Finishing Good Foundation School - Tetrem Ghana

Kia ora Koutou!

My name is Jaimee Perrett and I am a primary school teacher from New Zealand.

In 2014, I visited Ghana for the first time, staying for 4 months to teach English at a rural school in a small village called Tetrem. This school has had such a positive impact on my life that I have since returned three times.

Good Foundation School is now a place I call home and the people here are now my family. I admire the strength and love that bonds the families here and I enjoy the sense of community amongst it's members and visitors. Because of my experiences here, I know that I am a better teacher and a better person. It has been a humbling journey living and teaching in Ghana.

I realised on my last visit that the people of GFS had big dreams and plans for their community, but they needed support. I started organising projects to raise money for several projects to improve the school. Thanks to many supporters, the school now have new desks, a school library, new classroom whiteboards and much needed curriculum textbooks!

Once I realised what we could accomplish with a bit of help, my dreams started to grow for the school as well. Their current school was falling apart and wouldn’t last much longer. School funds were being spent on refurbishing the building to ensure it was safe instead of spending on them real educational material.

We knew what had to be done. Last year my friends and I launched a huge fundraiser online to try and raise enough money to rebuild the current school! All over the world, friends, family and caring students started fundraising - selling bracelets, having raffles, writing to their pen-pals, naming classrooms – all in the name of Good Foundation School.

Last month, I returned to Ghana with my sister, cousin and some friends to start the rebuild. Our fundraiser helped us get the new school off the ground, and last week, a “good foundation” was actually built for the base of our new school. Now that we have this ball rolling, there’s no going back!

While our last fundraiser started off the process, we have noticed that the budget created just one year ago has changed. The economy in Ghana is very unstable and increases have made our goal harder to reach.

So, we’re here again, in desperate need of financial support to supplement the funds already raised for the complete rebuilding of the school. I know, from previous experience, that this is merely a minor obstacle in our development and with your help we can get the children of Tetrem in their new Good Foundation School in no time.

Over the next few months, friends and volunteers are coming from all over - New Zealand, Bulgaria, United Kingdom, Poland and France. I am so thankful for everyone that donates, whether it’s time, money, or just a mere moment to share this campaign. Together we will get this school built and we look forward to sharing the progress and of course, the celebration, when this dream becomes a fully realised new school!

Rewards;

$30 - we'll send you a friendship bracelet made by a student at GFS

$40 - we'll send you a painting made by a student at GFS

$50 - we'll send you a Kente cloth weaved by one of the local weavers in Tetrem

$1000 - if you make a donation of this amount you can name one of the 6 remaining unnamed classrooms.

(Contact us at gfstetrem@gmail.com to organise the postage of your reward)

You can find more about this story in the media and on our previous fundraiser;

https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2019/04/the-kiwi-pouring-pints-in-london-to-build-a-school-in-ghana.html

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/118281670/nelson-teacher-heads-to-africa-to-build-new-school-in-ghanaian-village

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/317856981/building-a-good-foundation