My name is Ethan Vandehei and I spent the last two years of my life living in the West African country of Ghana. In May of 2014 I graduated from East Hamilton High School located in Ooltewah, Tennessee. Just four months afterwards I went on a voluntary mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints to Ghana. I was one of many young men, ages 18-26, to live and serve in the country for a period of two years.
As missionaries we lived among the general population of Ghana. When I first arrived to the country I was considered a “greenie” by all the senior missionaries.
Upon arrival we would meet with our mission president, a man who would later play a very father like role in my life. The mission president then assigned me to a senior missionary or my “trainer” who would teach me the way to be a missionary and the culture of Ghana. My trainer was named Elder Thapeli and had come from South Africa to serve the Lord in Ghana.
We were located in an area called Kasoa which was just outside the capital city of Accra. Our days consisted of waking up every morning at 6:30 and having our personal and companionship scripture study. After which we would spend the day out teaching people the Gospel of Jesus Christ, going from home to home to share our message.
I would later be moved to many different parts of Ghana to serve with many other loved companions. One area which stuck out to me particularly was an area just inside the capital of Ghana, Accra. We lived not too far from a well known part of Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah Circle. On June 3 of 2015 we experienced some torrential rainfall which led to a flash flood and the loss of many homes and lives. There I was as an 18 year old boy and I was stuck right in the middle of it all.
When it first started to rain we thought nothing of it. We were eager to get indoors and catch up on
a bit of sleep. At the time I was living with another missionary, Elder Bowring. That night unfolded into something we would have never imagined to be possible.
We lived close to the Bishop, ecclesiastical leader of our congregation, who at that moment was at the church, away from his family. The rain seemed to fall with a vengeance showing no signs of stopping. After a couple hours of this we began to be worried about the possibility of a flood. Around 8:00 that night we gave the Bishop a call to check up on his family and make sure everything and everyone was fine. He assured us that all was well and we had nothing to worry about. About an hour later he gave us a call and said that things weren't fine and the water had gotten so high in the area around his house that he couldn't get home. He asked us if we could go and check on his family for him and we agreed.
We left our apartment and it quickly became apparent that we were way over our heads. We continued down the street we lived on fighting the rising water. The water quickly went from just under our ankles, to our knees and up to our waist. Every inch closer we got to the family the water matched by getting that much deeper. We maneuvered up the road relying on the almost constant flashes of lighting to light our way. When we made it up to the main road we were surprised to find that a massive rapid, spotted with garbage, car parts and all kinds of misc stuff, had replaced the road. At this point the water had reached up to our chests and things were not looking too good.
Once I worked up the nerve to step out into the rapid I was pleading with the Lord to spare my life. I decided it might be best to cover my bases and began asking for forgiveness from all my sins and mistakes. I could almost picture myself floating away lifeless never to be seen again. Miraculously we made it up the rapid and off on to the road the Bishop's family lived on. The bishop's family consisted of his wife, Love, and 2 children, Richson 2 years old and Precious who was 1 month old.
After we made the turn off, walking was no longer an option and it turned into a full out swim. We swam up the road to the compound the Bishop’s family was living in. The water had entirely submerged all the surrounding houses and was probably at a depth of around 9 feet. Love, the mom, was standing on a pyramid like structures made out of stairs with Precious strapped on her back and Richson on her hip. After some prayers and time to see what the water was gonna do we decided we had to get the family out. That was gonna be hard since none of them could swim.
We spotted a trash can, I swam out and brought it back in. When we had it we dried it out the best we could and then placed the crying baby inside. We methodically swam up the road, I would lead and figure out the best path while Elder Bowring would stay back and tread water with the baby. After at least an hour of this and many prayers we made it somewhere safe and left the baby with a close family friend. At that time we heard a large explosion and looked back just in time to see a large orange mushroom cloud rising up not to far away from us. A nearby gas station had ignited and blown up claiming the lives of many.
After a moment of disbelief we headed back to reunite Love with her daughter Precious. We got back and placed the mom on a bookshelf and repeated the process to all her family was once again safe, dry, and together. The picture below was taken on the 1 year anniversary of the flood.
The story of the flood is only one of many great stories I was able to witness and be part of in those two years. After the flood I continued on to serve in 4 different areas with many more amazing people who taught me so much. Perhaps the greatest thing I gained over those two years in Ghana is the knowledge of a loving Savior, Jesus Christ, who is mindful of each and everyone of us. That is the message I spent two years sharing with the people of Ghana and that is the message we strive to share with the world as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.