A boy’s dream to become a pilot

“At the end, it’s not about what you have or even what you’ve accomplished. It’s about who you’ve lifted up, who you’ve made better. It’s about what you’ve given back.” ~ Denzel Washington

Everyone has problems in this world, but the magnitude depends on where you come from. Developed countries have slightly fewer problems than their developing counterparts. But this does not mean that there are no problems in developed nations, no. The difference is, a large portion of the difficulties in developing countries can be solved with a bit of help from you. It is no secret that poverty is very rampant in developing nations, specifically those in Africa. Unsurprisingly, the population in Africa is mainly young.

Many children in Africa have the dream of one day becoming instrumental to the development of their economies. Their hopes, however, are intensely squashed by the harsh realities of the economies they are born into: and only a few born into wealthy families get to achieve their dreams. These children end up “dreaming the impossible dream” because poverty itself imposes barriers they cannot overcome unless someone intervenes.

What if I told you that any little piece of technology you can donate to Africa could go a long way to facilitate a child’s dream? There is a lot of potential in this continent; so much diamond is buried in the ruff. We, as the more privileged, have a responsibility to help them realize their potential. After all, no one ever became poor from giving.

The President and CEO of the Goodwill Professional Development Network Foundation (a 501c3 registered Charity Organization based in the United States), Mr. Abraham Charles Moncar, came across a touching story on Facebook, published by Enoch Odoi.

In the story, the writer narrates his encounter with Jonathan Frimpong at the airport after his official duties.

“While he was on his way home, he saw this kid playing on the pavement with his self-made paper plane, and he was intrigued. Out of curiosity, he drew closer to the kid, who then began running away. This prompted him to softly call out to the boy telling him to stop as there was nothing to be afraid of. It was 8:00 PM, and darkness was setting in.

So, out of concern, he asked the boy his name, where he came from, and why he was playing alone late in the evening. The boy introduced himself, said he lived at Opeibia, a suburb of Accra, Ghana, in West Africa, approximately a 12-minute walk. He also added that he loved coming by the airport and watching planes take off whenever he was alone. Touched by the boy’s background story and his disciplined childhood demeanor, he took the boy on a little tour around the airport to give him a glimpse of the activities inside the airport.

They didn’t manage to make it to the tarmac, but the writer stressed that the sight of the pilots, air hostesses, and people checking in brought a lot of joy to Jonathan’s face and based on that alone, the boy’s hope of becoming a pilot was revived. He also had something to share with his friends.”

Deeply moved by Jonathan’s story, Mr. Abraham Moncar’s Charity organization took the initiative to reach out to him on the same post on Facebook. We promised to have a drone delivered to him to kick start his dream of becoming a pilot. We also gifted him with a 16-mile-long range two-way communication radio device to offer him the feel of a pilot’s communication with the control tower. That way, Jonathan can get to play with his friends while laying the foundation for his ultimate dream.

Later, we discovered that Jonathan Frimpong was homeless after several failed attempts to locate his parents’ whereabouts. We made arrangements for him to be moved to an orphanage in Accra, where further assistance will be given to him, including putting him in a school to further his dream of becoming a pilot. We also made some clothing and other personal items available to Jonathan, giving him more hope that the world cares.

All these was made possible through our collaboration with Top Spear, a media group currently in Ghana with the vision of empowering the youth through current technology in music and the use of drones. The CEO, Mr. Kwabena Kankam, together with co-CEO Tallulah Nanayaa Lassiter, promised to train Jonathan as a drone pilot and offer help to other kids in similar situations. They even went further to fly different drone types with Jonathan and his new friends at the orphanage, which brought a lot of cheer and joy to a boy once in the streets. Because of Jonathan, two companies from the US and Ghana have come together, with a common goal to help him.

There’s an overwhelming joy and happiness in helping a child see their dreams come to reality by providing them with quality education. So many children are illiterate in third world countries; not because they are intellectually incapable, but lack the resources to get educated. Even though more children are enrolled in school continent-wide, many are dropping out due to financial constraints, which they cannot overcome independently. The poverty they are raised in numbs the mind, body, and soul of many yet brilliant children of third-world countries. Their parents cannot even afford to support them through school at that young age, and many end up in the streets abandoned.

Therefore, we as an organization, are determined to help these children overcome the material obstacles they face. There is something about these children that makes us feel they are special when we interact with them. At a very young age, I learned that children are generally more able to see possibilities and more open to expansion if they have had more positive life experiences.

This young boy I met had hoped to pursue his dream, which was communicated by his ability to play, and the drone we gifted him, plus the drone school we enrolled him, has rekindled his hope. This is what our organization, Goodwillpdn Foundation, strives to accomplish in the hearts of every child we reach out to. Remember, there are many more just like this boy, and we need your donations to sustain our mission. So join us in helping these children realize their dreams.

Our mission as Goodwill Professional Development Network Foundation is to provide quality education to the children and youths in third-world countries, especially the orphans and street children. We provide this education through the use of electronic waste and online libraries.

We use different electronic devices such as computers/laptops, smartphones, cell phones, camcorders, headsets, speakers – any electronics to address the technical aspects of education for third-world countries. Therefore, it would go a long way to facilitate our mission if you will be able to donate these electronics to us for this mission.

The children and youths we cater to in third world countries come from low-income families, and most parents cannot support their children’s school fees and other school needs; let alone when they pass school, to be able to achieve their dreams and create a better world for themselves and their families. Many fall prey to crime, substance abuse, and sexual exploitation because their hopes and dreams are dead. But we have a great passion for bringing these hopes and dreams to life through education and the gift of the electronic wastes we collect to them. Through your donations, we have a chance to prevent this from happening. We want to gift them a brighter future.

We have also identified an urgent need to provide I.T. education, access to computer labs, and special programs to prepare these vulnerable children and youth for brighter job prospects as vital to poverty alleviation. A three-step process of goal-setting, action, and reflection will be pursued by us in our approach and inculcated in our clients through our skill development program.

Our goal is to improve the educational systems that these children will be a part of by improving the quality of the teachers, support staff and school superintendents, educational institutes, and classroom facilities. These are the focus areas of our organization for helping the kids because these areas are the primary key to providing quality education.

Help us give these children a chance through education for their future is limitless. It only takes one to help another one live their dreams. We hope you will join us in helping more children realize their dreams. Do not hesitate to help us; every little amount counts, even if it is just $1, $2, or $5. If you’re in a position to donate electronics, they are much welcomed.

Please donate towards child education through our website https://goodwillpdn.org/.