Artwork, done on Thursday's at AACT, being sold at the parents meeting
Concert in Osu by Joyful Way Incorporated
AACT field trip to the Legon Botanical Gardens
Thank you Milo for your sponsorship!
Auntie Serwah up at the podem during the seminar at the British Council
Excited caregivers during our community awareness walk
The awareness walk, escorted by the local police
This picture speaks for itself!
Dear readers,
April was sure busy, wow! It is amazing to think of all the events that were organized, the people who connected and the awareness that was inspired by the 2010 Autism Awareness Month in Ghana. Starting from the huge benefit concert at the National Conference Center, to the community walk and field trip, to the radio shows and press conference, all in all... it was a success.
My personal favorite was the field trip to the Legon Botanical Gardens with all of the students and caregivers. Metro Mass Transit very kindly gave AACT a bus at a discounted price for the day and so we all could ride together. The bus ride to the gardens was filled with singing, dancing, and drumming (This seems to be a theme here in Ghana. No matter what you are doing, there will always be drumming and dancing. Amazing!). Once there, we played all morning on the playground, drank cups of cold Milo thanks to a donation from Nestle, ate mounds of Jolof rice thanks to a parent donation, took a walk around the lake and then had another bus ride filled with singing. Needless to say, everyone was exhausted at the end of the day. 
The second best event of this past month, I think, was the last event: the parents' meeting. Upon arrival, I was skeptical about the turn out. But as the time passed about 10 parents showed up, a few caregivers and then the administration from both AACT and Awaawaa2. The agenda for the meeting was to recap all of the Awareness events, thank those involved, and discuss the future of the students who are now starting to out grow the center. Unbelievably, a parent of one of the older boys arrived to the meeting prepared to start a parents organization. This organization will be responsible for creating an assisted living & vocational training center for young adults with autism. This one parent facilitated the meeting, took down names of dedicated parents, and even planned the date and time for the next meeting! Motivation and initiation, its about time. As Auntie Serwah herself even said, “A new facility for the older children should have been done yesterday.”
As the month of April comes to an end, sadly so does my time here in Ghana. In three weeks, I will be returning to the US. Its hard to believe. This will not be the end of my work with the Global Autism Project though, I am excited to say that I will be co-hosting the Paddle for Autism Awareness this summer with Molly! What a better way to recap my work here than to talk about it cities all over the USA.
I am thankful to have been a part of Autism Awareness Month in Ghana this year and hope that it was just as successful in all other parts of the world. Only 11 more months until Autism Awareness Month 2011... lets start planning to make it even more powerful! Together we can make a difference.
Casey
Concert in Osu by Joyful Way Incorporated
AACT field trip to the Legon Botanical Gardens
Thank you Milo for your sponsorship!
Auntie Serwah up at the podem during the seminar at the British Council
Excited caregivers during our community awareness walk
The awareness walk, escorted by the local police
This picture speaks for itself!
Dear readers,
April was sure busy, wow! It is amazing to think of all the events that were organized, the people who connected and the awareness that was inspired by the 2010 Autism Awareness Month in Ghana. Starting from the huge benefit concert at the National Conference Center, to the community walk and field trip, to the radio shows and press conference, all in all... it was a success.
My personal favorite was the field trip to the Legon Botanical Gardens with all of the students and caregivers. Metro Mass Transit very kindly gave AACT a bus at a discounted price for the day and so we all could ride together. The bus ride to the gardens was filled with singing, dancing, and drumming (This seems to be a theme here in Ghana. No matter what you are doing, there will always be drumming and dancing. Amazing!). Once there, we played all morning on the playground, drank cups of cold Milo thanks to a donation from Nestle, ate mounds of Jolof rice thanks to a parent donation, took a walk around the lake and then had another bus ride filled with singing. Needless to say, everyone was exhausted at the end of the day. 
The second best event of this past month, I think, was the last event: the parents' meeting. Upon arrival, I was skeptical about the turn out. But as the time passed about 10 parents showed up, a few caregivers and then the administration from both AACT and Awaawaa2. The agenda for the meeting was to recap all of the Awareness events, thank those involved, and discuss the future of the students who are now starting to out grow the center. Unbelievably, a parent of one of the older boys arrived to the meeting prepared to start a parents organization. This organization will be responsible for creating an assisted living & vocational training center for young adults with autism. This one parent facilitated the meeting, took down names of dedicated parents, and even planned the date and time for the next meeting! Motivation and initiation, its about time. As Auntie Serwah herself even said, “A new facility for the older children should have been done yesterday.”
As the month of April comes to an end, sadly so does my time here in Ghana. In three weeks, I will be returning to the US. Its hard to believe. This will not be the end of my work with the Global Autism Project though, I am excited to say that I will be co-hosting the Paddle for Autism Awareness this summer with Molly! What a better way to recap my work here than to talk about it cities all over the USA.
I am thankful to have been a part of Autism Awareness Month in Ghana this year and hope that it was just as successful in all other parts of the world. Only 11 more months until Autism Awareness Month 2011... lets start planning to make it even more powerful! Together we can make a difference.
Casey
