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"Thank you for not sitting in your soft chair while I was dying."
~Comment by a member of BeadforLife to a volunteer
Note from
BeadforLife Director - Blessed Unrest
"Grassroots" always brings to mind a faint memory of my tomboy
days, laying on the lawn in the summer…a fresh smell of grass, a
feeling of softness and give under my feet. Grassroots is also the notion
that ordinary people, when working together, can make a difference. It
turns out to be a BIG difference.
Paul Hawkins, environmentalist and cultural investigator has been studying
what response there is to the escalating challenges to the earth. Hawkins
has discovered that hundreds of thousands, even millions of non-profit
organizations, foundations, businesses, service groups, churches, schools
and private individuals are engaging in efforts to respond to the enormous
needs humanity is facing.
"This is the largest worldwide movement and nobody saw it coming. It is largely unseen by politicians and the media. From billion dollar non-profits to single person causes these efforts collectively constitute the largest global movement. This movement has no name, no leader, no location. It is in every city, every country and culture. It organizes itself from the bottom up." Hawkins has named this movement "Blessed Unrest."
This movement, our movement, is full of innovative strategies and ideas characterized by heart full intention. This movement is humanity's collective intelligent response to the present day challenges we face. The strength is in the altruistic impulse to get involved. The surprise is that everyone that participates is nourished and gifted. That is the blessed part.
You may not have been aware that you are part of this movement through your participation in BeadforLife. We are proud to be grassroots, working together, women (and some men too) in Uganda and women in North America to create a better world. Featured in this Bead are endeavors by grandmothers to make a difference.
To learn
more about Blessed Unrest and to add your private efforts to Hawkin's
growing list of participants in this movement go to
www.wiserearth.org.
At BeadforLife we are grateful for our own blessed unrest. "Thank you for not sitting in your soft chair while I was dying."
Torkin Wakefield
Grandmother of Nile Tumukunde
Director
Grandmothers!
Oh Yeah!
A visit to the pediatric AIDS clinic in Kampala is a shocking reminder
of the devastation that HIV/AIDS has wrecked in Uganda. The waiting room
is filled with children and their white haired "jajjas" (grandmothers).
So many parents have died that it has fallen to the older generation of
grandparents to care for the children. These older people cannot "retire"
or rest. They are the major caregivers and wage earners for their young
grandchildren.
Here is Jajja Josephine. She has lost four children to HIV/AIDS and she is raising four of her grandchildren. Two of these children have HIV. At 65 Jajja Josephine was hiring herself out to dig in other people's gardens as a means to support her family. Now she rolls beautiful beads and all of her grandchildren are in school.
Grandmothers
are on the move as part of Blessed Unrest. Here are three organizations
which are examples of activated grandmothers…. Grandmothers
for Peace,
Grandmothers
to Grandmothers (HIV), and 13
Grandmothers (environmental council). So watch out world…. Granny
power is rising!
Meet Gloria
Schwartz: BeadParty hostess and Grandmother
Tears brim in Gloria's eyes as she speaks of her BeadParty. "I felt drunk with enthusiasm. I felt these are my Ugandan sisters. You help your sisters. What a very different life they have had. And look at us. We are so lucky." Gloria says.
Gloria has flair and pizzazz. Whatever she does is always full of color and fun. When NBC asked to attend a BeadParty we were pleased to see that Gloria was scheduled to give one in Santa Monica. She and five friends invited their friends and neighbors, people from their yoga class, from their offices. One set up the DVD and music, others decorated and made food, shopping at a nearby Ethiopian store. The fact that the party was to be filmed by NBC added to the excitement. The BeadParty was a great success and a small segment of women buying beads was included in the piece that NBC aired on Brian William's Evening News.
Gloria and
her husband Eduardo are originally from Chile. Gloria is a painter working
with bright colors on large canvases. She is also a fabulous cook. She
has eight grandchildren, and is pictured here with one of them, Saffron.
Also pictured are beaders reading letters written to them at BeadParties'
like Gloria's. They are so happy to know that someone cares about them.
"This BeadParty changed my life. Tell others that the true gift is
one they will give themselves by becoming a part of BeadforLife. It filled
my heart."
Gloria and
granddaughter Saffron
A beader reads
a beadparty letter
~~~~
| BeadforLife
Joins the Fair Trade Federation This spring BeadforLife applied for membership in the Fair Trade Federation (FTF). This is an organization dedicated to promote fair trade and to assist in bringing beautiful products from around the world made by people seeking a better life. They have a rigorous screening of each application wanting to assure that products endorsed by them do not harm the producers or the environment. They are supporting a marketplace for handmade items that assist artisans worldwide find markets. FTF supports fair trade organizations in many ways. We are proud to be a new member. |
 |
In our work in Uganda, it is clear how much the policies of the United States impact the daily lives of the women we work with. In fact, US policies on aid, trade, debt cancellation, peacekeeping, and international participation directly affect the lives of the billion people on the planet living on less that a dollar a day.
That is why the foreign policy opinions of the next president matter a great deal. Take Action on extreme poverty today by educating yourself on where the candidates stand on development issues. Whether you are a Republican, Democrat, vote outside the party or have never voted before, now is time to pay attention and tell candidates that we care about this issue.
To learn what candidates have said so far about development, click here.
To get involved in Impact '08, a campaign to raise these issues in the primary and general campaigns, click here.
Shopping is Giving
The Single Strand Necklaces
One of our most popular items is the single strand necklace. It is a simple colorful strand of our hand made paper beads and looks wonderful with casual cloths or to accent a business suit or dress. Single strands make fabulous gifts, and they are very affordable at only $10. Thanks for shopping with us. Your money turns into food and medicine and hope.
Letters from the Bead Circle
If you would like to send us a letter about your experience with the beads and BeadforLife please do so. Send to torkin@beadforlife.org.
Dear BeadforLife, June 22, 2007
I'm hereby sending you a great thanks for the good work that you are doing as far as your project is concerned.I thank God for having mentioned of you into my prayers and for the good heart that he had given you. Thanks you for your parental love and care for the needy.
Thanks BeadforLife for having restored happiness unto my life. "BeadforLife is my refuge. Thank you for sending me to school so that I might have a bright future. I am studying so hard hard and will not fail BeadforLife. Thanks,
Yours truly,
Ayoo Filder
Vocational Training Student studying computers
