We started the current sewing class in February 2018, which is the third group of women that were trained as part of our Sewing Project. We are thankful to God for this progress and for the partnership of our sister organization, Linked Through Love Foundation, which has been with us since the beginning.

From our first group, Fifi is now Assistant Trainer (after her training, she spent a year as intern) and is supporting the main trainer, Passy, in providing guidance and teaching the class that is ending their training program today. From the second class, Philo, Gloire (who recently got married), and Chantal are now interning, having the opportunity to better their skills. These are some of our success stories in this program.

The ladies are getting ready for their jury that will happen this week where they will have the opportunity to test their skills by randomly choosing among up to 10 lessons (10 items) they went studied for the past 10 months, an item they will have to sew and present as final test.

The choice happened today, they will have at least one day to check their notes and understand how to sew that item they randomly selected, which they will sew on Thursday and present it in the afternoon.

“The dress I am putting today is something I sew by myself during one of our classes”, proudly said Goretti. “As you can see, it looks beautiful on me and whenever I put it, I feel proud of myself for having been able to sew a wonderful dress for myself”, she concluded.

Other examples include Gloire who did not purchase any dress from the market for her wedding. She bought fabrics, sewing materials and used the sewing machines in the classroom to make her own clothes that she brought with her in her marriage.

When asked about how much they would have cost if she paid a sewing business for the service, she responded: “Let me count and think,” her colleagues making fun of her as she is counting. “I was able to sew about 4 nice dresses that would have cost me up to 100 USD,” she finally replied. “This is a lot of money that I could not afford as I was getting ready for the marriage,” Gloire concluded, a smile on her face.

Andrine is yet another example. She was able to make a dress that she proudly put on. Passy, also called Pascaline, the trainer, called on her: “You should speak about the many times you have come here putting on that dress of yours,” since Andrine was shy when the question was asked to the group. She could only laugh while her colleagues testified that it is a nice dress that she was able to make for herself.

The current class started with 8 fresh students in February this year, some had to drop due to family and health issues. As of today, only 6 made it to the end of the training, which is a record compared to previous classes. To that number, 3 interns from the previous class were added and two trainers including one who was a student from the first class.

The biggest problem they reported was the long distance from Lac Vert, where most of them live, to the training center and not being able to receive a meal at the Center. They were tired and weakened by the long walk, but, thanks to God through our partner, we were able to start providing a meal every day of class (3 days a week), something they welcomed and have been thankful for.

“You cannot imagine how we feel strong after our lunch which is given at the end of each day. The distance we walk is very long and the hours we spend practicing in the class can be tiring and exhausting”, said Rebecca, one of the newer students.

Would you like to partner with us in supporting the next class? Please get in touch, we will direct you to the right place to make your secure online donation.