The Story Of YAYA. A Journey Of Faith.

About 25 years ago, I began volunteer service to the disabled – in particular, people with mental retardation and developmental disabilities - and am still doing it today. I just wanted to try to make a difference in people’s lives by giving my time and energy and to give something back to the community. What I found was that I received tenfold what I gave through friendships and perspective. Little did I know, however, that my interest in disabilities would ultimately take me to the continent of Africa and forever change my life and faith.

In preparation for the mission to Cote d’Ivoire, I was able to get 24 wheelchairs from a wonderful man that runs Wheels of Hope in Canton, Ohio – a ministry that disseminates wheelchairs around the world. And, through help from Airborne Express, I was able to ship them via Air France. With a little trepidation on our part, they arrived in Cote d’Ivoire a day before the mission team. With all the pre-work and planning accomplished, all that remained was the execution of the plan to distribute the chairs. Now the fun and fulfillment of giving wheelchairs to the needy would finally begin.

At this point, execution of the plan began to stall. For several days, nothing seemed to move forward. Phone calls to customs were not returned. Other key people in the process were either unexpectedly out of the country or unavailable. Frustrations began to mount since the chairs had become a highlight of the mission to the team members. Saturday, Sunday, and Monday came and went, then Tuesday, and still no wheelchairs. On Wednesday, the President of the country was informed of the delay, but even with his influence and phone calls, the chairs were not released from customs.

On Friday, Janet and I were in the hotel room with only several hours left before heading to the airport to return home. At that point, I had reconciled myself to the fact that I would not even see the wheelchairs, let alone participate in dispensing them. But, I had accepted this and was confident the chairs would ultimately reach those for whom they were intended. Suddenly, I received a call in the room and was told to come out to the hotel parking lot. I did and, when I arrived, there in front of me was a truck full of wheelchairs. They were beautiful. I could now fully visualize the good that would come from them. I was happy and content. But, it didn’t stop there.

About 45 minutes later, I received another call in the room and was told to again come out to the parking lot. As I was nearing the parking lot, I was told what it was all about. The AIA local director, RABE (pronounced Rob-ay and spelled with all caps), had driven off in the truck to take the wheelchairs to a storage facility. For some reason, he decided to take a back road that he rarely traveled. He encountered terrible traffic and was very frustrated since he had to get back quickly to take me to the airport. He had to go slowly enough that when he approached a red light something caught his attention on the opposite far corner of the road. Sitting there on the ground was a young man holding a sign saying in French “Pardon me, would someone please help me get a wheelchair.”

RABE knew this was a special moment arranged by God. He stopped, helped the boy named YAYA into the truck and sped back to the hotel. Then in the parking lot, I met YAYA, the first recipient of the wheelchairs. He is a paraplegic from polio and had been dragging himself around his whole life with flip-flops on his hands to protect them. His knuckles and knees were covered with huge calluses from being dragged on the pavement. We cried, celebrated and rejoiced.

Then more of the story unfolded as we got to know YAYA. Several weeks before, YAYA went to a church to see if they could get him a wheel chair. He cried and pleaded to the pastor who then through a prophecy assured YAYA that “a man from God is coming to provide you with a wheelchair.” Day after day, YAYA would sit by the busy road displaying his sign, hoping and praying that someone would respond.

I stayed in touch with the YAYA situation through RABE. Shortly after getting back in the U.S., I found out that YAYA was beaten up and his wheelchair stolen, presumably for drug money. He still has his second wheelchair. YAYA is about 20 years old (he doesn’t know his age). He can speak French but is illiterate. He has parents somewhere in the country but they abandoned him. He has for years lived in the slums of Abidjan moving from household to household, wherever someone will take him in. He begs for money to pay his way. After the mission, I had arranged for him to attend a Catholic school for distressed youth, but YAYA ran away twice and remained on the streets. But, the story did not end in Africa.

In October of 2003, Janet and I were invited to attend a worldwide sports ministry conference hosted by AIA outside Athens, Greece. We agreed to attend but also decided to take a week’s vacation ahead of time in the Greek Islands; three days each in Santorini and Mykonos. The tourist season had just ended so we had the hotels and the islands somewhat all to ourselves. But, the weather was still great and the topography was simply breathtaking.

On the last day in Santorini, we were lounging by the pool in the afternoon and not really wanting to do anything. But, the hotel manager invited us to go to the “black beach” with him. He wanted to swim in the ocean and would take us to see the beach (black sand from the volcano) and have dinner with us there. Very reluctantly, we agreed to go. It was a very long beach, at least a mile or more it seemed. He drove about two thirds of the way to the end and stopped. We took off our outerwear and got under a couple of large beach umbrellas.

