HIGHLAND — Quite a few years ago, Canadian song writer Anne Murray had a hit that proclaimed that the world "could use a little good news."
The hit record was a success for her, but the idea wasn't new.
About 2,000 years ago, Jesus commanded his disciples to "go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone." (Mark 16:15).
Recently, a group of local disciples from St. Paul Church decided to continue the Christian ministry in Ghana by spreading "the Good News."
Parishioners adopted the Ghana parish several years ago, and continue to support it with prayer and with the continued development of the St. Therese Development Youth Center.
Father Paul Kala is from Ghana and is also the pastor at St. Lawrence Catholic Church in Greenville. Father Kala, along with Father Samuel Bagyo, who recently was ordained, met the group when they landed at the airport, located in the capital city of Accra.
The travel group was made up of Greg and Celeste Korte, Paula Rehkemper, Maryanne Sisnowski, Angi Scott and her son, 16-year-old Nolan.
"Father Samuel has found a special place in our family and he has become like another son to Brad (Angi's husband) and I," said Scott. "We have been blessed to be a part of the last four years, with him, throughout his seminary years."
Father Bagyo had asked them if they would go to Ghana for his Masses of Thanksgiving after ordination.
The Scotts decided that Nolan and Angi would be the ones who would travel with Father Bagyo and share in this special time with him.
Angi also wanted to see the youth center since its completion. They last visited Ghana in 2013, for the dedication of the center, but it had not officially opened yet. This latest trip was a wonderful opportunity to see firsthand the difference that St. Paul parishioners have made through all of their generosity.
For the next 10 days, they were able to share in three Masses of Thanksgiving that Father Bagyo celebrated.
"My greatest joys were seeing him welcomed home to celebrate his Masses of Thanksgiving, spending time at the youth center with the children and getting the opportunity to share this amazing trip with Nolan," Angi Scott said.
"The Masses were over three hours long and they were true celebrations with dancing, singing and absolute joy in which the people professed their faith," she added.
The group was able to visit Kaluri where the youth center is located. Six students and a professor from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville were there working with the children and teachers for six weeks. More than 200 children attend the after-school program.
"They are so eager to learn and they are there because they know how valuable a good education is, and how it is the key to their success in the future," said Scott.
The students travel from several miles around; some riding bikes that have been donated from the Highland area, but most walk.
Despite the heat and many empty stomachs, their desire to be at the youth center is evident in their respect for one another and their teachers as well as their good behavior and attentiveness.
The Ghanians are known for their hospitality and their friendliness.
"Taking Nolan there and watching him as he experienced this kindness firsthand was something this mom will forever hold dearly in her heart," Scott said.
Since she has only been back a couple of weeks, Scott is still trying to process the whole experience.
"It is impossible for me to visit a place where so many, have so little, without questioning why we in the U.S. have been blessed with so much," she said.
She came away with a feeling of being blessed and of gratitude.
"My admiration for the women of Ghana is immense. To see them carrying wood, water, and food on their heads to their homes so that they can prepare a meal over an open fire is hard to comprehend."
In the rural areas, homes are made of mud and clay with thatched roofs and dirt floors.
There is one woman, in particular, who hasn't left her thoughts.
"She was working at a construction site that we visited. She had her 2-year-old daughter bundled on her back while she was carrying a cement block on her head with her hands at her side," she recalled.
"One older woman who came up to us at Father Samuel's reception asked us if she could go with us to the United States," said Scott. "If she could, the woman told her, it would be like going to heaven.
"God called me out of my comfort zone, 15 years ago, when he (God) let Brad and I know that our family wasn't complete and that to do so, we would have to travel half way around the world to China to bring our daughter home. I had never traveled outside of our country and the task seemed daunting, but we knew that this is what he was calling us to do. So, we answered that call, and I stepped out of my comfort zone with a great leap of faith. He daily blesses me for saying 'yes' to his call, by the joy and delight that faith brings to our lives.
"So when he nudged me two years ago to go to Ghana the first time, I knew that he would take care of things to make it happen and he did. Then Samuel came to us a year ago asking that we go to Ghana with him. I just didn't think I had it in me to go again, for I prayed about it for quite some time, and once again, I knew that he was calling me to this.
"The rewards have been greater than I could have imagined," she noted.
Just as Anne Murray sang about "a little good news" the group found that when you give with all your heart, the riches you receive are far more than you could ever imagine, even in a poor nation like Ghana.