When the classes are great and the rest is even better

This first week has been everything I could have hoped and more. Although my classes are all amazing and I'm learning a ton already and have great hope for what's ahead, that's not even half of what's on my mind.
We got our community service placements and I will be volunteering at both the Dei Center and the City of Refuge. With these two organizations, I will be starting my own program where I will be bringing arts to the lives of young children who need substantial and untraditional help in their lives.
As Naa Seidu Braimah, member of Ghanaian Council of State publicly addressed last August, child trafficking is a growing concern in Ghana. Lake Volta, unfortunately stands as a trafficking ground for thousands of children who are enslaved and given very little food in return for their labors. These children, by and large, have no way to escape, coming from families who often have no income and no way to support them. City of Refuge aims to save these children and bring them better lives, if unable to return them to their initial homes or families, the children are placed in the organization's orphanage, the Freedom Center.
Through the Dei Center, an art organization that devotes much of its time to enlightening youth on the importance of the arts, I am going to start a program that uses art as a means of therapy to improve the lives of children in the Freedom Center. As an art history and social work double major and global visual arts minor, I passionately believe in the positive effects that art can have in any situation, especially for those who have been through such tragedy and have a difficult time sharing and channeling their experiences and emotions.
If you are interested in learning more and/or donating (tax deductible) to this cause, you can go to the website, http://www.cityofrefugeoutreach.com/ If you choose to donate, put "Elizabeth Tulsky Art Program" as the memo. Any little bit will help begin the program which will bring arts supplies to the children and potentially, depending on the amount of donations, enable these kids to go on field trips to see art galleries, meet artists and become truly inspired and explore their own abilities and potential.
I am incredibly excited for this experience and cannot wait to see where it ultimately leads me, and, of course, the children involved.