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

When a single mother enters our Income Generation program, we know that her daughters are watching her closely. Suddenly, she is a working woman. She is going to her seamstress shop, hair salon, fabric market, or weaving center every day. She may wear a uniform. Or put on special clothes for working with wax and dyes. She starts keeping a savings account book to log the money she puts back for emergencies or health care costs. And she is able to pay for school, and buy fresh

If you happened to be in Ghana last week and were on the dirt road between Nantan and Ankaase, you might have seen a motorized three-wheeler bouncing across the bumpy terrain, carrying a load of live chickens. The "tricycle" was transporting a part of our sponsored students' Christmas gift. Each holiday season, Rising Village sponsors generously provide a small donation for Christmas gifts for their sponsored student. For children who live in villages like Ankaase, Mpobi, and

This week, we are welcoming Gifty and Akukuli into our Income Generation program in Gambibigo, Ghana in the Upper East Region of the country. They received business expansion grants, which allows them to invest grant funds into expanding their weaving business. These women are already experienced weavers, but have had a difficult time earning enough income through their weaving to support their families. Both women are single mothers who live in a region of the country where

We woke up early Friday morning to catch the bus to Bolgatanga, and Kenneth, our staff in Bolga, met us at the bus station. We were also welcomed with an early morning sunshine which made me ask what the time was. It was just 9:00 a.m. but we were sweating already. One unusual thing about my trip which we did today was to take breakfast outside the guesthouse where I stayed. Kenneth introduced us to a local meal in Bolga - and I needed that breakfast because it was going to b

Bunkrugu is a small community village in the north, and although we thought it would be a relaxing trip as we drove there through the countryside, it was a little rougher than we expected. My plan was to take a nap in the car because I had little sleep the night before, but the bumpy rough road did not allow a nap. It was four-hour journey from Tamale, but we were able to pass some of the time talking and discussing more about Rising Village and our impact on the women and fa

We are in Tamale after a seven-hour bus ride from Kumasi. What a wonderful time to once again reunite and meet the people we serve! I was picked up by a new friend, Emmanuel, who is from Bunkurugu. This is the region where donors helped start a one-week training for women in the craft of Batik, after which the women will be given a loan to start up a trade. The north is already getting dry, but smiles are on the faces of the people we serve. When I travel here, I always sto

Using wooden blocks and hot wax, Janet and Comfort will learn how to transform ordinary white cotton fabric into colorful, cloth that includes Adinkra symbols and traditional designs. The two women entered our Income Generation program in the Northern Region because they wanted to learn the skill and start their own businesses of selling batik in the local market and beyond. They began the intensive, five-day training on Monday. After they have learned the basics, they will p

We held our first House Party on September 17 in Tulsa, and, yes, it was a party! One of our board members graciously opened her home so a group of about 25 adults and their children could enjoy an authentic Ghanaian meal prepared for our resident Rising Village caterer. The party-goers listened to the stories and passion behind our work in Ghana, and purchased products that helped fund batik training and micro loans for two women in the Northern Region of Ghana. The shoppers

This is my favorite photo of Linda, taken in April, 2016 when she was about a year into her hairstylist apprenticeship. The shop where she trains is located on a quiet road in Tamale, Ghana. The sink where she washes her customer’s hair is under a covered area, but open to the dirt road and the sounds of cars, cycles and chickens. While they are waiting on hair treatments to work their magic, women sit in plastic chairs out in front of the open air shop and share the latest g

Seamstress apprentices in our Income Generation program have been stitching children's clothing, headbands and assisting head seamstress, Esther, in sewing handbags, aprons, skirts and scarves. We sell these items here, which provides income for these ladies. There are three hairstylist apprentices, Joyce, Linda and Faustina, who also need to earn income during their apprenticeship, so one of our summer interns, Kelsey, came up with an idea that we are excited to share with y

In January of 2014, Jennifer Agyemong entered our Income Generation program as a seamstress apprentice. She immediately began making creations of her own, including children's clothing. A courier brought some of her dresses back from Ghana in September, 2014 and we began selling them to provide her with income. Every three or four months, we have enough to send her income from the sales, and she is now receiving part of the labor cost we pay to our seamstress in Ghana who hel

Our work has officially begun in Tamale. For the past several months, Matthew, our staff person in the northern region, has been assessing women who are in need of apprenticeship grants so they can begin job training. These are women who have had to drop out of school at an early age because their families could not provide school fees. After interviewing and assessing many women, we have begun with grants given to two women who want to enter an apprenticeship in hairstyling.

Jennifer, Abigail, Lydia and Georgina are learning to stitch on hand-crank sewing machines and on certain days, there is no electricity so the shop can be dark and hot without the movement of a fan. But every photo we see of these ladies shows big smiles. Each day they are learning a little more how to sew quality items. Along with learning to stitch the Ankaase bag, tote bag, market bag, and aprons, they are stitching little girl clothing without the help of their seamstress

We're looking for Stitching Partners who will make a monthly difference for our seamstress apprentices. These partners give a recurring donation each month to purchase fabric that Rising Village seamstress apprentices will use to earn income. Here's how it works: We provide apprentices with fabric each month so they can stitch items that will be sold in Ghana and here in the U.S. Traditionally, apprentices do not earn income during their three years of training. Each of the a

Georgina Linda Lydia Three new apprentices will be entering the Income Generation program in February. Georgina and Lydia will be seamstress apprentices working under Esther in Ankaase, and Linda will be a hairsytlist apprentice working under Hagar in Ejuritia. They live in Dumakyi, and will be walking a long distance to work each day. Solomon and Isaac have spent time assessing the women and talking with them about their future goals. They are all ready to work hard to learn

In a small hair salon located in the center of Ankaase, Ghana, stylists and customers laugh and chatter amid hairdryers, wash basins and walls adorned with posters of various popular hairstyles. It is in this salon where Joyce works each day as an apprentice, learning the trade and moving closer to her dream of opening her own salon. But first, she must complete her apprenticeship, which will last two years. Apprenticeships are the main type of skills training in Ghana, and a

Every morning, Abigail takes a beautiful piece of brightly patterned cloth, wraps her infant daughter, Lukaya, in it and winds it around her upper waist to secure the baby on her back for the day. Then she makes the hour-long walk from her village of Dumakyi to the sewing shop in Ankaase where she is a seamstress apprentice. She is in her second year of her apprenticeship, and is grateful to still be sewing. It would have been easy for Abigail to quit after the first year of

We are more alike, my friends, than we are unalike. - Maya Angelou It’s tempting to believe that we have little in common with women from other cultures. Their lives seem so very different from ours, and those differences can create barriers that block our vision. Instead of seeing how alike we are, we often focus on the ways we are unalike. Ama Homeda lives in Ankaase, Ghana. She and I have a different skin color, we speak a different language, we have different degrees of e

This summer, we are introducing an opportunity for small business owners here in the U.S. to connect with new small business owners in the villages where we work. Ama began her Puff bread business in the village of Ankaase in early May. In addition to receiving the grant money to start her business, she attended a training workshop to help her learn bookkeeping, business ethics, and money management. Now she has expanded her business to include another pastry, so she is on he