Newsletter
Ray of Hope
Fall 2024
Greetings Family and Friends
As summer draws to an end, Fall reminds us of God's amazing handiwork. The stunning beauty of leaves changing color and the crispness of the air, gives us the assurance that Winter is coming. We hope that you marvel in the beauty of creation as we enter this Fall season.
In this Fall edition of our newsletter, we invite you to join us on an exhilarating 10-day adventure to Ghana, where we not only visited one of our sponsored projects, but also uncovered new opportunities for 2025. Plus, get ready to dive into the latest updates on our 2024 adoption grant cycle.
With stories that tug at your heartstrings and moments that lift your spirits, your generous support is truly a beacon of hope for countless children! So, enjoy every moment because this Fall edition is bursting with inspiration and joy!
With gratitude,
Alfred, Virginia, and Sophia
Check Out Our Website!
Books for Children in Ghana
From left to right, Kathy Jaffari (family friend), Phyllis Ampomah, Founder of Cheers Children with the Essandohs
CHEERS CHILDREN
We donated coloring books, crayons, journals, and pencils to Cheers Children, an organization founded by Phyllis Ampomah. Cheers Children runs community libraries to improve the reading comprehension of children in the community. They also run a weekly Bible club in Madina and Korle-bu, suburbs of Accra, Ghana. We learned about the need for updated desktop computers in the libraries.
Supporting Teen Girls In Ghana
Learn about how we are helping
girls in need in partnership with
Inspire Today and CouldYou? Read below"
Teen Girls Missing School Due to Lack of Menstrual Products
Alfred was casually flipping through television channels last year in Ghana when he happened upon a documentary about the need for menstrual products for school aged girls. This is a major need for public school teenage girls who cannot afford to buy feminine hygiene products. It is actually called “period poverty.”
The documentary featured a teenage girl who cried as she told her story of not being able to go to school. She was having her monthly menstrual cycle and only a piece of cloth to protect her clothing. She couldn’t afford to buy sanitary pads and friends laughed at her as the cloth was not strong enough to hold her flow. An older woman narrated that she no longer needed her cloth and would pass the same cloth down to her daughter who had just come of age.
This is a major ongoing issue for teenage girls and it is not uncommon for parents to tear worn out clothes for the girls to use during their menstrual cycle. It is a heartbreaking reality that we decided to learn more about.
A 2021 study by Plan International in the WA East district of Ghana, found that 83% of rural girls with no access to menstrual products, engaged in transactional sex for pads. US based non-profit CouldYou?, stepped in to offer an intervention solution. From November 2022 to July 2023, they provided a menstrual cup to 385 girls in the WA East district. Surprisingly, there was 97% usage rate among the girls, replacing the use of cloths.
According to the study, the menstrual cup offers an innovative and sustainable approach to fighting period poverty in Ghana. The Elpis Children's Foundation could not look away.
Etornam Sey, founder of Inspire Today (second from left), which provides free menstrual products to school girls
Pictured above from right to left, Elizabeth Mamoud a teacher, Edna Ohui Dadeboe, Health Education Coordinator, Francisca Abrefa Gyan, Girls Officer, Emma Quansah, Deputy Director Monitoring and Supervision and Charles Odoom, Municipal Education Director
Gbawe Education District Provides First Hand Account of Teen Needs
Our meeting with the Gbawe Education District was organized by Inspire Today, a Ghana based non profit founded by Etornam Sey, that provides sanitary pads to menstruating girls in public schools. Inspire Today, supports girls in school with feminine hygiene products.
We listened as the girls, Education Director and his staff gave us insights into the challenges faced when menstruating girls can't afford menstrual products. This includes dropping out of school, and engaging in sex in exchange for sanitary pads.
The Elpis Children’s Foundation will partner with Inspire Today, and Could You?, to address the challenge of girls not attending school due to lack of menstrual products.
We will fund a pilot initiative to provide 500 girls in the Eastern Region of Ghana with menstrual cups. A menstrual cup can be used for approximately 10 years, a potential game changer to keep girls in school.
OUR MISSION
To encourage and support Black families in pursuing private adoption in the United States and financially support nonprofit organizations that serve orphaned, needy, and abandoned children in the Republic of Ghana.
We are overjoyed to announce that we have awarded not just one, but TWO adoption grants for the 2024 grant cycle! These grants represent a beacon of hope for families as they eagerly anticipate the joy of growing their families. It's a testament to the power of your donations, which helps turn dreams into reality.
As we look ahead, we encourage everyone to stay tuned for our upcoming grant application cycle!
Do you have experience in social media marketing and you want to support our mission?
We welcome volunteers to support our social media campaign.
Contact us:
[email protected]
The need is great but there is hope. 100% of your donations go directly to support families and children.
Village of Hope (VOH) Babies' Home
Gomoa Fetteh, located in the heart of Ghana's Central Region, was a truly inspiring experience. Donations through the Elpis Children's Foundation play a pivotal role in the compassionate care of abandoned infants at the Babies' Home.
Currently, this remarkable facility with a capacity to embrace 40 babies with lots of love, is nurturing 16 babies, with dozens already adopted
Engaging with the dedicated caregiver mothers was a heartwarming experience, and the joy of playing with and holding these beautiful babies filled us with hope and inspiration. This visit not only highlighted the profound impact of your generous support but also reaffirmed our commitment to fostering a brighter future for these vulnerable children.
Staff with babies at the Babies Home
Baby Portia Ama was born pre-term when she was brought to VOH
Interacting with staff (Caregiver, Stella in yellow dress and Supervisor Matilda in brown dress) and babies at VOH's Babies Home
Rita, Caregiver, pictured with Kojo above who was 2 weeks old when he was brought to VOH
We also met Dr. Obiri Yeboah, currently a Maxillofacial Surgeon at Okomfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in Kumasi, the Ashanti Region, Ghana. He was a high school student at VOH
Pictured above with Adriana, currently a nurse in charge of VOH's High School infirmary. Adriana is one of the first of 8 children to graduate from high school at Village of Hope
Your donations to The Elpis Children's Foundation have already made an impact on the operations of the babies home. We commit to sending 100% of donations to serving orphaned, abandoned, and needy children in Ghana.
Thank you.
Next Issue
- Featured Adoption Story
- Upcoming Events
- What's Next in Ghana
Whether you support the work that we do to encourage Black families to consider private adoption or our work in helping organizations care for orphaned children in Ghana, your donation has the power to transform lives, offering a brighter and more promising future.
Your act of generosity can have a ripple effect, changing not only the life of one child, but also the lives of their family and community.