It all happened at about 9.00 a.m. on one Saturday in the latter part of 1976.  A member of the Calvary Society who was travelling to Kumasi was involved in a near fatal motor accident on that day.  An English Medical Officer who was travelling from Accra to Tamale came onto the scene of the accident.  He stopped, announced to the relief of the bewildered fellow passengers and people from the nearby villages who have rushed to the place of accident to assist the injured passengers that he was a doctor.  He quickly took charge of the situation and gave our injured brother a needed first aid attention.

It became clear that our brother was the most seriously injured person.  To save his life, the doctor took him to the Kibi Hospital.  Unfortunately, the resident doctor was on trek.  The white doctor performed a more thorough examination with the facilities available at the hospital.  He decided that the brother should be sent down to the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital for further attention.  He directed that an ambulance should be used to convey the brother to Korle-Bu.  And since there was no ambulance is stationed at the Kibi Hospital, he decided to go and solicit assistance from the nearby Police Station to contact Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital for an ambulance.  Miraculously, as soon as the nurse turned along the street towards the Police Station, she saw an ambulance coming from the Kumasi direction to Accra.  The driver stopped at the request of the nurse.  It turned out that he was returning to Accra empty after conveying a patient to the Koforidua Hospital.

Thus the English doctor dispatched our brother from Kibi Hospital to the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital for treatment.  Having stayed at Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital for a couple of weeks, he was transferred to the 37 Military Hospital where he was operated-upon.

Not long after resuming worshipping with us at Calvary, he gathered a few of us together after one Sunday service and shared some of his experiences at the hospital with us.  He climaxed it all with a request and appeal to us to form a special Church group with him as a voluntary regular hospital visiting group.  Those who listened to our brother’s testimony responded to the formation of the Church Hospital Visiting Group, and thus was born our group under his leadership.  The brother provided a handsome amount for the group’s transport and other needed expenses and promised to make it an annual affair.

The then Superintendent Minister - the Most Rev. T. W. Koomson - gave his blessing and the Leaders’ Meeting agreed to finance the group with funds from the Church.  In February 1976, the late Rt. Rev. W. G. M. Brandful, Superintendent Minister, formally inaugurated and named it ‘Awerekyekyer Kuw’.

As an organization of the Church, the Kuw was most fortunate to receive guidance and supervision from the Rt. Rev. J. E. Ebe-Arthur who was then attached to the Church as an Auxiliary Minister.  We went to one hospital the other:  Korle-Bu, 37 Military Hospital, Police Hospital and Ridge Hospital, etc. All visits commenced from 5.30 p.m. and ended at 8.00 p.m.

We planned to send gifts to sick children admitted to the Children’s Wards and those who did not have their relatives here in Accra including invalid members of the Church during Christmas and Easter.  This practice has been going on ever since the “Kuw” was formed.

AIM

The aim of the ‘Awerekyekyer Kuw’ is to visit, pray, comfort, cheer up and encourage and sick and the bereaved people both at hospital and at home.

ACHIEVEMENTS

We are happy to record that God has sustained the ‘Awerekyekyer Kuw’ all these years.  God has also touched the hearts of Church members to give monetary assistance to supplement what we receive from the Church for transportation from Calvary to the hospitals on Fridays and back.  We have experiences, which have urged us on and inspired us to continue with this social and Christian work.

We believe the following examples may encourage readers either to join us or to support us in any other way they may deems fit.

1. A Medical Officer of another hospital who was admitted to the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital invited us to his bedside to pray with him and his wife.  We visited him about four times later at Korle-Bu.  On his discharge a message from the couple reached us not only to thank us but also to assure us that whereas he previously did not have time to read his Bible before going to work, he was now grateful to God that since his encounter with us, he has felt uncomfortable at work if he did not read his Bible or undertake his devotion before going to work.
    
2. A patient from Cape Coast whom we visited regularly at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital after his discharge from the hospital sent us words of encouragement and wished us well.
    
3. We had information from a senior nurse at the Military Hospital that a young patient we had visited during one of our normal visits to say special prayers for him had left a message for us.  The young boy died a few days later; he asked the nurse to thank us and to say that through our prayers God has granted him peace and hope to be with Him in His Kingdom.

It will be of interest to know that the last four original brothers and sisters who formed the prayer group are still in membership.  Also the brother who initiated the formation of Awerekyekyer Kuw still enjoys God’s grace and is able to fulfill his promises of providing the group with a substantial sum of money annually to continue to work.

In addition to giving of their time, energy, the members offer financial assistance as and when they find it necessary or when they feel called upon to do so.  This is so especially in cases where the condition of a patient strongly appeals to them to do so.

We ask for readers’ constant prayers in this stimulating, challenging and sacrificial service.