With a strong belief that you must respect the craft, materials and abilities of the cultures with which you are interacting, I have been able to travel and share my knowledge with those less fortunate.
To be able to teach a simple craft that we often take for granted to an individual or group that can in turn empower them on the road out of poverty is an experience like no other. It is both humbling and incredibly exciting. In 2009 I traveled to Munnar, Kerala in Southern India and taught a natural dyeing workshop at the Aranya Natural Dye Unit- the above photo is of the amazing folks I had the privilege of working with!
This fall I have an opportunity to return to India, where I will be volunteering at an orphanage in Varanasi – won’t you help me to return to India? The trip will take place Sept 26th thru Oct 16th, 2014. The other volunteers and I will be building a playground for the children, providing them a clean and safe place to play.
I also hope to be able to fly across India at the end of my stay and visit the Aranya Natural Dye Unit to say hello and see how everyone is doing there – to hear their laughter and give them big hugs! This has long been a dream of mine and you can help to make it happen.
I am looking to raise $3500.00 to cover my airfare. The rest of my expenses will be covered by Whole Foods Market’s Team Member Volunteer Program.
As a Whole Foods team member here in Asheville, I was fortunate enough to be chosen to participate in this program.
I have written two books celebrating the people I have worked with (Stories of Hope – Mexico, India & Rwanda and Stories of Hope -Oaxaca, Weavers of Southern Mexico) and will do another book, Stories of Hope – Varanasi.
Over the past several years I have been able to travel and teach in so many parts of the world, India, Rwanda, Mexico, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, in Italy – with middle-schoolers on a US Military base whose parents were stationed in Afghanistan and with NYC 6th graders through the SIlk Road Connect Project.
Even if you can’t contribute at this time you can still help by spreading the word – tell your friends and co-workers – use social media –
Together we can make a difference!
Donations can be made to Stories of Hope through the fiscal sponsor, Fractured Atlas,
https://www.fracturedatlas.org/donate/2928
Stories of Hope is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas,(https://www.fracturedatlas.org/) a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions in behalf of Stories of Hope may be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.
Madderlane 