Two Full Days in Accra

April 11-12, 2026

Saturday and Sunday were filled with a trip to the temple, tours of the MTC and Church Area Offices, a visit to the mission home, shopping in the art district, attending church, and exploring the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park and Mausoleum. Here are a few highlights from two very full days!

We went to the temple early Saturday morning to attend a session. The Accra Ghana Temple has the same floor plan as the temple we attend back home in Lubbock, Texas—about two hours from Odessa. Parker said it was a neat experience to enter the temple as a missionary and discover that it felt so familiar.

One thing I especially want to remember is the deep reverence of the Ghanaian Saints. It was completely quiet before the session began—no one even whispered to the person next to them. There was such a peaceful, sacred feeling in the room.

We had our own personal tour guide for the MTC—Elder Samuel Essiam! Well, former Elder Essiam. He was an assistant to the mission president when Parker served as an office elder, and Parker always spoke so highly of him. After meeting him, I could see why! More on “Essiam” to come, but for now, just know that he won Brian and me over immediately—and he was a great tour guide.

Essiam now works as the supervisor at the Ghana MTC and had answers to all our random questions. Since Parker attended the Provo MTC, everything was new to him too. We toured the classrooms, cafeteria, and multipurpose room used for firesides and P-day activities.

This stairwell had pictures of West African saints who were pioneers in the gospel.

We also learned how competitive it is to be hired as an MTC teacher and about the food service. The cafeteria contracts with a catering company for six months at a time and then switches companies, giving the teachers/area office employees some variety in their meals. Interestingly, the employees preparing and serving the food were not members of the church—what a great opportunity for the workers and missionaries to interact with one another.

After our morning temple trip and MTC tour, we stopped for a picture at the Black Star Gate in Accra’s Independence Square. The monument commemorates Ghana’s independence in 1957 and bears the country’s motto, “Freedom and Justice.”

Next, we wandered through the Accra Arts Centre, an outdoor market packed with what felt like hundreds of little booths. Everywhere we looked, there were colorful fabrics, paintings, baskets, beads, carvings, drums, clothing, and souvenirs. The vendors were eager to show us their goods—and Parker and Essiam were just as eager to bargain!

Parker is with Wisdom. I think Essiam taught him when he served in this area. He is currently serving in his ward as the building coordinator. It was great to know he was still participating in church. We purchased several canvases. (No bargaining here...we wanted support him and his business.) 

Sunday morning, we attended church, of course. We had spent a lot of time with Edmund, our driver, so it was wonderful to finally meet his wife and all five boys! Parker helped teach many people who were baptized during his mission, but he said Edmund’s family was the only entire family who joined the Church together. It was pretty special to see that, two years later, they are still going strong.

Most of the time in the car, Edmund listened to talk radio. But on Friday and Saturday, he suddenly switched to General Conference—or so I thought. It was actually one particular conference talk playing on repeat, which was a little confusing at the time. Once we attended church on Sunday, however, it all made sense: Edmund was teaching the Elders Quorum lesson that day and had been preparing!

After church, we visited the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park. Well, Brian did not. He decided to have an afternoon nap so he would be "back on top" for our adventures to Cape Coast the next day....but back to the park.... It honors Ghana’s first president and one of the leading figures in Africa’s independence movement. 

The memorial is the final resting place of Dr. Nkrumah and his wife, Fathia. We also toured the museum, which has photographs and artifacts from Nkrumah’s life and Ghana’s fight for independence. It was an interesting way to learn more about the country’s history and the man who played such an important role in shaping it. 

This bronze head was once part of the original statue of Kwame Nkrumah that stood outside Ghana’s Parliament House. When Nkrumah was overthrown in a military coup in 1966, the statue was pulled down and decapitated. The body was eventually recovered, but the head remained missing for 43 years. In 2009, an elderly woman who had quietly kept it safe returned it to the government. Rather than reattach it, historians recommended displaying the head separately as a reminder of that turbulent chapter in Ghana’s history

The car President Kennedy gifted President Nkrumah was in the lobby area along with several photographs.

The exterior of the museum features detailed relief carvings depicting a traditional Ghanaian gathering. The design combines Ghanaian Adinkra symbols with touches of Egyptian influence, reflecting Nkrumah’s vision of African unity.

I love this picture of Essiam and Parker. Two great friends—one born in Africa and one who will always carry Africa in him.