Founder Orleans Pobee talking about how it started (at AKCLF Fund Raising Event April 18, 2015)
HOW IT STARTED
This Foundation is about having love for your neighbor and the Lord giving you the grace to serve your community or sharing our resources with the needy. It all started at Calgary Community Reformed Church 29 years ago.
We landed in Calgary on August 26, 1988 at midnight and 9 hours later I had a major surgery at the Holy Cross Hospital, and a month later we moved into SW community. I dropped my daughter at King Edward Elementary school during which I saw Jesus on the sign board beside the church. I said to myself “if this church believes in Jesus Christ, may be I could worship with them”. On my first Sunday in this community, I visited this church and the love that welcomed me was love of Christ, it was natural and since then I have been a member of this congregation for almost 29 years. I walked in as an ordinary visitor and today am an Elder of Calgary Community Reformed Church. Amen! This church made it easy for us to integrate into the multicultural fabric of Canadian culture. The natural love that Calgarians gave us moved me to say that “My being in Calgary, Alberta Canada would be meaningless unless it is link with the helping of the needy students in my community”.
I had a vision to start a charity work and use it to help the students. I spoke to an accountant and two lawyers and one of the lawyers said to me “My service fee is even higher than your money in your accounts so follow these instructions and register your Foundation” I organized a meeting within my family and with the minutes of that meeting we registered Akonua and Kwama Children’s Literacy Foundation on May 27 th , 2009. Thus AKCLF was born with the funding from my Canada Savings Bond.
I would like to thank Bob Andrew, late Ivy Jeffers, DR. Chibambo and Fazal Mansur for their initial advice. We also thank Calgary Community Reformed Church for being our corporate sponsor and Calgary Police Services and Fire Fighters for their support. Finally a big thank you to Alberta government and Canadian government for giving us International Development Grant.
We have a very strong Board consisting of seasoned retired professionals who have donated their valuable time and resources to guide the foundation in its endeavors. No one on the board gets financial compensation. We are lucky and thankful to the Board, planning, strategy formulation and fundraising is done by the board and our local committee at the grassroots helps with the implementation. Concurrently, we also have extremely strong grassroots support, cultural understanding, local committee support, Queen Mother support, elders support as well as the local assembly.
PROJECTS
Scholarship- Am very pleased to inform you that our foundation has awarded 21 scholarships to the needy students and as at now 5 students are still in school, 2 of them writing their final year exams and the remaining 3 will also complete their studies in 2018. Only 1 student dropped out due to lack of practicum in a boat as a marine technician. Our scholarships are transferred direct to the students so there is no complaint from any student yet. Computer Lab- We have built two computer labs for 2 Senior High Schools and donated 4 flat screen computers to the 3rd school. Our local reps love serving the community that they use 30 days in build a computer lab. Community Public Library- We have acquired a land of 0.86 acre, approved by the lands department of Saltpond, Ghana for a future Community Public library, when completed would serve a district of 152,000 people.
ACHIEVEMENT In 2016. Our Foundation had the privilege to compete in the Google Impact Challenge Canada, because Google saw that we have some ideas that can help make a difference. In 2016 a final year nursing student, Jennifer Ansah went back to her community and helped the women by checking their blood pressure and educating them.
In 2013 our good work in Africa, Ghana, Mankessim, Mfantseman District was felt by Ghanaian Canadian Achievement Award Committee, who gave our foundation a COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD.
In 2013 some summer students at the University of Calgary used our website for their final project and this is the first paragraph of their email “We are summer students at the University of Calgary we found your website and it caught our attention because it addresses a need we feel strong about, and we found great information on it” It is difficult to win the heart of University students but we have done it in Calgary.
In 2012 an alumni, Kennedy Larbi went back to his community and organized a free summer classes for high school students.
Above all we have united all the churches including the Muslim community in Mankessim into one local committee that helps us with scholarships award.
CONCLUSION. What makes me proud of the work we are doing is this, a male student did BCom accounting and started level 3 of CA and a female student combined both CA and BSc accounting, completed the BSc and wrote level 3 of CA. This proofs why we are here today. We are here because we want to educate the people that what a boy can do a girl can also do it and even better than the boy. Dr. Kwegyir Aggrey, a missionary and teacher said “If you educate a man you educate an individual but if you educate a woman you educate a whole nation”
Our goal this year is to build one computer lab therefore any amount raised today will go into computer lab project.
What is the meaning of AKONUA? ARABA AKONUA was the maiden name of the founder’s mother, just a typical Fanti name with no political affiliation.
Thank you very much for your trust, love and your support. Our sincere thanks go to the Board and volunteers for their selfless and tireless support since the beginning of the foundation.
