Based in Tema, Ghana, the Marfo Children Care Foundation (MCCF) was founded by Adwoa Yeboah-Marfo, a woman with an almost unparalleled capacity for love.
A proud mother of three children and a wife to her faithful husband, Yaw, Ms Marfo and her family lived a mostly blessed life until tragedy struck their household. A successful architect, Yaw had designed and partially built the family’s dream home, but progress was brought to a sudden stop when he was diagnosed with chronic renal failure, causing his health to deteriorate rapidly, sending the family spiralling into financial debt. After a battle with the illness, Yaw passed away, leaving behind Ms Marfo and their children to face life without him.
In his final actions prior to passing, Yaw, a man of unwavering faith, had opened his bible to Isaiah 41:10, a passage that reads: "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." Inspired by these words and empowered by her love for her husband, Ms Marfo decided to channel her suffering into positive action. In the two decades that followed, she opened up her home to 17 children in need, the majority of whom were orphans, raising them as members of her family, providing them with spiritual guidance, education and most importantly: love.
Whilst the family home was spacious, building works were only partially completed at the time of Yaw’s passing, and so Ms Marfo and her family had to live across a couple of rooms on the top floor of the house, as the ground floor did not have doors or windows, leaving the space vulnerable to intrusion by unwelcome guests including burglars, snakes and rodents. For many years, Ms Marfo made the best of a difficult situation, strengthened by the knowledge that she was living a truly meaningful life. With some help from her community, she managed to achieve the near-impossible, but had always prayed for some additional support, and in 2018, those prayers were answered.
Whilst on a business trip to Ghana, the Tropical Sun team were told Ms Marfo’s incredible story by Emefa Gadegbeku: a food distributor from the local area. Keen to meet Ms Marfo, the team traveled to her home – and stunned by her strength and commitment to ‘the forgotten children’ of Ghana, pledged their support to the Marfo Children Care Foundation. Following months of planning, renovation works began in February of 2019, turning the sparse, bare-bones property into a safe and functional family home.
Designed by Femme Arch Consult: the only construction firm in Ghana with all-female partners, the family home will soon is being fitted with plumbing and electrics, living and dining areas, a well-equipped bathroom, secured entrance and perimeter fence. Complete with doors and windows, the home will be secured from unwanted guests, giving the Marfo family more space to grow together and inspire the world around them.
Tropical Sun is truly grateful to play a small part in Ms Marfo’s incredible journey. We encourage those moved by her actions to visit https://www.marfochildrencare.com and, should they have the means, consider donating to this most-worthy of causes.
In the coming months, Tropical Sun will also release a short film on Ms Marfo, so be sure to follow our Instagram and Facebook pages to that once it launches.
With love,
The Tropical Sun Family
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