Mashaka Quilting Project

Dear Friends and Family,

Imagine you lived way below what we think of as “poverty level.” Imagine you had several children who counted on you for mouthfuls of food to get them through to the next day. Imagine that your husband has left home to seek work in another city, has left home for good out of desperation, or has died of AIDS. Now imagine that your only hope of income lies in daily offering to work for strangers not knowing if, at the end of the day, you will have earned a few dollars, been raped, or killed.
This is an example of daily life for the women of Mashaka, Kenya.

My mother (Kitty Sorgen) and I are preparing to visit these women to give them hope in the form of a new means of income: Quilting.

We are working through Oasis Africa, a Kenyan organization founded by Drs. Gladys and Gershon Mwiti, to visit their school in Mashaka and teach quilting to the caregivers of the children who attend there. I will go for a few weeks to help Mom get established and start training the “quilting coordinator” and the rest of the women—and perhaps a few men. (And, of course, I plan to get in lots of time singing and playing with the schoolchildren!) Mom plans to stay for two months to ensure the quilters have all the skills they need to progress in their new art and to help ensure the sustainability of the project. The women will not only be taught how to quilt, but how to teach, so they can pass along their new skill. We will also be working with Oasis Africa on guiding the women in basic business practices and how and where to sell their quilts.

Such an undertaking is not inexpensive. Airline tickets and room & board alone will cost several thousand dollars. Then we must double that cost to include funding on the Mashaka side for fabric, supplies, supplementing the women’s incomes (their new jobs will be learning to quilt which will not provide immediate income), feeding the women, etc. Dr. Mwiti worked out a tentative budget and came to the conclusion that $57 per month per quilter for about six months would enable each woman to develop a new stream of income.

We have been fortunate to get a good start on supplies. Mom emailed a well-known fabric designer and told him of our project. Within a couple of weeks he had donated two huge boxes of fabric. Another quilter donated $250 worth of tools from her website. Quilters here on the island have designed and made portable sewing kits for the Mashaka women.

Our timing for the trip is dependant on our funding. We still need several thousand more dollars to cover our travel expenses and to ensure Oasis Africa has a financial base to cover needs in Mashaka. We would like to go as soon as possible. We are still toward the beginning of Kenya’s dry season and would like to take advantage of that. Plus, unfortunately, due to the current worldwide economic conditions, Oasis Africa—along with many other nonprofits-- has had some grants put on hold. We don’t anticipate this getting any better in the near future. It would be nice to get these women quilting to give them hope and earn some income.

So, we would like to have at least 2/3 of the necessary funds in the bank before making our reservations. This is where you come in. I am asking that you think and pray about this project and whether or not you are able to help provide funding. Every dollar brings us closer to helping these women and children.

There are two places you can write checks. If you would like a charitable donation for your tax records, please write the check to Friday Harbor Presbyterian Church and put “Africa quilting project” in the memo line. My fellow elders and church members are excited about having a global impact and they have set up a designated fund to which money can be donated.

If you do not need a charitable donation record for your taxes, please make the check out to me, Jill Urbach. Mom and I have set up a separate account that will allow us access to funds via ATM while we are in Africa. This is because we need to pay cash to the family who will provide us room and board while at the school. Plus, based on the experiences of a woman from the San Francisco area who has just returned from Mashaka, we understand that opportunities will arise for which we will need cash to help. Here is a link to Monica’s blog from her Kenyan trip: http://monicakenya.blogspot.com/ Especially read her post from April 15 titled “Mashaka Memories.”

All funds, whether through the church or through our personal mission account will be scrupulously accounted for.

Checks can be sent to me at 35 Navigator Lane, Friday Harbor, WA 98250. Or, you can send them to Friday Harbor Presbyterian Church, P.O. Box 946, Friday Harbor, WA 98250.

Thank you for taking the time to read this long email and to consider financially supporting our mission. If you have any questions about the project, how it came about, or Oasis Africa please feel free to email or call me at 360-378-5309. I have attached an article written by Dr. Mwiti about Mashaka (while the school was still in development) and the latest newsletter from Oasis Africa.
Please pray for Mom and me, and for God’s guidance as this mission develops.

Jill Urbach