As we sat under the umbrellas, I wasn’t in a good position and was getting too much sun so I just quickly turned in an odd position angled mostly back toward the street instead of toward the ocean; kind of a stupid move since the beautiful Aegean Sea was the other way. I sat there for a few minutes relaxing with my eyes closed. When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was “YAYA.” It was a sign on a building across the street and straight in front of my eyes - not even 5 degrees left or right. I couldn’t move or talk for what seemed like minutes. I could have been anywhere else on that beach and never known the building even existed. But, when I opened my eyes, it was like they were immediately glued to “YAYA.”

I later learned that Yaya means grandmother in Greek, but it looks nothing like that in
Greek spelling. In fact, the hotel manager said he had no idea why they named the bar
and restaurant “YAYA.” He said they must have imported the name since he had never
seen that spelling anywhere in Greece.

Now, what are the chances? That, at the last minute of our Africa trip, the wheelchairs would be released, RABE would take the alternate route, and he would even see YAYA through the heavy traffic? And, that YAYA would have received the prophecy only weeks before from a pastor? And then, a little more than a year later, I would sort of spontaneously travel to Santorini, reluctantly go to the black beach at the last minute, and be sitting in a spot where I was looking straight at what we believe to be the only building in all of Greece with a sign on it saying “YAYA?”

In July of 2004, I again had the opportunity to participate in an AIA mission to Cote d’Ivoire. This time the mission was mostly comprised of European soccer players and coaches. The AIA international director, a U.S. businessman, and myself along with their two sons attended from the U.S. This time, we had the opportunity to travel throughout the country in addition to the capital city. This was not entirely safe. The country had a civil war with Muslim rebels shortly after we left in 2002, numerous conflicts since then, and the situation is still very tense. Every few miles we were stopped by people with automatic weapons sometimes in uniform and sometimes not. Nevertheless, we played some intense soccer games, ministered with the athletes and fans, met various businessmen and governmental officials, and ministered in various other settings including the college campus. I was able to meet with a group of blind and disabled students and am now providing them some financial support.

Prior to the mission, I had learned that YAYA was in the custody of AIA and Campus Crusade for Christ. A few weeks before, he had run into a blind woman with two young daughters on the street and made some unattractive remarks to the daughters. According to YAYA, the blind woman then opened her eyes, looked straight at him and told him she was going to kill him. Subsequently, YAYA could hardly sleep and had visions of demons attacking him. He then frantically pleaded with RABE to take him in.

I had two good meetings with YAYA during the mission. I took him some clothes, a ring, and a cross on a chain to wear around his neck. We talked and cried and reaffirmed the commitment between us and our obligation to fulfill God’s purpose that brought us together. As I left, I confirmed my commitment to support him and arrangements were being made for housing and a private teacher.

The journey with YAYA may not, however, be all smooth sailing. In a two-week period recently, I first saw a large hawk on a fence beside a bus that I was on while stopped in traffic coming from a company function. A few days later, I was stopped in traffic in my car in another location, felt something strange, looked over and the hawk was right beside my car on a fence looking straight at me. Then, several days later I was sitting on my deck on a Saturday morning and saw the hawk fly by and land on a fence a hundred yards away. After a few minutes, the hawk flew toward my yard, looked like it was going to fly by my house, and then suddenly turned and flew onto my deck. It came in between posts and under my upstairs deck and was coming straight at my face. In a split second, it was within 5 feet of me when I then screamed and threw up my arms to protect myself. It quickly swerved and flew away.

After telling RABE about this via email, the following was his reply:

“dear JACK
THanks to GOD i am doing well. according to what you have shared this is what i can say. when i told you the reason why YAYA came to us two months ago, he shared the
fact that he was afraid by birds he was seeing. i think there is something
similar with your experience now. in YAYA case he was the only one to see
the birds. EDITH told me that the HAWK use to eat the eyes of their victims.

what you are doing for YAYA is not a simple act of help; it is a spiritual
battle we are involved in. there is not comprehensive way to express the
presence of this hawk around you a part from the spiritual battle. May be we
must pray more for NOT ONLY YAYA PROTECTION BUT ALSO OUR OWN PROTECTION. let us pray for GOD’S perfect will to be accomplish in YAYA LIFE.”

The journey with YAYA will definitely continue. I will stay in touch with him regularly through RABE and he will be in my thoughts and prayers every day. Then, in 2005, I will be attending another AIA mission to Cote d’Ivoire when that country hosts the African Cup of Nations for the continent’s best professional basketball teams. We will compete with some of the teams as they warm up for the Cup. In the meantime, I can’t even imagine what lies ahead on this wonderful yet humbling and sometimes incredible journey.

Jack Dennis
September 3, 2004