Healing Arts
Healing Arts is a crafts production studio near the hospital where women who are awaiting fistula repair surgery can learn valuable skills before returning home. From the HEALAfrica blog:
This new program was begun in September 2006 to support women recovering from fistula repair in improving their income-generation skills. They are making and selling skirts, tops, bracelets, placemats, baskets and baby layettes.
Before Healing Arts, most of the 120 women waiting for or recovering from fistula surgery were hopeless and wandering. If a woman returned home with nothing to show from her time away, she would continue to be looked upon as a worthless.
With the skills and income they gain from the program, the women who come here to heal (physically, emotionally, after horrific experiences) have a chance to start over when they return home. Here’s Dada, working on a purse using one of those awesome, foot-powered, built-like-a-tank singer sewing machines:
And here is Francine, showing Desiree a wrap skirt:
I got a shirt, today; the most Congolese one I could find. My guess is that I’ll have few occasions to wear it, back home. But at $10, I couldn’t resist. Francine took a photo for me:
In fact, I took a lot of photos and wrote down the prices of various things that the women had put on display in the showroom. They make really nice clothing and woven purses, baskets, and mats. Here’s my limited-time offer; put in an order in the comments (or send me an email.) I’ll spot you the cash and bring you back whatever you want. Think of it as free credit and delivery. It’s for a good cause, and the prices can’t be beat. You have less than a week, or until my suitcase fills up. I already have an order for 40 bracelets 
See the impromptu “catalog,” after the jump… Read the rest of this entry »
