In February, Shae Haining launched her line of capsule wardrobe clothing, and RiSE seamstress, Ciin, is stitching pieces weekly as the orders come in. Ciin is earning income and learning the process of home production. She doesn't have to pay for childcare, and she can work a flexible schedule as she finishes the pieces that Shae picks up each week. The steady income gives her family some financial security, and gives Ciin the knowledge that she is capable of contributing to

Every Thursday afternoon and Friday morning we gather at CarePoint Ministry Center with our Advanced Project students - the ladies who completed the Sewing Basics course this summer. These women have built relationships with one another as they stitched their way through four beginner projects. Now, they enter the sewing room every week as a bonded group, full of joy and positive energy as they progress toward more advanced skills. But for our first project of this semester w

Every Monday, for ten weeks during the summer, we welcomed 26 women into a large room at South Tulsa Baptist Church to learn the basics of sewing. We signed up volunteers, planned projects, gathered donated fabric and supplies, set up machines and turned on the party lights for the first session of our RiSE program in Tulsa. The women came each week, faithful and eager to master the techniques and make something beautiful. At the end of the session, they were given the opport

On May 1, the Rising Village Board of Directors voted to begin the Refugee Sewing Enterprise (RiSE) in Tulsa, a local program, that will provide sewing lessons and income opportunities for refugee and immigrant women who live in the Tulsa area. RiSE will be an addition to our ongoing work in Ghana. We are not replacing, but expanding! Women who choose to participate in the program will enter either an introductory, intermediate, or artisan class with an instructor, where they