Report from Richard & Linda Benskin with Joanna & Daniel

Dear Friends,

It is hard to believe that we have been in Ghana a full year now: a year filled with blessings and frustrations, with teaching and learning. It is a joy to be partners with you in the Lord's work here in Ghana. Our continual prayer is that God will use us to His glory as we serve and grow.

The dry season has returned (a little later than usual), and the more remote villages are gradually becoming accessible. We have resumed holding mobile clinics two days a week. On the slowest clinic days the staff is split, with part staying to see patients here in Yendi and the others heading out to one or two villages in "the bush". Soon we will again be going out to new villages with the Ghanaian evangelists to show the Jesus Film (a dramatization of the gospel of Luke) in the local language and discuss the gospel with them.

By the time you read this the McVey family should be back with us. Their furlough had to be extended due to some medical problems. They all seem to be healthy now and it will be good to have them back among us. Royce Reynolds is also back at work in Yendi now, but Cindy is leaving soon for a short time in the USA.

Primary Health Care Workers' Class

The Primary Health Care Worker program is intended to help fill the huge gap in health care available to the masses in Ghana. There are very few trained medical personnel, and most of them are serving the relatively wealthy and educated people within the southern cities.

Since this was the first time we personally taught in the course, we learned as much as the students did. We worked hard on the content of the course, but nothing could adequately prepare us for the actual experience of working with the students. Prerequisites for the students included ability to read English (despite being the second or third language of most students, it was the only language all had in common) and, with a few exceptions, a high school diploma, which means they are among the most educated in their communities. Despite this, few had ever had unlimited access to a book, so they had no experience using one as a reference. For instance, using the index to locate topics in the book was an unfamiliar concept. They also began with a level of health knowledge that is unimaginable to most people from more developed nations. They were stunned to learn that un-enriched porridge is not as nutritious as eggs, and flies spread disease. It was also news to many of them that mosquitos carry malaria, the most common illness in the nation!

Our fifteen students were bright, however, and they learned quickly. The group was also very hard-working, arranging on their own for additional evening sessions with at least one of the instructors. Those who had the most trouble were the ones from the north with the least exposure to spoken English. Several of these students asked to observe and help as volunteers for one month each at the Yendi clinic to solidify their knowledge, and so far all of them have been a great asset to the work here. Some of the southern students volunteered at the Kumasi clinic, and we have had good reports from there, too.

Just for Fun

As we were driving through Tamale recently, Daniel took this photo of a local livestock transport operation. I couldn't think of a way to really tie it in with the rest of the newsletter, but decided I must share it with you anyway. Despite all my time in Texas, I've rarely seen two happier looking "cowboys", though I have seen more contented cows.

Photography is not the only thing keeping the kids busy these days. School, of course, occupies a good deal of their time, but Daniel has become an avid bicyclist of late, evoking surprised smiles from the local farmers when Barkley runs along beside him (Ghanaian dogs are not companions). Joanna is busy with five new kittens in addition to her creative writing and art.

Experimental Garden Update

We mentioned our garden in our May newsletter. We were unable to give it the attention we would have liked during it's peak time this summer, as we often had to be in Kumasi and Accra. Nonetheless, we got a good crop of cucumbers and carrots, and the tomatoes are still very productive. Pineapple plants are also doing well, though it will be some time before they are likely to bear. Recently, Bob Williams, a former missionary to Kumasi, came and taught drip irrigation techniques to a number of the local brethren. He taught as he set up systems at several sites, including one in our garden. The addition of water should allow for year-round crops in this climate. The efficiency of the drip system is an essential factor in the villages, given the scarcity of water in the dry season. We hope to see these systems help to provide a much needed supplement to both diets and incomes in the area.

Zacchaeus does outside work for us. As he learns about gardening, I am learning how to communicate better. He now can weed the carrots - I just have to be careful not to use the word "weed," which, in Ghanaian English, is a verb meaning "to scrape bare of all vegetation." I learned this when I lost all my lettuce to the process!

Zacchaeus came running to the door a few weeks ago, shouting, "Madam! Madam! It all make san-san! It all make san-san! Come see!" He led me to the compost pile, where he had been obediently putting all the plants he "weeded" from the walkways, along with the garden waste and some kitchen scraps. He also turned and watered it, but he had been very skeptical about the whole idea. The compost was now a pile of rich soil (sand). He was stunned at the transformation, even though we had explained the process to him several times. Despite this apparent revelation, I still have to remind him to put the weeds in the compost pile. Traditions die hard.

Bibles

We hope to put Bibles into the homes of as many who can read them as possible. Literature of any kind is scarce here, so they are likely to be read. We also offer free WBS lessons. We keep a list of the names of people who have received a Bible, and their school if they are a student. We also write the recipient's name on the edge of the Bible with a marker pen, to reduce both theft and resale. At first, few people were aware of what we were doing, but the word has now spread. A few weeks ago Isaac, our neighbor and one of our Ghanaian evangelists, became concerned because we were being interrupted by a constant stream of people, from school-children to professional men to market women, all seeking Bibles. He suggested that we set a time once a week for Bible distribution, and offered to help with it. It has taken a while to get the word out about the new system, but we have begun to have fewer interruptions for Bibles, and the first distribution session was well attended

Prayer Update

Thank you again for continuing to remember us and the work before our Father. Virtually all of our recent prayer requests are being wonderfully answered: The PCHW course seems to have gone well, Royce is in better health and back in Yendi, the McVeys are well and enroute to us as I write, we now have a good supply of snake anti-venin, and World Bible School lessons are pouring in from our summer campaign. We are slated to receive our permanent resident visas tomorrow (Thanksgiving Day is not a holiday here) and Linda received official permission to practice nursing on Monday, despite the fact that the actual documents are, again, delayed.

We ask that you pray for peace and order in the December 7th Ghanaian election, for our continued health and that of our of coworkers, that we may portray Christ amid often frustrating circumstances and that God may continue to lead many we meet out of darkness into light in Christ.

In the Service of the King,
The Benskin Family

[Home] [Newsletters & Updates] [Prayer Requests] [Contact Us] [Ghana News and Information]
[Westover Home] [Westover Worldover]