{"id":5046,"date":"2018-09-19T05:25:33","date_gmt":"2018-09-19T13:25:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.touchalifekids.org\/?p=5046"},"modified":"2018-09-19T05:25:33","modified_gmt":"2018-09-19T13:25:33","slug":"build-a-better-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/touchalifekids.org\/build-a-better-world\/","title":{"rendered":"Build a Better World"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>There is something special about Back To School that brings this mom back into alignment and balance as a parent. I love summer, but after a few months of late night binge eating and movie marathons I start to feel sloppy. I find myself craving structure and productivity, and I begin making peace with the fact that summer fun may need to start winding down. Back to school is the reset button for the universe to become responsible citizens again and find purpose in everyday life.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/touchalifekids.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/TAL_2018_NB_1298-blog.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-5042\" src=\"https:\/\/touchalifekids.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/TAL_2018_NB_1298-blog-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"TAL_2018_NB_1298 blog\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" \/><\/a>I personally have great expectations about this upcoming school year. My two youngest children Van and Tatum will both be entering their sophomore year of college hopefully equipped and ready to tackle another semester. The first Touch A Life high school graduates will be pursuing their dreams of applying to colleges. Last but not least, drum roll please\u2026\u2026..A brand new primary STEM school just 10 minutes down the road from our care center in Kumasi will open their doors this fall. Bernard Fianku, our Ghana Country Director and Education Advocate just received confirmation that all 32 of our students who applied to attend have been accepted.<a href=\"https:\/\/touchalifekids.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/TAL_2018_NB_0909-blog.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-large wp-image-5044\" src=\"https:\/\/touchalifekids.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/TAL_2018_NB_0909-blog-682x1024.jpg\" alt=\"TAL_2018_NB_0909 blog\" width=\"300\" height=\"450\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Nothing brings me more joy at this time than to do a big shout out to Bernard aka as father and mentor to all the Touch A Life kiddos. Enrolling Ghanaian children in school is not an easy task like the states where everything is done with the click of a laptop. Bernard spends hours in his jeep driving all over Ghana to visit schools and meet with headmasters. I have watched him sit for hours filling out paperwork by hand with students gathered around a table always portraying the patience of Job. He believes in education and he believes in advocating for the future of our children. I also can\u2019t forget his beautiful wife Irene and silent partner who graciously opens their home to any child in need. Bernard and Irene endlessly work as a team day after day to be a force for good.<\/p>\n<p>Renewal is the word that comes to my mind when I think of our staff preparing for the new school year. We are renewing our commitment to stand in the gap for another year creating new individualized care plans for each child. My claim to fame as co-founder was a quote from a headmaster, \u201cThe Touch A Life kids at the end of the day don\u2019t leave and go to a house, they go to a home.\u201d Every child needs to feel safe and loved, and that is where we start.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/touchalifekids.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/TAL_2018_NB_0927-blog.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-large wp-image-5043\" src=\"https:\/\/touchalifekids.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/TAL_2018_NB_0927-blog-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"TAL_2018_NB_0927 blog\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" \/><\/a>There will always be a child that needs sponsored, and there will always be shoes and uniforms that need replaced year after year in Ghana. I love and appreciate the global family we have been building for over a decade, and this is my time to say thank you. Your faithful monthly support continues to meet the budget needs and demands of what it takes to care for over 100 children. We cannot do our job without you.<\/p>\n<p>Year after year Touch A Life says yes to restoring and renewing balance and alignment back to the universe through education. This week when you are buying your child\u2019s new backpack and school supplies consider making a difference locally or internationally for another child less fortunate. <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.touchalifekids.org\/donate\/\">Partner with our global family<\/a><\/strong> or find another organization you believe in and trust. Hit the reset button for a child in need and globally start helping BUILD A BETTER WORLD.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There is something special about Back To School that brings this mom back into alignment and balance as a parent. I love summer, but after a few months of late night binge eating and movie marathons I start to feel sloppy. I find myself craving structure and productivity, and I begin making peace with the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Build a Better World - Touch A Life<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/touchalifekids.org\/build-a-better-world\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Build a Better World - Touch A Life\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"There is something special about Back To School that brings this mom back into alignment and balance as a parent. 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