Ghana Cape Coast Mission

The African Pioneers were the first members baptized in Ghana.  A list has been compiled by the Church History Department of the first 100 baptized.  Many of these pioneers identify themselves by their number.  For example James Ewudzie is the earliest baptized living member in Ghana.  He would be called "No 4".         # 29 Brigham Johnson is the son of #2 Billy Johnson.  Billy Johnson started the congregation of Latter-day Saints 14 years before the church was organized in Africa.  They prayed in all their worship services that the church would be brought to Africa.  When the first missionaries came in October of 1978 they baptized 100's of Billy Johnson's congregation the first week they arrived.   The others in this picture would be Church Historians who are helping in the writing of Saints IV that will contain a section on Billy Johnson and his son Brigham.   #4 James Ewudzie standing atop the Cape Coast "Hill Cu...

We love the African kids!  They are beautiful, curious, and bold Morning in the fishing village Me and friend jamming

  The majority of the people in Ghana are amazing, humble, and faithful.  They love God and treat us missionaries with love and respect. Crystal, a new convert.  Happy that she received her passport and will now be able to submit her papers to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints 90 degrees, 85% humidity.  This baby couldn't be happier.  Daniel proudly showing us the casava he just dug up.  This will be used to make Fufu

  We drove west across Ghana to Takoradi and then to jungle beach called Ankobra beach.  The wild almond and coconut trees would reach out over the water on this nearly deserted beach. I think we were the only ones staying there for two nights as the parking lot was empty and we didn't see any other guests. We also visited Nzulezu which was a village built on a remote river only accessible by canoe.  This tribe came to Ghana 400 years ago to escape war in Senegal.   The tribe has modernized somewhat over the years primarily due to non-profit organizations and government subsidizes.  They had electricity brought recently and every stilt hut has a dish for TV.  Since TV was put in the reproduction rate in this polygamist village has dropped dramatically. Each person, including children, gets their own dug out canoe.  This allows the children, after they go into 8th grade to paddle miles into town every day to get higher education.  It allows th...

  Cocoa bean in the pod.  You suck the sweet jelly off the beans and throw out the hard seed.  The hard seeds are dried and turned into chocolate The sweet chocolate we eat starts in the jungle in these cocoa plants.  When the pods are green they are not ripe.  When the pods turn yellow it is time to harvest.  If the pods have turned black they are no good Our hosts in the jungle

The last bath was the last stop 40 miles from the coast where the slaves were brought to clean up before they were taken to the Castles on the Ghana coast to auction.  If was very sobering to see where they were chained and shackled, washed, branded, and often buried. The river was beautiful.   From the road we walked through a tunnel of trees and vines down to the river they called the "last bath"  However, hiding within the waters were untold horrors including a chain and shackle that kept the enslaved from escaping.

 Shelly and I take a morning walk through our village of NKanfoa.  At 6:00am the village is alive and bustling.  Lot of youth "fetching" water for their homes.  These young boys carry about 5 gallons of water on their heads for about a mile.  You should see their calf muscles! At the main junction of the village they blare news and village announcements.  I think the practice is useful but does it really need to start at 5:00am.   The mud huts or houses are surrounded by motes which are deep gutters for the grey water that comes out of the homes.  This drawbridge is a little rickety.