Catching up

November has been busy for A Little Something. We've been meeting with members in small groups to distribute supplies and help with technical skills. Although this is efficient, it's not as good at team-building as our all-women meetings. It is, however, a lot of fun and just as hectic as getting together in large groups.

Getting the technical details right continues to be a challenge for the women. Crimps are poorly affixed or used incorrectly, the new earring findings seem to be confusing, and making turned loops and wrapped loops continue to be problematic. On the upside, the women have come a long way in developing their sense of design and using color. Most of the jewelry is really quite pretty. Htee Ku Paw is very open-minded about adapting her weaving designs to American tastes and uses. The Bhutanese knitters are making gorgeous hats and scarves.

We have amazing, wonderful, patient, go-with-the-flow volunteers, and without them we couldn't do what we do. Thanks Michelle, Carol, Jean, Ginny, and Amanda! I hope I didn't forget anyone.

Here are some recent photos of life with A Little Something...

Our media Monday

Update! Leanne Gregg let us know that NBC had finally posted the video version of Haiffaa's story. To access it via the NBC news Website, click here. You can also click the "play" icon and watch it here.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Following the loss of Haiffaa, we were presented with the opportunity to work with two local journalists in telling Haiffaa's story.

Leanne Gregg from MSNBC spent many hours over the course of a weeks researching, coordinating, writing and filming a story about Haiffaa and the lives she touched.

Megan Verlee from Colorado Public Radio also worked on a story for about a week, and went to four different locations to conduct interviews and gather the sounds of Haiffaa's world in Denver. She met with the A Little Something Team at our HQ--the basement of Sharon's house.

Unfortunately, very, very few people got to see the television story. It was released to NBC affiliates nationwide, but here in Denver, our own local NBC channel buried the story in the 5:00 A.M. newscast. They showed it, but we're not sure if anyone was awake to see it. This was hugely disappointing because Leanne Gregg put a lot of effort and thought into getting the details and tone of the piece just right.

On a more encouraging note, the Colorado Public Radio interview was more successful in getting on air. It ran in drive time three times, so there is no doubt that many people heard this story.

To hear the story yourself, click here. Windows Media Player will launch and the story should play automatically. If you experience technical difficulty, click here and select the story from 11/16. The piece is about five minutes long.

(Above left: Katrina and Susan being interviewed. Above right, Colorado Public Radio at work.)

Remembrances

Two weeks have passed since Haiffaa was killed in Iraq. Some of the people who knew her have shared their memories and impressions here.

While Haiffaa was at Emily Griffith, she used to come and check in and out every day in the Special Programs office. The computer where she would key tag in and out is located in my office and I would see her daily, sometimes twice a day. Early on, she struggled some with the computer. Getting the mouse just right to key tag in was often a challenge for our refugee students. That is how Haiffaa and I first started getting to know each other. Every day I would help her keytag in and in the process ask her about her day or her family. As I came to know Haiffaa I always looked forward to seeing her smiling face. It was a joy to watch her language skills and her confidence blossom.

For a time in 2008, I was on a spiritual path that required me to wear all white. In accordance with the Ifa tradition, I also wore ilekes. Ilekes are colorful beaded necklaces that represent the different Orishas of the Ifa tradition. Haiffaa always noticed my ilekes when I wore them outside of my shirt. One day she asked me about them and we talked about their meaning. The next week she brought me a beautiful beaded necklace that she had handmade just for me. She was concerned that the colors might not be right, but she felt called to make it for me. I was so touched by her gift and generosity.

Generosity - that was the essence of Haiffaa. She would bring us flowers on her birthday. She shared her smile, her stories, and her peace loving spirit with all she came across. I remember her bringing me little treats of homemade desserts. And I remember the day she brought in her postcard for her art show at Stripe Gallery. She was so proud. It was such a joy and honor to witness. Shortly after, that show, she participated in the A little Something Show at Emily Griffith. I bought one of her necklaces to give my oldest niece as a holiday gift. I shared Haiffaa’s story with my niece and now a young teenage girl in Michigan carries a piece of Haiffaa with her also.

However, what I remember and miss the most is her calling me her son and placing her hand gently on my cheek. I don’t recall when she exactly began doing that, but I know that I can still feel the gentle weight of her hand on my face. She was and always will be my Iraqi mother in my heart. I am confident that despite my current pain and sadness, that her spirit will continue to touch and inspire both me and others for years to come.
~Nick Sarchet


I only had the pleasure of knowing Haiffa for a short time--less than two years. I can't say I knew her her well, either, but I can say that every time I saw her--every time--she would break into a smile and grab my hand or give me a big hug and ask me how I was doing, how was my family, how were the other women of A Little Something?

She was a strong woman who wanted other women to reach their potential. She was creative, resourceful, funny, and maybe a little stubborn, all of which served her well. She was a self-appointed recruiter and publicist for A Little Something, bringing new refugee women to Sharon's office to join ALS and helping us do presentations about the project at conferences.

