SADA Art Drive donates supplies to school ministry in Ghana

The gift of a box of crayons or pack of pencils might not seem like a lot, but it can make all the difference for children who might not be able to afford art supplies. This past fall, Liberty’s Studio and Digital Arts Department organized the drive to help support a school in Ghana with resources for an art program. 

The art supply drive was organized by Studio and Digital Art’s Chair Todd Smith as well as Administrative Assistant Teresa Rich and Art Gallery Assistant Curator Jillian Ramsey, in partnership with Dr. Yaw Adu-Gyamfi of Liberty’s online English Department. The supply drive is set to help the Berean Christian School in Ghana, a school that was founded by Liberty Alum Charles Koomson and his ministry, Charles Koomson Outreach Ministry. 

That ministry is a non-profit organization that focuses on sharing the Gospel overseas to remote and underprivileged villages in Ghana. Their mission focuses on two goals: to teach the children of Ghana the Word of God and to show them the value of education and hope.

While the art supply drive started during Liberty’s Global Focus Week in September, the idea and passion for this mission started years ago. Back in 2016, Smith and Adu-Gyamfi partnered with the Berean Christian School by conducting an art supply drive that proved to be successful. Recently, Smith felt called to give again and help send more supplies and resources to the Berean Christian School. Fueled by passion from God, the department reached out to Adu-Gyamfi to begin the planning process of another art supply drive. 

Adu-Gyamfi has been working at Liberty for over 20 years and is very passionate about Ghana missions. Twice a year, he pays for a large shipping container to come to Liberty and ship donations received throughout a six-month period. Each trip takes about two months by boat to reach its final destination in Ghana where Adu-Gyamfi goes to receive the shipment and help distribute its contents. About six months ago, he helped send sewing machines to kick-start a sewing and fashion center at the Berean Christian School.

“(The art supply drive provided) more than we anticipated,” Adu-Gyamfi said. 

As donations came in, the department had a goal of filling at least 200 tote school bags with school supplies. However, the effort resulted in packing a total of 250 bags, far exceeding expectations. Each tote school bag has a pencil pouch with pens, pencils, a pencil sharpener, crayons and a marker as well as a ruler and paper. Additionally, there were boxes of other supplies for the art teacher to use in the classroom.  

Along with sending the art supplies, equipment and other materials to the school in Ghana, an art teacher will be fully funded for a year to help students develop their artistic skills. 

“(The Berean Christian School) has connections to about 30 other churches and schools in the region to meet some of the area’s greatest needs,” Rich said. 

The department is looking forward to continuing this outreach with Adu-Gyamfi annually.

“The overarching goal (of this art supply drive) is to help every person in every culture realize that creative gifts come from God, and to give those developing artists the tools to create for His glory,” Smith said.

Pickard is a feature reporter for the Liberty Champion