Our Story
In October 2009 Carol Lincoln and Susie Shales travelled to Kenya to meet with officials from the Nairobi based Centre for Urban Mission, Carlile College and to visit the informal settlements of Kibera, Korogocho and Karangware.
We had already learnt that in the region of 1.2 million people were living in Kibera an area of less than 2 miles by 2 miles, most people living without running water or sanitation facilities. We also had learnt that there are estimated to be over 100,000 orphans living in Kibera alone.
The purpose of the visit was to meet mothers, widows and grandmothers, who as natural crafts people are trying to find a way of selling their crafts in order to support their families in an environment where drinking water costs more than it does in New York and the UK. Many of the women we found were caring for the orphans of their sisters, daughters or friends as well as their own children.
The visits were arranged by the Carlile College Centre for Urban Mission who have been working successfully with the Wales based charity Schoolchidren for Children to develop much needed educational facilities and homework clubs within the informal settlements in Nairobi. Both organisations recognise the frustration of the women living in the settlements who find it hard to make enough income even to afford the basic requirements to send their children to school.
Carol and Susie had offered to run some beadmaking workshops in Karangware and Korogcoho and meet with The Baraka Self Help Group who were already making crafts and paper bead necklaces. It was such a pleasure to meet such joyful and positve people who were obviously skilled and natural artisans. We met with two ladies in particular, Rukia and Martha who on hearing of our visit came to meet us and explained that they were already training cooperative groups to make the paper beads.
We sat at the nearby school we were staying in with the gifts of the beautiful colourful necklaces bedecking every corner of our room, we realised we just had to help and felt sure that a market for selling the beads and necklaces in Wales and the UK could be realised.
A meeting was set up with the ladies to discuss a fair price for each type of necklace. The Centre for Urban Mission agreed to coordinate the shipping process and Carol and Susie agreed to promote and sell the necklaces. It was also agreed that a contribution would be made from each sale to go directly toward the work of the two charities.
It is hoped that ultimately the ladies in Nairobi through the sales of the bead products will make a good income through a system of fair and sustainable trading.
Conversely we also hope that through our Khope Bead ambassador programme, mothers and women in Wales and the UK can take advantage of buying at a generous wholesale price and form their own micro businesses selling the bead products through their own networks.
Mothers helping mothers and others to sell gifts that give back....
If you would like more information about Khope Beads ambassador programme more details can be found on our 'Get Connected' page or please contact Carol Lincoln directly on info@khopebeads.com
Thank you for visiting Khope Beads and reading our story.