seem excited about having a baby brother—hopefully that excitement continues once he comes home! 🤞🙏 Being far away during such a special moment is a little hard, but we’re sending lots of virtual hugs and kisses to him and his wonderful family. Welcome to the family, sweet little Henry! Though it’s hard to top the joy of a new grandbaby, we had a few other meaningful experiences this week. Doug’s medical challenge of the week involved HIV . Sadly, this is not uncommon here and is often due to vertical transmission at birth. This week, Doug worked with two missionaries—one with advanced HIV and another newly diagnosed with HIV incidentally f...

This week marks our first full month in Ghana. I won’t lie—some days feel like an eternity, while others still feel like we just arrived. Every day, however, we've found something to enjoy and something to be grateful for! Doug’s week was a bit quieter, but definitely not uneventful. Malaria cases were at an all-time low during these four weeks we've been on our mission. However, Doug’s favorite thing to diagnose—dermatological issues—was at an all-time high. If there was a rash, bump, or lump this week, he saw it! There was an alarming incident where a random man attacked a group of missionaries with a knife. One of the elders was slashed on the hand, but thankfully the injury was superficial and only required stitches. Continuing the "cuts" theme, another missionary accidentally sliced his finger with a machete. Not his proudest moment—especially since missionaries are specifically instructed not to use machetes. Fortunately, there was no damage to muscles or ten...

This time of year is considered the rainy season, and we’ve been blessed with a few solid rainstorms. The rain helps keep the temperatures down, which is nice—but it does a serious number on the roads! The roads in downtown Accra are  paved..sort of.   Once you get outside the city center, the roads turn into orange dirt. When it rains, that dirt becomes orange clay, which is quite an experience to navigate. Combine that with the animals, cars, trot ros , bicycles, motorcycles, and trucks… you get the idea. Driving is a real adventure! In the spirit of driving, Doug got pulled over this week. This might be a mission record for the longest time without being pulled over. The officer said we had run a red light and explained that we’d need to go to the police station. As luck would have it, it was around lunchtime. Said officer was hungry, and since he wanted us to have a positive experience here in Accra, he was willing to let us go—for a lunch “donation.” Doug offered him 100 ...

It has been a wonderful week here in Ghana! While we have loved our time here so far, this week has given us even more reason to celebrate the independence of our home country—the good old USA. 🇺🇸 We are incredibly grateful to have been born in a land that enjoys so many freedoms and blessings. A nation divinely established by great men who sought God as they laid its foundation. A country where many have sacrificed their lives so that we can enjoy the liberties we have today. A land prepared for the Restoration of the gospel of Jesus Christ. God has truly blessed the USA! Happy 4th to all of our American friends! We were honored to celebrate the 4th with some fun mission friends. We had hamburgers, watermelon, chips, and Jell-O arranged to look like an American flag. It was a fun and meaningful way to celebrate home! By week three, we’ve been taught most of what we need to know administratively for our mission. While I’m sure we’ll continue to learn, we’re now able to focus more tim...