Life as the Wife of a SEED Intern

      My name is Madison and I am the wife of John Johnson (one of the SEED interns this summer). John’s major is International Business, so I knew we would be leaving the country at some point. When he started looking into the SEED Program, I got really excited. I LOVE traveling, and going to Africa just happened to be on my bucket list! Both of our families were a little worried as we prepared to leave. They all had their concerns about our health and safety. As we made our preparations, I didn’t know what to expect. I had heard great things from past interns, but I didn’t know what our living conditions would be like, if we would have to eat crazy things, if I was going to get parasites, or if we would have a real toilet and shower. As it turns out, Ghana is Africa for beginners so my worries are small small, as the Ghanaians would say.

       When we first arrived in Accra, there was definitely some culture shock. Seeing how people live and work was really interesting. It made me realize how much we really have in America and how blessed we are to live there. We have so many amazing opportunities. On the other hand, I am excited for the people of Ghana because their country is growing and developing so much. They are receiving better educations and finding better employment all the time.

      I have learned a lot about the SEED program since I have been here. I have been able to assist the interns in teaching, collecting loan payments, funding new loans, and meeting past loan recipients. It is fun to see how much the loans have helped the people as well as their businesses grow. The program is continually adapting, and in my opinion, will continue getting better and better. John and I have also been volunteering at the village’s health clinic twice a week. I really enjoy helping them out and they appreciate it so much. When I am not assisting with intern work I read, crochet, play with the children, and take LOTS of pictures. My favorite part of being here has been getting to know the people, especially the kids. They have all been so friendly and welcoming. We have also been able to see some beautiful areas of Ghana when we get to travel on the weekends.
      Unfortunately one of the SEED interns had to return to the states early, so now I am taking his place as a full time intern. I am looking forward to being more involved, especially as we are entering the loan application process. We finished teaching our class this past week and are currently helping them develop their business plans. Over the next two weeks we will be interviewing them and helping them apply for loans. Our class has some great students, so I am excited to see how it all turns out for them. I hope they have all learned something from the class because I have already learned so much from being a part of the SEED Program.  

       

The view out our front door