I spent my next day in Ghana at the City of Hope/Refuge Orphanage. Now that I'm thinking about it, God may have planned for me to get sick the first day, so I would miss my home stay and be able to serve at City of Hope instead! While it wasn't fun being sick, I am so thankful I was able to spend time at City of Hope because it was one of the most amazing and rewarding experiences of my semester. To give you some background, City of Hope is a Christian orphanage that rescues children from human trafficking/child slave trade since many fishermen in Ghana keep child slaves to help with their fishing business. These fishermen will not only force the children to go out on their fishing boats to catch fish, but they will also force the children to untangle the fishing nets when they get caught underwater. This means the kids will have to get into the water, most of them barely knowing how to swim, and be able to hold their breath long enough to untangle the nets. Not only is this horrible simply because it's child slavery, but the children are always in danger of getting tangled in the nets themselves or drowning. The shining light in all of this however, is City of Hope. City of Hope will go into these fishing communities and villages to negotiate for the children being kept against their will. Sometimes, this means paying the fishermen or the village chiefs for the children, but more often than not, their goal is to release the children through education. City of Hope negotiations can sometimes last for months, educating the fishermen about why keeping child slaves is wrong, and just waiting for the fishermen to release the children on their own conscience. When the children are freed, they go to City of Hope, finding a refuge where they can become kids again.
But, City of Hope is not just an orphanage. During negotiations,
City of Hope always asks the children what they would ask for if they could have anything in the world. The overwhelming answer is "to go to school." So, City of Hope started the Faith Roots Academy on site, where the 42 orphans and 178 children from the outside community come together to go to school in a Christian environment. While I was at City of Hope, I was able to get a first hand look at this school through helping in a kindergarten class, as well as an 8th grade class. After spending just 5 minutes in Faith Roots Academy, I realized the teachers give 110% to their students and most of the kids truly want to be in school. It was amazing to be in a school environment where everyone- faculty, staff, and students- wanted to be there! As an Education major, I hope I can be like the teachers at Faith Roots Academy, motivating my students to learn as much as they can each and every day. However, as an individual, I was inspired just by being at City of Hope and learning about their work to end child slavery. Upon my return home, I hope to somehow remain involved in ending child slavery alongside City of Hope. 
"And Jesus said, 'Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.'" -Matthew 19:14
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