Daniel Valentine is Chair of Lovey Foundation UK. Daniel is a strong believer in the power of education to change lives. He has been fundraising for children’s charities for many years. “The work of Lovey Foundation is unique. Educational access is crucially important. We help hundreds of children who are amongst the hardest to reach in rural Ghana.

 Our work cannot be measured simply in quantitative terms but mainly by the life transforming power of education. Fundamental to our work is partnership, because we believe that giving money is not enough, local people have to be closely involved in design and delivery to avoid dependence and paternalism. I am very honoured to lead the work of this organisation. If you would like to contribute to our work, please do get in touch."

Secretary of Lovey Foundation (UK), Yaa Asare is a part-time lecturer at the University of Brighton.  She worked as a lecturer in Winneba, Ghana after achieving her doctorate, where she met Aruk Thomas and through him got involved with the Lovey Foundation. “I am delighted to be part of this fantastic organisation. I feel Lovey is unique in having such close links between Ghana and the UK, with both parties working hard to achieve shared objectives."

  I am qualified in finance and accountancy, work as a freelance bookkeeper and I'm also Mum to my lovely daughter. I too have been to school without appropriate uniform - and even lunch. I had to walk to college one way (more than an hour) as I lacked money for a ticket.
Photos of working children in a Lovey presentation made me cry and so, to support its mission,
I joined its friendly UK volunteers as Treasurer in February 2018.

Melvyn was Acting Chair of Lovey Foundation (UK) until March 2023, having been a trustee since 2016.

Now retired after a career in secondary school teaching, public administration and careers advisory work, he is a part time photographer. "I can identify with the Foundation's life-changing work because, although my father passed the entrance exams, he couldn't go to grammar school. His parents couldn't afford to buy the school uniform".

Jenni heard about the amazing Lovey Foundation initiative at the very first fundraising event featuring spoken word performances by Grace Nichols and John Agard.  She became involved in supporting Lovey to become formally established and develop organisational and fundraising strategies.

Jenni also visited the children in Ghana that Lovey supports and the schools they attend. Together with her son Caine, Jenni documented this trip and they were able to see first hand the huge impact of the work of both the UK and the Ghana committees, and the need for this work to continue - far beyond empowering individuals, the Lovey Foundation also enhances the life chances of families and the wider communities.

I’m from a background of charitable fundraising, and for the last six years I've worked in membership development first for the National Trust and now another UK charity.
I was touched by reading about Bawku children's lives being changed for the better by the Lovey Foundation. So I was delighted to  become our UK Chair in January 2019 and I look forward to supporting them and working with colleagues in Ghana to realise our ambitions .

I became aware of the great work that Lovey Foundation(UK) was doing  enabling children in Ghana to gain access to education and immediately wanted to become involved. This can and does change their lives as well as their families and can make such a difference to communities. I have spent many years working in small businesses and hope that this experience will be valuable in helping Lovey Foundation(uk) support even more children.

Founder and CEO of Lovey Foundation, Aruk Thomas is a professional teacher at Bawku Technical Institute teaching Social Studies. "My aspirations for this young Community Based Organisation is that, through the way it is educating and changing the lives of less privileged children working in the local quarry and fields, it has a brighter chance to attract support both locally and internationally - to become a bigger NGO to assist more children to have access to education."

Ms Faustina Akudibilla is the Girl-Child Education Officer in the Ghana Education Service (GES) in Binduri District. "My hope for the Lovey Foundation is that poor children will have the chance of an education - more especially the girl-children. I therefore  hope and pray that the Foundation will grow bigger in our communities to support more needy children."

Peter is a Board Member of the Lovey Foundation. He is a participatory M and E (Monitoring and Evaluation) Officer at BEWDA-Ghana (Bawku East Women’s Development Association); Lead Facilitator in Programmes / Projects; Designer: Implementation, Monitoring & Evaluation, and a member of its Senior Management Team. “I work mostly in the rural areas in the Bawku Municipal and see how less privileged children find it difficult to have access to quality education, so I decided to become a Board Member to support its mission”.

Ayaaba Samuel is a retired pastor and a trustee of Lovey Foundation  (Ghana), now into farming and rearing of small ruminants at Kuloko in the  Binduri District.  "My aspiration is that the Foundation should be able to obtain a formal office of accommodation to overcome the many obstacles and challenges of working in houses."

Achiriga Janet is Treasurer of the Lovey Foundation and she is a Dispensary Assistant with Presbyterian Health Service in Bawku.
"My hope is that the children under Lovey Foundation will excel to come back to their society to support children in similar situations to have access to education."

 

Awini Isaac Nderago is the Secretary of Lovey Foundation (Ghana). He is a graduate and a professional teacher at Bawku Technical Institute, teaching Integrated Science. 

"The Lovey Foundation has increased children's access to education in the region, especially the less privileged children, and my hope is that they get the support they need to continue their good work."