Gloom and grief can best describe the mood at Becky’s Foundation, an orphanage supported by Christian Atsu, at Senya Bereku in the Awutu-Senya-West District of the Central Region.
The children and their caregivers/managers, spotting black and red attires, either sat in groups or loitered dejectedly with occasional wailing and sobbing, because their benefactor and hero, Christian Atsu, the ace footballer, had fallen.
The tragic death of Atsu had left the inhabitants in deep pain, who, at a point, thought their orphan “status” had changed for the better only for the unfortunate to happen.
On Monday, February 6, 2023, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck south-eastern Turkey and Syria, which had so far killed about 47,000 people. Atsu, unfortunately, was one of the casualties.
Mrs Matilda Adu Poku, the Administrator of the Foundation, described the current situation of the home as “orphans turned into double orphans” when the Ghana News Agency visited on Thursday.
The Manager of the home, Madam Monica Wiredua, said Atsu was the backbone of the Foundation, who brought smiles to the faces of the children, but his sudden demise had dealt them a heavy blow.
She said Atsu had scheduled to visit them in June, this year, with his Black Stars’ Teammates, for the commissioning of a classroom block he constructed for the orphanage.
“The entire home is sad by the death of Atsu, as he was the hope and major financier, providing foodstuffs, clothing, education and the general upkeep of the children.”
He also constructed a mechanised borehole, trained with the children on the football pitch, supported Becky’s Football Club, and spent time with the children at public places like the Westhills Mall “aside shopping for them”.
Source: Ghana News Agency