Living My Dream...Lintel Aid Touching Lives, The Journey So Far

As a growing girl,I remember anytime I walked on the streets and saw people with no home to lay their heads, kids selling on the street at an hour they need to be in school, underprivileged kids in underprivileged schools thinking they cannot make it in life because of where they are coming from, when I came across brilliant students whose parents didn’t have the means to see them through school, I became sad, worried and wished I could change their situations around and put smiles on their faces. I have always been passionate about giving back to society.

My name is Miss Linda ohui Teye, CEO of Lintel Aid Ghana (an NGO initiative), a krobo who hails from Osudoku in the Greater Accra Region, Born to Mr and Mrs Teye and the first of five children,had my basic school education at Happy home Academy then to Ghanata senior high school in Dodowa where I offered General Arts.

I wanted to become a journalist by profession but some way, somehow I ended up in University For Development Studies Wa campus where I was offered BA Integrated community Development , I wasn’t happy given this course butI guess I was thinking I had no option but now I appreciate reading this course so much , God has a reason for doing the things he does in our lives,looking at myself now and the knowledge this course has impacted to Lintel Aid Ghana I now understand why I didn’t get admission to any other school to offer journalism but rather ended up in UDS.

Sometimes certain things happen to us and we simply don’t understand but I want us all to know that everything happens for a purpose, one day you would come to appreciate why certain things happen to us and why we go through certain things. If am given a second chance to choose any course in the university trust me I would go back to Uds and read Ba Integrated Community Development all over again. This course has given me insight into a lot of things that goes on in communities especially our third trimester programmes where you are taken to a community to spend eight weeks there and research about the people.

This has even made community studies with Lintel Aid Ghana easier because I understand what community development is all about, thanks to Uds. I am so proud to be associated with this University. Aside been passionate about giving back to society I love to read and write a lot, I also do a bit of relationship counselling and Ihaven’t given up on been a journalist someday. Lintel Aid Ghana journey started way back in Uds wa campus when I decided to live my dreams, thus to give back to society against all odds.I shared the vision with colleagues and friends who were also passionate about giving back to society leading to the birth of Lintel Aid Ghana.

We always used to discuss how we really wanted to touch lives and give back to society. We didn’t embark on any project until after national service in 2014, we decided that the vision must not die, Hence 2015 marked the new era, the beginning of Lintel touching lives story. Lintel has areas of focus such as educational support, support for the needy and less priviledge, women empowerment and capacity building. in 2015 we had three successful projects within five months , the first been a donation of educational materials exercise to Christ the king of kings underprivileged school in Jamestown , the same school benefited from our second project which was a cleanup/painting the blackboard exercise on national volunteers day,our third projects saw us visiting five communities in upper manya krobo for a project that was dubbed Asesewa project , (clothing sharing,chalk and duster distribution , painting the blackboard exercise amidst a lot of motivational talks, inspiration speeches, open forum and one on one interactions with the school and communities).

Some beneficiary communities included Abetima,Kpesebi, Akoto-krogua and Asesewa itself. 2015 was indeed a success story; it was touching of lives in our own little way. We currently are paying the fees of one needy child. The journey so far hasn’t been an easy one but the Grace of God has always been sufficient seeing us through all the challenges. 2016 is a daring year for the team of ten (10) and fifty (50) Volunteers, still counting. Proposed projects for 2016 includes educationaltour, we intend visiting fiveunderpriiviledge schools and sharing with them some motivational and inspirationalspeeches, this project is dubbed the kids our future project, we would also be embarking on a women empowerment project (we intend investing in women, it’s not only the right thing to do, it’s the smart thing to do, a mobile library outreach project to encourage reading, and then one kid one uniform project. July also marks one year anniversary of the Ngo initiative.

We would also in collaboration with another ngo launch a peace crusade to promote peace before, during and after this year’s election.Our major constrain has been financial challenge. We using this opportunity to appeal to organizations,manufacturing companies, stakeholders, donor agencies, radio and television stations, newspaper agencies and individuals to come to our aid, support us as well as partner our projects.

I always tell people that it is always impossible until it’spossible, a lot of people are killing their dreams, a lot of people are not living their dreams, a lot of people are dying with their dreams .you need to know your purpose in life and live it to the fullest. You might think you cannot do it, you cannot make it or you can’t get there, forgetting you always need to start from somewhere and with determination you can always get to where you want to get to. Don’t be discouraged by who you are, what you are or where you come from simply use what you have and start where you are and trust me with God we can always smile at the storm.

We all have a story to tell. I encourage you not to discourage yourself. To God be the glory for great things he has done and for greater things he is about doing. Am happy living my dream. Make sure you live your dream too. I want to use this medium to say thank you to the most inspiring people in my life, my Dad and mum, then to my family. They have been very supportive, to team lintel and volunteers like I always say amazing team great volunteers, to all the behind the scene guys who work to make sure projects are a success though we often miss their presence, to Dangme news paper, Rite fm and to everyone who has been part of Lintel success story we say God bless us all.Africa and the world must watch out for us. Long live Ghana, long live Lintel Aid Ghana, and long live Dangme News.

Dangme News
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