Our friends and students in Chongwe and Lusaka, Zambia, who went through Unlocking Your Design (UYD) in the past year, had a reunion in June with their trainer, Ana, before she moved back to Ecuador this month. They surprised her with a chicken which she was to take home with her!
“She realized that she needed to increase her prices a little bit and she was scared about that, but using the future fund savings she was able to buy a bigger bag and now her business is going great," said Ana.
Ana said, “She learned how to save, and by saving with her future fund, she was able to save enough to buy a bike. Now she is able to take her kid [with cerebral palsy] on the bike to his school, which is a lot better than how she had to carry him.”
Another student was a hair stylist and also has a child with cerebral palsy. She realized she needed more electricity to run her hair equipment for long. After learning how to save in UYD, she bought a small solar panel, because of this she, made more money and was able to rent a space in a shop that had electricity. She was then able to also employ her sister and another woman to work in the shop so she would have more flexibility when taking care of her child.
During the trainings, many of the women learned some basic sewing skills and made pillow covers, napkins, and table runners, which we have for sale in our retail store in Fort Wayne, IN. Purchasing these items from our store will help us continue training women around the world!
Did you know, a recurring donation of $25 a month will train one woman a year with our UYD curriculum? If you've ever considered making a donation, now is a great time!