Pollyanna Project, founded by Jamaican Donna Moore, treats hundreds in Ghana

Recently, the US charity group founded 29 years ago by Jamaican Donna Moore, journeyed to the Volta region in Ghana, providing aid to some 200 children and adults among them.

As a group this was their first trip to continental Africa, a rendezvous that went beyond expectations, left them captivated and awe-inspired during their stay, Moore tells Old Harbour News after returning to her home in New York.

“It was amazing,” said the Old Harbour resident “the sense of gratitude from these people. I am still in shock, we are still in shock”.

Upon entering the small village of Takla the delegation was treated to a grand reception befitting of royalty. They were serenaded by locals with folk music, dance, and of course traditional cuisines such as fufu served with goat stew and kenke also known as dookunu here in Jamaica. It was a stark reminder of the strong cultural ties between Jamaica and Ghana. 

In keeping with tradition the event had to be sanctioned by the king or chief of the village. This request, like in any royal monarchical structure, goes up a mazy chain of command before it reach to the top for the king, who then decides whether or not to approve. The fact that the Pollyanna delegation were in Takla confirms that their request had received the King’s stamp of approval.
While it was the first trip to the motherland for most of the Pollyanners, what made this tour so special was the fact that they are the first group of any kind to visit this community in the Volta region and cater to the needs of the people.

They were all blown away by such acts of gratitude that will certainly last in their memories for a lifetime.

“Every child did a curtsey upon receiving their gift,” said Moore’s husband Carl Stewart, who said his first trip to the continent was “always a dream”. “They come, look you in the eye, receive their gift, did a curtsey and went back to their seat in such a respectful manner.”

“We didn’t know what we were walking into,” Moore stated. “We are used to from Jamaica to just go in and physically do everything, from cooking to cleaning the grounds. I have been doing this in Jamaica and no one has ever given me a bouquet of flowers after any event.”

Despite their conditions, the Takla people are a proud and happy group of Ghanians whose lifestyle symbolizes the old phrase of being happy with what you have.

The next 12 month from now Taklans should be happier, as the Pollyanna Project has committed to build an educational centre, a library retrofitted with computers and internet access.

“Majority of the children speak English but they don’t read or comprehend the language well,” said Stewart, highlighting a cultural dynamic that the children face whenever they sit the annual national standardized test. Because of this challenge the children of Takla tend not to do well but “it’s not that they are not smart,” Stewart emphasized.
“We have shipped many books over there before,” he added.

Expanding on her husband’s point, Moore said: “We recognised there are some immediate needs. The school there needs desks. So our immediate goal is to purchase some desk for the next school year and tables for the teachers. The long term plan is to complete within a year’s time that learning centre.”

The charity now turns its attention to Jamaica where they will be making donations in the parishes of St Mary, Trelawny and Kingston where five students from Kingston High School will receive Mac Book Combo computers, she revealed.

“I have received their reports already, we have vetted them already. They will be receiving those devices. They are poor children who don’t have it and live same place in the ghetto,” Moore told Old Harbour News, adding that five other students in Trealwny stand to benefit in similar fashion, all courtesy of US basketball franchise, the Brooklyn Nets, a major sponsor of the Pollyanna Project.

This is year the team will focus its outreach outside of Moore’s home town of Old Harbour but she hinted at major plans for next year to mark its 30th year of existence.

In December of last year Moore, who is a past student of Old Harbour High and was raised in Bodles Crescent, received the US Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award for volunteerism, the highest honour that can be bestowed on a citizen in the category. 

A part from Ghana, the Pollyanna Project has been serving other African communities on the continent namely Kakemdema in Freetown, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.