Tuesday November 18, 2008 9:49 AM
Eight students from Ashesi University in Ghana have spent over 30 hours of their time educating and mentoring youth at the Shelter for Abused Children and the Boys Remand Home through the Astrient Foundation’s Educational Outreach Programme. The Foundation’s Educational Outreach Programme seeks to promote the spirit of volunteering and the involvement of young people in the betterment of their communities and the lives of other young people.
The Astrient Foundation volunteers taught English, mathematics, and entrepreneurial skills. They also participated in family tracing and Counseling for the Boys in the Remand Home. Although the volunteers were a little concerned about working with the boys in the remand home, their concern quickly dissipated. In fact, a few of the boys at the Boys Remand Home shared their experiences with the students. The volunteers took the opportunity to provide some counseling on anger management and in the end one of the boys agreed to give it a try.
Here is a testimonial from one of the volunteers, Akuba Agyemang, about her experience:
Working at the home exposed me to a lot of things that I used to take for granted. There were kids whose own parents had abused them and thrown them out of their homes. There were kids who had run away from home because they were being abused by relatives. These kids did not have the basic things that children need to grow up.
The service has opened my eyes to the need for education and a return to societal values and the havoc that family break ups are causing.
Through the Astrient Foundation, these children have been able to receive additional training that their current facilities have not been able to provide. To volunteer, contribute resources (such as food, clothing, bedding, educational material or currency) and/or found out more information about the Astrient Foundation’s Educational Outreach Program, please email edmund@astrientfoundation.org or call +233-(0)28-953-718
