This article was first published on GhanaWeb.com on Wednesday, October 11, 2023, but has been republished due to a system challenge experienced on the website in early January 2024

Trudy Sackey, a student of Morgan International Community School, wanted to do something worthwhile with her time while on holidays. She decided to volunteer in a school and she was welcomed at the Akosombo V.R.A Presby Basic School to assist the teachers in Class 2.

Trudy took her ‘job’ seriously and enjoyed engaging with the children. Besides assisting the teacher, she would sing with them and play with them during break time.

As she put it; “embarking on this journey made me realize the diverse and beautiful stories of my community. I met children from different homes with completely different mindsets. Frequently, I found myself staring at them, just in awe at how happy and carefree they seemed. As we get older, reality sets in and things like school or work tend to suppress our once carefree nature we all had when we were much younger. So, for me these children just being themselves, smiling everyday warmed my heart. It truly was a worthwhile experience.”

Trudy loves to read and she observed that the school did not have a library but the children loved to read. She wanted to bring the children as much joy as they brought her and also meet a need.

After days of contemplating and having conversations with the headmaster, Mr. Seth Adu Obeng, she finally settled on setting up a library. The school provided a room, some old tables and chairs. The room was not big enough but Trudy was grateful that the school was supportive of her idea.

She set to work right away.

She raised funds and renovated the furniture, ordered and fixed shelves, as well as made posters. She also painted the room and fixed a fan in there to make the place comfortable.

She collected story books from family and friends and got nearly one hundred books. She then set to work decorating and setting up the library.

This is what she had to say about the entire process - “It was a stressful and daunting task, involving a lot of ups and downs but with the support of my community and an alumnus, we made it happen.

"Finally, on the 20th September 2023, the 'LET THEM READ' mini library was officially opened. I am happy the children have the opportunity to develop their reading skills and I intend to continue supporting the library in any way I can. I thank the school authorities for giving me the opportunity.”