Sewing Seeds International http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com Sewing Seeds International Thu, 10 Nov 2011 06:54:03 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 Gifts That Give Back! http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/11/gifts-that-give-back/ http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/11/gifts-that-give-back/#comments Thu, 10 Nov 2011 01:31:01 +0000 sewingseedsinternational http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/?p=350 This year give the ultimate gift, one that really makes adifference in someone’s life.

Sewing Seeds International is offering a Gifts That Give Back campaign this year as a shopping option that really captures the true spirit of Christmas. We will be providing three different gifting options; a stocking, a goat and a sewing machine. Spreading the spirit of generosity is a perfect way to celebrate a season that is so centered on giving!

To donate one of our wonderful gifts on behalf of a friend or family member please click here!

]]> http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/11/gifts-that-give-back/feed/ 0 Africa Update http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/10/africa-update/ http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/10/africa-update/#comments Thu, 13 Oct 2011 00:14:39 +0000 sewingseedsinternational http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/?p=302 Our most recent trip was to Sierra Leone, Africa, in October, where we spent five days meeting with women who are in our micro-credit program. We were amazed to hear the stories of their accomplishments. Our top student, N’Mamah, has just opened a second shop and entered into a new micro-credit loan with SSI to purchase a specialized embroidery machine. Abibatu has purchased an embroidery machine to grow her business, and Ruth paid her loan in full and purchased several more machines to expand her tailoring shop. There are so many success stories to report. We had a wonderful lunch meeting where we got reacquainted and shared our stories. The most laughter came when the girls were reminiscing about Sylvia’s attention to detail and how she would tell them to “Loose” seams that were not straight enough. This meant they had to take them out. The women laughed at how they sometimes hear Sylvia’s voice when they are preparing garments that they have sold. They all agreed that this helps them to keep their products above average in quality as Sylvia has instilled excellence in them. Several new students came to meet with us and presented business plans, which we were quite impressed with. Our time was well utilized, and we came away in awe of how well our students are progressing, in a country that has so many obstacles. The micro-credit program is not only producing sustainability, but many of the woman are growing their businesses well beyond our expectations!

N'Mamah showing the garment that she hopes to produce with the new embroidery machine. Abibatu in her gorgeous African dress. Abi and her new embroidery machine. Ruth and Josephine are so excited about the new loans that we gave them. Josephine surprised us with her uniform contract. Nafi displays her beautiful children's clothing. Kadi and Tammy are "sisters of the heart". Meeting for lunch with some of the women in our micro-credit program.

]]> http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/10/africa-update/feed/ 0 Ukraine Update http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/09/ukraine-update/ http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/09/ukraine-update/#comments Wed, 28 Sep 2011 06:02:55 +0000 sewingseedsinternational http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/?p=264 SSI had the most wonderful trip to Ukraine in September. We spent time in Lviv with Pastor Misha and in Novovolynsk with Pastor Sasha.

Pastor Misha has an amazing heart to reach out to those who are broken, underprivileged, and in need of Christ’s love. He is the hands and feet of Jesus, and we love working alongside him. New Life Church is busy with construction of the church facility, the sewing training center, and a new wing that will be a soup kitchen and housing for street people. We stayed at the church and painted murals in a Sunday School room. The 4 walls were transformed into the story of Creation. Sylvia spent hours organizing boxes for the sewing center. The sewing center needs funds to complete the walls and shelving, and then we are planning a trip to Ukraine for next June, where we will start a Beginner’s Sewing Training Program.

In Novovolynsk, we spent time at Elli-Rose’s Place and painted New Testament murals on the walls of the second phase. The walls came alive and it was incredible to work with four children from the orphanage who are budding artists! The paving stones are 2/3rds done in front of the entranceway and it looks amazing! Pastor Sasha and his crew have been hard at work. We also taught English to the staff of the smaller orphanage in town. The students were keen and we had so much fun getting to know them better. Now whenever we come to the orphanage, we can speak, at least of few words, to each other! Elli-Rose’s Place is in its final stages and the application has been sent to Kiev for the facility to be approved. This is exciting news! Please pray that everything will go through according to God’s plans. The sewing center in Novovolynsk is almost completed as well. Pastor Sasha has a heart for the people of Ukraine and is working to rehabilitate men and women from alcoholism as well as reconcile families. What a beautiful picture of how God’s love can make an impact in this world. We feel honored to work with him on several projects.

