Kingdom Ventures exists to benefit the artisans who supply our products. To the extent possible we try to build personal relationships with the artisans. We want you to know them also, so we are featuring information about an artisan in each issue, starting with those we met on our recent trip to Kenya
Many
of you had been aware that our previously scheduled business trip planned
for January 2008 had been indefinately postponed only four days prior
to our departure. As you will recall Kenya was experiencing incredible
unrest for weeks after their national elections in late December 2007.
When the violence arrived in the city in which we would be doing business,
we had to acknowledge that it would be prudent to postpone our trip.
No business could be conducted when personal survival was the primary
focus.
Eventually
the situation became more stable, but very little returned to "normal".
With Kenya's economy significantly dependent on the tourist trade, this
period of agitation and upheaval tremendously impacted that essential
source of income for many of its people. Therefore we rescheduled our
two-week trip to Kenya for February 2009, during the "quiet season" for
KVI.
Arriving in Nairobi, we travelled to our home-base in Naivasha, located northwest of Nairobi in the Rift Valley. Although we were only 80 km south of the equator, we were at an altitude of 6200 feet, daily we experienced "eternal spring" weather!
What a delightful change from our mounds of snow in Rochester NY!
Our
Kenyan connections, Bishop Jeremiah and his wife Beth served as our
interpreters, making arrangements for us to travel and visit with
each of our artisans in their home and workshop setting. It was such
a privilege to meet them, to hear their stories and their hearts for
their business and for others within their community. In this edition
we will share about our visit to Eunice, our artisan whose
specialty is a technique which she developed for creating unique clay-bead
necklaces.
Eunice Kasisi Mwikya lives in Muiga, a poor, yet vibrant, bustling
neighborhood on the outskirts of Nairobi. As a single mother, Eunice
not only cares for her teenage son, but also for the two sons of her
deceased brother. All of them reside in a one-bedroom upstairs flat
that also serves as the workshop for her business. To reach their
residence, you pass through a corrugated steel door into a small,
shared courtyard, past the shared well, and climb a flight of stairs.
Eunice' specialty is her "marbled" necklaces, which she
makes from hand-formed clay beads. The beads are dried in the sun,
then finished with a process that she guards very carefully since
it is what makes her necklaces so unique. (Marbled necklace photo)
Eunice also makes beaded chokers and necklaces from bamboo. Although
the "marbled" necklaces are her specialty, she demonstrated
her skill in various types of beadwork.
Even though she did not have a physical business location, we asked
Eunice for the name of her business. Without a moment's hesitation,
she said "Beauty" because she wants to make things that
bring beauty to the people who wear them.
We inquired about her goals for her business. Eunice stated her three goals:
- To provide for herself, her child, and her deceased brother's two children
- To ensure all three children get a good education (even public education is not free in Kenya)
- To see her business grow to the point that it can have a workshop and employ others.
We honored Eunice with a framed certificate proclaiming her as one
of Kingdom Ventures' suppliers! We invite you to visit our website
and our KVI shop to purchase jewelry hand-crafted by Eunice.