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To be Born Poor and Female – a Lifetime of Despair
A note from Torkin Wakefield

Stella N. does not know when she was born but guesses that she is probably about 30. Her broad smile belies the life she has led. “There was no enough food for all of us. I was sent away at 9 years to work as a house girl in an army man’s house. I had to work all day cleaning and cooking. I remember at night I would be washing dishes and hearing the general’s children playing with their mother. I was so alone and wept for my mother. I slept in the cellar.Then one night the soldier who guarded the house came to the cellar. I cried out but no one came to rescue me. The next day I told the general and he said  ‘Do not speak to me of this.” and turned his back to me. After that the soldier came almost every night. Sometimes he brought friends.”

“I ran away back to where my family lived but when I arrived no one still there.  They had moved.  I sat in the dirt and cried because what would become of me?  I managed to get to a shop keeper who gave me to sleep on the floor if I worked in his shop.”

Stella’s eyes drift downward as she remembers her life story.

Click here for more of this story...

To get involved in helping women make the world a better place please give someone beads from the Bead Store. Now is also the time to sign up for a holiday BeadParty. They are great fun and are a manifestation of the spirit of the season. The schedule can fill up so to get the date you want please sign up now.

Thank you for helping Stella and all of the other Ugandan
women in BeadforLife.
Happy fall from all of us at BeadforLife.

Torkin Wakefield
Co-Executive Director

 

Click here to see the BeadforLife Curriculum for Youth.

Announcing BeadforLife’s Curriculum!
Understanding Global Poverty:
How Youth Can Make a Difference

BeadforLife is proud to announce our curriculum  “Understanding Global Poverty: How Youth Can Make a Difference”. This is a dynamic experiential service-learning curriculum for grades 6 through 12.

After a year of hard work, and a successful pilot reaching over 200 students in more than 10 classrooms, we have developed and fine-tuned an interactive 5-day curriculum that captures the daily experiences of those living in extreme poverty on a dollar a day. Our ultimate goal is for the next generation of youth to become informed global citizens who feel empowered to alleviate extreme poverty wherever they encounter it, whether it is in their local community or in a remote village halfway across the world.

We encourage youth leaders of all types to bring this curriculum to your group, be they faith-based, scout troops, or other organizations serving this age range. We also have plans to expand the curriculum in the coming year to reach youth at the elementary and university levels. If you are interested in helping us adapt this curriculum please contact our Education Program Manager, Patty Manwaring at Patty@beadforlife.org. 

For more information about the curriculum, and to order your copy, please visit our website at www.beadforlife.org and click on the “Curriculum for Youth” tab.

Coming Early October!

Fabulous Multi Colored Katogo * Beads

BeadforLife is excited to announce that we will be introducing 3 highly anticipated new items to our product line:

• Katogo Long Necklace
• Katogo Short Necklace
• Katogo Bangle Bracelet.

Variations on classic designs, our Katogo jewelry is made from brightly colored paper beads of varying shapes, sizes and colors. The effect is a bold and exciting new look.

Look for these and other items at our web store:
Your gift gives twice; once to the lucky recipient and once to the woman who made the beads.

*KATOGO is the word for foods which are mixed together, usually something that the poor eat like rice and beans.The beaders named
this multi colored item for this mixture.

Note: we recently made some design changes to our Home Page and the Store. Whenever we do this, you might notice some strange effects in your web browser if you have visited the site before the changes. A simple refresh or clearing of your browser's cache will usually solve the issue.

The New French Website

As part of its European pilot program, launched in the Spring of 2009, BeadforLife is pleased to announce the launch of a French version of its website:

www.BeadforLife.fr.

The new French version of the website will facilitate the work of the BeadforLife team, based in France, who has already received a very warm welcome from the French public. BeadforLife has participated in many festivals, and organized BeadParties and events. We are excited that our beads and program are now available in Europe.

If you have friends or family in Europe who would like to participate in BeadforLife's work to help eradicate poverty, please write to europe@BeadforLife.org.

Take Action!

FEELING THE HEAT: CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS
ON THE WORLD’S POOREST PEOPLE AND HOW YOU CAN HELP

A new climate bill is working its way through Congress right now. Unfortunately, the House version, which passed earlier this summer, falls far short of meeting the needs of those most vulnerable to the devastating effects of climate change. That's why we’re asking our BeadCircle to join us in taking action and adding your name to ONE's petition calling on our senators to correct this injustice.

Climate change threatens to reverse the gains being made against poverty and disease in some of the poorest countries on earth. Countries in East Africa face increased droughts, floods and storms, eroded coastlines, falling crop yields, and the spread of waterborne and insect-driven disease.  Already there are hundreds of thousands of global warming refugees. These climate-driven changes threaten livelihoods and lives, and demand a response from us and our leaders.

Please take action and join us in making sure our senators hear from us right now, while they're writing this climate change bill:
Click here to sign the petition
Petition text:
Please ask your leadership to make sure this year’s Senate climate change legislation meets the standard set by last year’s bipartisan Lieberman-Warner climate bill, and allocates 5% of any revenue to begin helping the world’s poorest people overcome the threats posed by climate change.
Thank you!