We barreled down a red dirt road toward the village of Bonsa Wire (wihray), bouncing in and around the potholes. As we went deeper, the canopy cover of bamboo thickened, throwing patterns of sunlight around the foliage.

Some 30 minutes into the forest, the trees suddenly cleared and we were in the heart of Bonsa Wire, where dozens of residents awaited us beside their brand new school library. Inside the one-room concrete building, village elders and parents gathered to discuss the changes they had wrought at the primary and junior secondary school, originally built in the 1960s.

Students take pride in the school CARE helped refurbish. © 2000 Tim Zielenbach/Contact Press Images

"We are very proud of this library. We make noise of it, because no community around here has one like this," said one village elder.

Just five years ago, the school building was crumbling, enrollment was down and few girls attended. Today, the school is a hub of activity, with the new library, a nearly completed residence for teachers, and plans for a water system and a community health clinic. What's more, girls outnumber boys in the classrooms.

"Before, girls' education was not important. Initially, I thought that carpentry and technical skills were only for men. But now we know that whatever a man can do, a woman can do," said mother Elizabeth Arthur.

Excited to show off their school for visitors, boys and girls scurried from their classrooms to gather on the central soccer field with their teachers and parents. The cluster included people of all ages, highlighting the collective effort that went into the project.

Five years ago, few girls attended school. Today, they outnumber the boys. © 2000 Tim Zielenbach/Contact Press Images

One of the oldest stood in the middle, his adinkra cloth with an orange, black and white print wrapped around him like a toga. Kwamena Weredu, 85, linked his two forefingers together to indicate the relationship between his village and CARE.

"The community and CARE will never separate. When somebody does something very good for you, you shouldn't ever forget that," Weredu said. "The unity that CARE has promoted in this community, we won't forget."