Abrefa, 28, who recently sojourned to the United States to sharpen his skills and train others in the sport, believes his mission is to support the socially marginalised and disadvantaged youth in those communities who have been abandoned and neglected in these hard times of COVID-19.

Tour
“I have embarked on this tour to train young talents in the sport, donate to local communities who are facing difficulties due to the COVID-19 pandemic and to recruit talents for the national cause,” the Immigration Control Officer who reigned as a national champion for 12 years, told the Daily Graphic.

The tour, which began a month ago, has already taken Abrefa, an African Games bronze medallist, to the Site 1 Table Tennis Centre at Tema Community 5, the Regan De Cottage T.T. Club in Nungua and the La Dadekotopon Community Centre.

Training exercises
Abrefa, who is currently preparing for the  World Table Table Tennis Championships in Busan, South Korea, is also scheduled to train the youth in Teshie, Osu and Ashaiman.

“I will do more donations in the first quarter of 2021 and I’m appealing to the corporate society to support this cause and sponsor this mission I am embarking upon,” he appealed.

Gratitude
He expressed gratitude to the officers of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) at the Shia and Nyive borders for their unflinching support and dedication towards his new chosen path.

“My plan is to continue my long-term training in the US in preparation towards the 2023 African Games which will be hosted here in Ghana, and I’m eternally grateful to the Ghana Table Tennis Association for supporting me in that,” he noted.

He also thanked the GIS officers at the broders for working to prevent aliens from entering the country and for defending the sovereignty of the state.