Eight dark eyes stared back at us in the sparse crowded classroom of Have (haw-vay) Episcopal Primary School in Kpando District. Four sets of twins sat in the front row -- kindergartners who have already stood in line to receive their measles jab. A large primitive chalkboard hung along the front wall with the day’s math and English lessons chalked in neat rows.

Outside, recently vaccinated children stood quietly with their teachers holding their hands outstretched and fingers spread waiting for the purple dye to dry on their pinkys so they could go back to class.

Down the hill another group of children were singing and dancing together, swaying back and forth:

Stop the measles
Say no to measles
Free the children from measles

Let’s stop measles
Stop the measles
Protect your children and
Free the child from measles

After witnessing two full days of children being vaccinated in schools, in villages and markets, the notion that eight million children could be vaccinated in one week began to seem possible. We were now on our way to HoHoe District to visit the local hospital and speak to nurses and families.

On the way, we stopped at Have Ando, a village that seemed a million miles away from civilization and where villagers lived as primitively as their ancestors. Older boys and women were weaving kente cloth in an elaborate wooden contraption as they pumped and pedaled their feet quickly while interlacing their fingers through colorful threads.

"Being in Ghana is like driving through the Rockies," said American Red Cross Board of Governors member Michael Hawkins. "Every turn is better and better. Every village we see is a unique experience – it validates the whole process of what’s happening this week with the campaign."

A woman pounded water and corn powder in a large tub over and over again, producing a staple in the Ghanaian diet called banku. Eaten most often with a broth, banku looks a lot like bread dough.

Children approached wanting us to buy the kente cloth as souvenirs. We asked how much and were told "40,000". In dollars, 40,000 cedis (see-dees) is equal to about four dollars. We asked our team leader Larry Yeboah how long it took to make one kente cloth. He replied, "two to three days." For the villagers, selling kente cloth is the main source of income.

At Margret Marquart Catholic Hospital, Head Nurse Helen Dakey took us to the children’s ward. "Measles used to be a big killer in our hospital. Children would get secondary infections like pneumonia, fever and a rash," she said. "Not so much anymore. This campaign is a good start to save lives."

Over the last five years, routine immunization at clinics has improved from only 40 percent coverage to 80 percent. "One year we had 100 measles cases," said Dakey. "About one in 100 of those children would die. Children could not eat, their mouths had too many sores. We had to give them feeding tubes. It was very hard. But now we are happy."

This week’s measles campaign will give Ghana the boost it needs to reach 95 percent coverage among children ages nine months to 15 years to help wipe out the disease permanently from the country.

Two fathers sat in the shade just outside the hospital silently holding two young children. Nurse Dakey explained that Jemimah and Osbourne both have anemia. A rare sight in Ghana culture, the fathers had brought them separately to the hospital for transfusions. Healthcare is normally the women’s responsibility. Because there is only enough blood for one child at the moment, the fathers stuck close together for moral support. The hope of one father was contagious and spread to the other father waiting nearby.

A father of three girls, Hawkins is especially touched by the children he meets. Standing over six feet tall with smiling eyes and a baseball cap perched on his head, he attracts much attention. "I love seeing these kids – they are full of spirit, enthusiasm and innocence. I know what we are doing here is important – if they don’t get this from us, they most likely won’t get it at all."

During the weeks after the campaign, measles wards in hospitals will begin to close. Measles cases and deaths will disappear. Wards once used for measles cases can now be converted to malaria wards, HIV/AIDS wards giving the hospital the space it needs to treat children sick with other diseases.