This Foundation is about having love for your neighbor and the Lord giving you the grace to serve your community or sharing our resources with the needy. It all started at Calgary Community Reformed Church 29 years ago.
We landed in Calgary on August 26, 1988 at midnight and 9 hours later I had a major surgery at the Holy Cross Hospital, and a month later we moved into SW community. I dropped my daughter at King Edward Elementary school during which I saw Jesus on the sign board beside the church. I said to myself “if this church believes in Jesus Christ, may be I could worship with them”. On my first Sunday in this community, I visited this church and the love that welcomed me was love of Christ, it was natural and since then I have been a member of this congregation for almost 29 years. I walked in as an ordinary visitor and today am an Elder of Calgary Community Reformed Church. Amen! This church made it easy for us to integrate into the multicultural fabric of Canadian culture. The natural love that Calgarians gave us moved me to say that “My being in Calgary, Alberta Canada would be meaningless unless it is link with the helping of the needy students in my community”.
I had a vision to start a charity work and use it to help the students. I spoke to an accountant and two lawyers and one of the lawyers said to me “My service fee is even higher than your money in your accounts so follow these instructions and register your Foundation” I organized a meeting within my family and with the minutes of that meeting we registered Akonua and Kwama Children’s Literacy Foundation on May 27 th , 2009. Thus AKCLF was born with the funding from my Canada Savings Bond.
I would like to thank Bob Andrew, late Ivy Jeffers, DR. Chibambo and Fazal Mansur for their initial advice. We also thank Calgary Community Reformed Church for being our corporate sponsor and Calgary Police Services and Fire Fighters for their support. Finally a big thank you to Alberta government and Canadian government for giving us International Development Grant.
We have a very strong Board consisting of seasoned retired professionals who have donated their valuable time and resources to guide the foundation in its endeavors. No one on the board gets financial compensation. We are lucky and thankful to the Board, planning, strategy formulation and fundraising is done by the board and our local committee at the grassroots helps with the implementation. Concurrently, we also have extremely strong grassroots support, cultural understanding, local committee support, Queen Mother support, elders support as well as the local assembly.
PROJECTS
Scholarship- Am very pleased to inform you that our foundation has awarded 21 scholarships to the needy students and as at now 5 students are still in school, 2 of them writing their final year exams and the remaining 3 will also complete their studies in 2018. Only 1 student dropped out due to lack of practicum in a boat as a marine technician. Our scholarships are transferred direct to the students so there is no complaint from any student yet. Computer Lab- We have built two computer labs for 2 Senior High Schools and donated 4 flat screen computers to the 3rd school. Our local reps love serving the community that they use 30 days in build a computer lab. Community Public Library- We have acquired a land of 0.86 acre, approved by the lands department of Saltpond, Ghana for a future Community Public library, when completed would serve a district of 152,000 people.
ACHIEVEMENT In 2016. Our Foundation had the privilege to compete in the Google Impact Challenge Canada, because Google saw that we have some ideas that can help make a difference. In 2016 a final year nursing student, Jennifer Ansah went back to her community and helped the women by checking their blood pressure and educating them.
In 2013 our good work in Africa, Ghana, Mankessim, Mfantseman District was felt by Ghanaian Canadian Achievement Award Committee, who gave our foundation a COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD.
In 2013 some summer students at the University of Calgary used our website for their final project and this is the first paragraph of their email “We are summer students at the University of Calgary we found your website and it caught our attention because it addresses a need we feel strong about, and we found great information on it” It is difficult to win the heart of University students but we have done it in Calgary.
In 2012 an alumni, Kennedy Larbi went back to his community and organized a free summer classes for high school students.
Above all we have united all the churches including the Muslim community in Mankessim into one local committee that helps us with scholarships award.
CONCLUSION. What makes me proud of the work we are doing is this, a male student did BCom accounting and started level 3 of CA and a female student combined both CA and BSc accounting, completed the BSc and wrote level 3 of CA. This proofs why we are here today. We are here because we want to educate the people that what a boy can do a girl can also do it and even better than the boy. Dr. Kwegyir Aggrey, a missionary and teacher said “If you educate a man you educate an individual but if you educate a woman you educate a whole nation”
Our goal this year is to build one computer lab therefore any amount raised today will go into computer lab project.
What is the meaning of AKONUA? ARABA AKONUA was the maiden name of the founder’s mother, just a typical Fanti name with no political affiliation.
Thank you very much for your trust, love and your support. Our sincere thanks go to the Board and volunteers for their selfless and tireless support since the beginning of the foundation.