“Thanks to the support from Mentors Ghana I just bought my first car! I am ready to be my own boss. I have many plans and dreams for the future. Just you wait and see,” says Solomon Ofori with great enthusiasm.
When Solomon Ofori was only eight-years-old, his father passed away, leaving his mother alone to care for her six children. Due to the challenges of providing for a family, Solomon had to drop out of school and join the workforce when he was twelve years old. This is not uncommon in Ghana.
Solomon said, “Life was full of struggle and bitterness became a part of our lives. We saw that as normal because we were young and had no other options. Sometimes we would assist our neighbors working their farmlands in order to gather some food. Carrying people’s luggage to the market, and fetching water for food sellers was our means of earning a living.”
When Solomon was in his twenties, he realized that the struggle of life did not need to be his norm. He wanted more and to be able to help take care of his family.
Solomon chose to assist car drivers in the loading and packing of passenger’s luggage into their cars. He also washed cars. It was in doing this that Solomon realized an opportunity could be created. He found a driver that agreed to apprentice him so that in the future Solomon could become a driver. Solomon apprenticed for five years and became very familiar with the industry. He started looking for a car and soon found one he could drive with an agreement that he was to be paid on a commission basis.
Even though Solomon had employment, he lacked the skills of saving, living within his means, and making and keeping a budget.
Solomon met Mentors Ghana when a class was being presented in his area to teach self-reliance and self-sufficiency. He said, “I had a month-long training program with the Mentors Ghana staff on self-reliance and a lot of commitments and assignments. After the course, I continued to work in my current job for about a year. I applied all the principles I learned from the Mentors Ghana program, and I saved from the commission that was paid to me.”
Solomon received a loan of 1,000 GHC ($181 USD) and together with his savings bought a car of his own. He is starting his OWN transportation service enterprise.
“By the grace of God life is now comfortable. I’m much grateful to Mentors Ghana for their support and transformation made in our communities. May God continue to enlarge your boundaries beyond expectation. Thank you Mentors Ghana,” Solomon says with much humility.