In the beginning, God created... the heavens and the earth, the sky, land and sea... every seed-bearing plant and trees... livestock, creatures that move along the ground and wild animals. And then God created man in his image; male and female. And it was very GOOD. New paving stones at Elli's Place The Nativity "Glory to God in the highest" And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men. "Hosanna" Snizhana and Diana help to paint murals. Dema and Vadeem painting murals. Guards come to take Jesus. Tammy outlines the murals to bring them to life. Jessa with family of four who live at the ARK orphanage. ]]> http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/09/ukraine-update/feed/ 0 Sewing Seeds Upcoming Trip http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/07/sewing-seeds-upcoming-trip/ http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/07/sewing-seeds-upcoming-trip/#comments Sat, 30 Jul 2011 15:44:51 +0000 sewingseedsinternational http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/?p=251 Sewing Seeds International is excited to announce that we are going to Ukraine and Sierra Leone in September. The details of this trip are coming together and we would appreciate any support in the way of encouragement, prayers, and/or funds. If you feel led to any of these, please email us or donate through our Paypal account on the donation page. We value each of you and thank you in advance.  A necessary monitoring trip is going to take place to cover the following aspects:

In Ukraine

*Sewing training center construction in Lviv and Novovolynsk, and unloading of supplies from container

*Orphanage completion and setting up operating budget for next year- Painting more murals

*Teaching of English to staff

*Implementing crafts and games with orphans

In Sierra Leone

*Meeting with all participants of SSI’s micro-credit program

*Introduce them to a microcredit program operating in Freetown

*Monitor progress of students from past programs-Establish funds needed

]]> http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/07/sewing-seeds-upcoming-trip/feed/ 0 Peru Graduation http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/07/peru-graduation/ http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/07/peru-graduation/#comments Wed, 20 Jul 2011 16:01:41 +0000 sewingseedsinternational http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/?p=255 Here are some pictures from the Intermediate Graduation in Peru. The 3 top students. Receiving certificates Projects

]]> http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/07/peru-graduation/feed/ 0 Video: Sewing Seeds on CTV http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/06/video-sewing-seeds-on-ctv/ http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/06/video-sewing-seeds-on-ctv/#comments Fri, 24 Jun 2011 03:54:27 +0000 socialnerdia http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/?p=238

]]> http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/06/video-sewing-seeds-on-ctv/feed/ 0 Intermediate Program in Peru http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/06/intermediate-program-in-peru/ http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/06/intermediate-program-in-peru/#comments Thu, 23 Jun 2011 21:45:18 +0000 sewingseedsinternational http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/?p=230 SSI has just returned from a successful intermediate sewing training program in Manchay. The students were enthusiastic and ready to learn. Leadership skills are also prevalent as four of the women have stepped up to lead the group. They are amazing and we left them with a test project for an upcoming community event. We were delighted to see such great potential in our students!

]]> http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/06/intermediate-program-in-peru/feed/ 0 CTV documentary aired again May 23, 2011 http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/05/242/ http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/05/242/#comments Wed, 25 May 2011 06:36:56 +0000 sewingseedsinternational http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/?p=242 http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/05/242/feed/ 0 Mini training program-Peru http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/02/mini-training-program-peru/ http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/02/mini-training-program-peru/#comments Fri, 11 Feb 2011 06:46:45 +0000 sewingseedsinternational http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/?p=247 Sylvia returns to Peru to monitor the sewing training program and offer a mini program for 17 students.

]]> http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2011/02/mini-training-program-peru/feed/ 0 SSI Documentary will air on CTV this Christmas Eve! http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2010/12/ssi-documentary-will-air-on-ctv-this-christmas-eve/ http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/2010/12/ssi-documentary-will-air-on-ctv-this-christmas-eve/#comments Thu, 16 Dec 2010 02:30:40 +0000 sewingseedsinternational http://www.sewingseedsinternational.com/?p=212 We are very excited to inform you that a documentary on Sewing Seeds International will be aired in Canada on CTV Television.

  • Dec 24, 2010 Christmas Eve at 5 PM Mountain Standard (Calgary) time
  • Dec 31, 2010 New Years Eve at 5 PM Mountain Standard (Calgary) time

For those of you who live in various other locations around the world you can stream it at: http://shows.ctv.ca/Schedule.aspx?localstation=1

** Please leave your comments about the CTV Documentary under Contact Us, or other aspects of Sewing Seeds International.

We would love to hear from you!

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