For years, Georgina Naa Odarkaa Lamptey has quietly invested in the lives of children whose dreams could easily have been cut short by financial hardship.

She has paid school fees, supported medical expenses, provided health insurance and transportation, and helped children remain in school.

Through the Eastbourne Foundation, she has supported more than 10 children over the years and currently assists about five.

But behind her commitment to helping others is a deeply personal story of a woman who once received a helping hand herself and made a decision never to forget it.

“If somebody has done that for me, I need to do it for somebody,” she says.

That belief has become the driving force behind her philanthropic work.

The Eastbourne Foundation was established five years ago to support children in need, particularly those facing financial difficulties that could prevent them from continuing their education.

For Georgina, the work is not about a child’s tribe, background or social status. What matters is genuine need.

When cases are brought to the attention of those who assist with the foundation’s work in Ghana, the welfare committee of the foundation assess the circumstances and inform her. She then provides financial support where necessary.

Her support has gone beyond paying school fees. For some beneficiaries, she has taken responsibility for health insurance, transportation to and from school, medical expenses and other educational needs.

Her motivation, she says, comes from her own background and life experiences.

“If you have help, you can get somewhere,” she says. “There are people who can do things, but without help, they may not get the opportunity to become what they can be.”

For Georgina, helping a child is therefore not merely an act of charity; it is an investment in human potential.

Her journey of supporting others has not always produced the outcomes she hoped for. One girl she supported was exceptionally brilliant. Georgina followed her educational journey closely and provided support for her schooling and other needs.

But as the girl approached graduation, family circumstances changed and she eventually disappeared from Georgina’s life. The experience was deeply painful.

In another case, Georgina supported a girl from primary school through senior high school. After the girl completed school, a misunderstanding arose between Georgina and the beneficiary’s family concerning the assistance she had received.

The relationship broke down and the support could no longer continue.

Such experiences have taught her about disappointment and human nature. Yet, they have not stopped her from helping.

“I don’t think that is a deterrent to helping somebody,” she says. “You can’t have everything right. So I still do it.”

For Georgina, disappointment should not destroy the desire to do good.

Her passion for helping children is rooted in her own experience.

When she was preparing to train as a community health nurse, one of her pastors, Emmanuel Aladira, came to her aid.

The course was a three-year programme, and the pastor helped her obtain the items she needed for school, purchasing enough to support her throughout the training. The gesture made a lasting impression on her.

Years later, as she became professionally established, she remembered that someone had once looked at her potential and decided that she was worth supporting.

She came to believe that she, too, had a responsibility to do the same for others.

Born and bred in Adedeinkpo, a suburb of Jamestown, Accra, Georgina began her education at Ayalolo Cluster of School and completed her middle school education with distinction and was among only two pupils in her class to achieve that feat.

Yet, her journey was not always straightforward.

After completing school, she stayed home for some time and briefly tried her hand at catering. She did not enjoy it.

Then one day, a friend told her she had applied to nursing school and encouraged Georgina to do the same.

She took the chance and that decision changed her life.

She performed exceptionally well in the national entrance examination, placing second in the country, and in 1982 began training as a community health nurse.

After graduating, she returned to Accra and began working at Princess Marie Louise Hospital, popularly known as the Children’s Hospital. Her ambition, however, did not end there.

When she heard that a former classmate had written the General Certificate examination and passed, she challenged herself to do the same.

“If she can do it, then so can I,” she reasoned.

She studied for seven months, wrote the examination and performed well enough to continue her education.

Her determination produced remarkable results. During her nursing training, she emerged as the highest-performing student in the country in her first year. When she graduated in 1992, she again excelled in practical nursing.

She later trained as a midwife and practiced for about 25 years before travelling to the United States.

Even as she approaches retirement, Georgina is thinking about how she can continue giving back.

She currently supports about five children through the Eastbourne Foundation and hopes to expand her community work after retirement.

She plans to establish a reading club where children can come after school for help with their homework and improve their reading skills.

She is also considering starting a non-denominational Sunday school to reach children in the community who may need spiritual, educational and social support.

Her vision is to create a space where children can be welcomed, fed, guided and encouraged to become the best version of themselves.

For Georgina, retirement will therefore not mark the end of service, but rather offer an opportunity to do even more.

By Esinam Jemima Kuatsinu

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For Dr Penelope Adinku, becoming Ghana’s first female cardiothoracic surgeon was never part of her childhood plans. As a young girl, she was more interested in books and once dreamed of becoming an author of children’s books.

Reserved, bookish and competitive, she loved reading Enid Blyton, Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, The Famous Five and The Babysitters Club. She also enjoyed dancing, while church gradually became an important part of her life.

Medicine became an option through her family. Her father, Mr Ambrose Tettey, is a pharmacist and her mother is a teacher. Her immediate older sister entered medical school before her, and watching her journey, together with the encouragement of her parents, eventually influenced Dr Adinku to pursue medicine.

Her earliest memories of hospitals were, interestingly, linked to recovery. Whenever she was admitted as a child, her parents knew she was improving when she would tell her father, “Daddy, I can spell…”

She eventually discovered her passion for surgery during her final year of medical school. While rotating through the Department of Surgery, she watched surgeons treat patients and realised that she wanted to become one.

Her interest in cardiothoracic surgery grew during her housemanship in paediatrics, where she encountered children with congenital heart disease. She developed a desire to help such children, drawing her towards the highly specialised field.

The decision was not without resistance. Some health professionals discouraged her because of the demanding nature of cardiothoracic surgery. Her family, however, encouraged her to continue. “They had more faith in me than I had in myself at the time,” she recalls.

What attracted her most was the challenge and the opportunity to intervene when vital organs such as the heart and lungs are compromised. For her, it was the privilege of using her God-given ability to give someone a chance at a healthier and longer life.

Her journey was shaped by navigating a specialty that has traditionally been male-dominated.  She learnt to focus on her work, build trust and let her results speak for themselves.

During her clinical fellowship in Egypt, encouraging consultants gave her opportunities to participate in major cases. The experience strengthened her confidence and helped her realise that she could thrive in the specialty.

She successfully completed her Fellowship training with the West African College of Surgeons and was adjudged the best candidate in Cardiothoracic Surgery at the 2022 Fellowship Examinations, becoming the first Ghanaian female cardiothoracic surgeon.

For Dr Adinku, the achievement is more than a title. She hopes her story will inspire young Ghanaian girls and women to pursue careers that may appear unconventional.

“If a young girl sees my story and thinks she can pursue her own dream too,’ then that is deeply meaningful to me,” she says.

Her work extends beyond surgery. She is involved in research, medical education, mentorship and professional leadership. She is a member of the Ghanaian Society of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgeons and serves as its Treasurer.

Her achievements have earned her the IAP Young Physician Leader Award, the Young Star Award and the Valerie Rusch Mentored Career Development Award from the American Association for Thoracic Surgery.

For her, standing before a patient whose life depends on surgery brings a profound sense of responsibility. She remains focused and humble, recognising that behind every patient is a family hoping for a safe outcome. Her faith helps her trust God with what remains beyond her control.

When an operation does not have the desired outcome, she acknowledges the disappointment, reflects on what happened and discusses difficult cases with senior colleagues and her team. She then moves forward, committed to giving the next patient the same level of care.

Balancing such a demanding career with family life has not always been easy. Dr Adinku credits her supportive family and friends for helping her through the journey. Outside the hospital, she makes time for family, faith, church and activities that keep her grounded.

She is particularly grateful to her husband, Rev. Ernest Adinku; her parents, Mr and Mrs Ambrose Tettey; her sisters Gertrude, Grace-Imelda and Audrey-Jacqueline and their families; her mentors, close friends, the Wesley Girls High School Sisterhood, past and present directors of the National Cardiothoracic Centre, and colleagues who have supported her.

She urged young girls to believe in themselves, work hard, learn, ask questions and keep improving.

“There will be people who doubt you, and there may also be times when you doubt yourself,” she says. “Don’t disqualify yourself before you have even had the chance to try. You may be capable of far more than you currently believe.”

By Esinam Jemima Kuatsinu

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