At the end of March 2024, Anne, Kofi, Kelvin and Nils flew to Ghana. In addition to their own luggage, each of them had a large bag filled to the brim with football shoes, goalkeeper gloves and backpacks. Kofi had already flown ahead to organise the handover day with the coach and teachers from St. Mary Primary School. He had also involved his whole family in the project finale.
On site in Techiman, Kofi and Kelvin contacted the parents and children to invite them to the handover day. Without further ado, the second-hand boutique was cleared out the day before the event to safely store the football boots, goalkeeper gloves, backpacks and drinks. Chairs were set up to the side of the boutique for the parents so that they could take part in the ceremony.
On 30 March, the time had come. The football kids, their parents and siblings, as well as many other people who had heard about the event and wanted to take part, flocked from all sides. The association team, the coach and the teachers had lined up in front of the shop for the handover. Kelvin and his cousin Benjamin documented the handover via video and photography.
At 37 degrees Celsius, Nils gave an acclaimed welcome speech, Kofi took over the translation and moderation and a teacher from Kofi’s family asked each child to come to the front for the shoe handover. Anne and the family made sure that the shoes were correctly allocated to each child. The kids could hardly believe it when, accompanied by a family member, they were able to collect their backpacks with brand new football shoes. All emotions were represented, from disbelief and amazement to pure joy, gratitude and unbridled pride. The handover was captured in a photo, child by child. Two hours later, all 64 children had their promised football boots. A further 45 used football boots were also handed over to the children. Before heading to the neighboring football pitch to play with the new boots, all guests were given a cool drink. After the football match that followed, the top scorer was honored by Nils and received a brand-new football. It was done overjoyed, but also totally exhausted, the team was able to conclude this successful day and the successful project with a final group photo.
Here are some impressions of the handover:
