Colleges to heart, crusading to raise awareness and funds to help educate young people of Ghana By Nicole Williams Smith The Broadbelts embarked on their educational crusade after a recent visit to Africa.

"The first time we went we did the normal tourist things and visited the attractions like Alouri Gardens,'' recalled Mr. Broadbelt. "In 1998 we met Frederick Kwasi Dunyo, a lecturer in African Music at the University of Toronto in Canada.

"Last year we spent four-to-six weeks with Frederick in his home village of Dagbalete in the Volta region of Eastern Ghana. While there, we observed and participated in village life and got to know the children and young adults.'' Mr. Broadbelt said it soon became apparent to the couple that the young people were having challenges obtaining a basic education.

"Unlike Bermuda, where education is free, people have to pay for every stage of basic education,'' he explained. "Due to the lack of financial resources, many bright and intelligent young people are lost by the wayside.'' The couple were so disturbed by the plight of the young people, that they joined forces with Mr. Dunyo to help the adolescents and teenagers get the education they need.

"We are in the process of setting up a scholarship fund to meet their urgent needs,'' said Mr. Broadbelt. "We will provide funding for children from nursery school through to senior school.

"We are currently working with a half-dozen young men from the village to provide immediate funding so they can attend senior secondary school.'' The couple said that a young person could be educated through three years of senior secondary school for US $500.

"It would take about $250 to send a child for a year which covers their uniform, school books, room and board and tuition and registration,'' explained Mr. Broadbelt. "The cost decreases with each subsequent year because the initial registration is the major cost. For three years of senior secondary school it would cost around $500.

"My whole point is that it is relatively inexpensive to educate a young person, but due to the economy of the country, people don't have the funds to do it.'' The pair admitted that the education dilemma was not unique to the village of Dagbalete, but it was the ideal place to start their scholarship programme.

"In order to get anything going you have to start with one particular place,'' Mr. Broadbelt pointed out. "We're starting with this village because we know it well.

"They have a nursery school there but it has a thatched roof so when it rains, the children have to leave school because there is no shelter,'' he recalled. "The primary school is just a shell -- it's a long building with windows that have no glass. There is nothing in the room, no desks or chairs.'' But despite the sparse conditions, the pair said the children had a burning desire to learn.

"The children are very creative and eager to learn,'' Mr. Broadbelt said.

"They make full use of their environment, for example they take tin cans and make toys out of them and make balls out of plastic bags. They are very talented and it is unfortunate that many of them won't get the chance to further that talent.'' "You'll even find grown men in junior school in Ghana because they had to drop out because they couldn't afford to go,'' noted Mrs. Broadbelt. "After they have worked and earned some money they go back to school and they feel no shame in doing so. They are proud to be back in school.'' In the future, the couple said they envisioned Bermuda's schools developing close relationships with their counterparts in Ghana.

"We would like to see the schools here embrace the schools there,'' said Mrs.

Broadbelt. "It would be nice if they could build a relationship with the ultimate goal being an exchange programme via letters and visits.'' "In the future we would like to find a way to bridge the gap in terms of financial investment and the sharing of technology,'' said Mr. Broadbelt.

"But the immediate goal is to educate the five students, even if it is just for a year.

Via their organisation, Bermuda African Dance Company, the Broadbelts will return to Ghana in July with 15 to 20 young people.

"The students will learn dance and drumming as well as keep a diary for educational purposes,'' Mrs. Broadbelt explained. "They'll be going from village to village and living with the children so they will get to see how the young people live there. It will be a real cultural experience.

"We'd like to take school supplies with us and we are encouraging them to take an extra suitcase with things in them.'' Back to basics: During a recent visit to Ghana, Dawn and Ivan Broadbelt realised many young people could not get a basic education, despite their desire to learn.

Primary purpose: The primary school in the village of Dagbalete in Ghana is the shell of a long building which has windows with no glass, pictured here behind a group of students holding Canadian flags. Following a recent visit to Ghana, Dawn and Ivan Broadbelt decided to start a scholarship fund to help youngsters get the basic education they desperately need.