Even if only for a short time, I am honored that I was able to work with her and the other amazing women to help A Little Something grow. I am so grateful for being a part of this wonderful organization and can't wait to watch it blossom just like the women that comprise it. More than a little piece of its success will be because of Haiffa.

May we all go forward and bring a little more peace to this world that so desperately needs it.

--Jaime Koehler

I would like to wallow in my own pain, the sadness of losing a mother figure in my life, but her words keep coming back to me and do not allow me to do so.

Haiffaa Ali was an unequivocally wise woman, a woman who acted with great humanity, strength and graceful acceptance of life's whims. She tried to instill the same in me.

"Be strong" is a Haiffa adage that has looped through my mind ever since the news of her passing.

I certainly am trying, Haiffaa.

Haiffa always made me feel very special and loved, wrote cards, mailed postcards, stayed in contact despite distance. Haiffaa so highly valued those in her life and always created the occasion to let them know.

I am left in awe by the most basic tenet of life, the certainty of death, and that someone like Haiffa can simply disappear one day. What once housed her spirit is gone, but her spirit and memory occupy my mind at this very moment. I will forever carry a piece of her loving and tenacious spirit.

The light of Haiffa Ali can never be extinguished; it is now our duty and great honor to carry on her legacy, her message of hope, her sincere wish for peace, her compassion for others.

I will never forget you, Haiffaa Ali.

Alexandra Sisk


This was written in response to an article that was being sent around on the Internet about the Muslims that were immigrating to France. It was a really nasty article about how they were refusing to adapt to the French culture and were a real problem.

I spent an hour today talking with my friend/student Haiffaa Ali about Geert’s article. Haiffaa came to the U.S. about a year and a half ago as a refugee from Iraq. She has a son in Germany and visited there this past summer for a couple of months, and from there she went to Syria, Jordan, and Egypt so she has recently been around the areas that Geert talked about.

When she first found out that she was going to be sent to the U.S. as a refugee, she was really upset. From her point of view we were the enemy who had come in and turned her life completely upside down. She was an only child of a wealthy family and now she was a refugee coming to the U. S. with a suitcase that couldn’t weigh more than 48 Kilos.

She felt that way for about 2 weeks. Once she got to know a couple of Americans and found out that we were basically good people who really cared about her and were going to support her and help her to get through this transition, she had fallen in love with Americans. She doesn’t plan to return to Iraq now even when it is safe.

She contends with, in my opinion, some validity, that where Geert describes the massive immigration into the European countries, most Californians and Texans could substitute Hispanics for Muslims without changing many of the words. Even the numbers are very similar. Both populations are growing at a much more rapid pace because of a cultural value on fertility and a high birth rate. Both are bound to change the culture of the country because of their huge numbers.

She also mentioned that immigrants are, for the most part, very fearful. They don’t understand the new culture, the language, the religion, or have the money to fully participate. Therefore, they tend to cling to what they know and feed their resentment of the “others” by fiercely maintaining their old culture. The difference between Haiffaa and most of these immigrants is that they actually chose to come to the country and had high expectations of how their lives would change. Imagine their dismay that they have made, what was to them, a major effort to improve their lives only to find that they are still at the bottom of the social scale. This brings out anger with both populations as well as criminal behavior as they are willing to do anything to survive and to get a piece of the wealth they see all around them.

She quoted to me several passages from the Quran that admonish Muslims to love one another, to treat others as they want to be treated and to search for peace. She also corrected me about the Muslim view of Christ. They recognize Christ as the Son of God--more than the Jews will do. She agreed that Mohammed was a warrior who was fighting against fundamentalist Jews who were tormenting them and trying to either convert or kill them. (Sound familiar?) However, Mohammed was admonished by Allah to search for and embrace peace.

In the conversation we also talked about 9/11. She said that immediately after it happened--before the Iraqi war--people would come by her father’s house and be very happy. Her father, however, would tell them that the Quran tells them not to kill others. How could they be happy that people--any people--were killed? She thinks that in some part it was in response to America’s support of Israel, not any real hostility to the U.S. She said that the Israel deal was all about power and land. She reminded me that most of the Arab countries are less than 100 years from tribal domination. She also talked about the legacy of the past that has for hundreds of years dealt with tribal wars. War has always been a part of their history and traditions. In this, you always hate the most powerful, and this time it was the U.S.

Dana Harper


Hello, Ali family.
You don't know me, but I was a friend of Haiffaa's in Denver and I even had the privilege of helping to teach her English a few years ago.

I am very sorry for what happened and please know that I thought she was a beautiful, friendly, joyous, amazing and strong woman.

Rob Pattison


My memories of Haiffaa include:

• Her zest for life
• Her wonderful sense of humor
• Her friendship
• Her calls and visits
• Her graciousness and generosity
• Her ability to make others feel welcomed and valued
• Her courage
• Her willingness to share her story to help others understand

I will miss her very much.

Submitted by Marilyn Eaton, Colorado Refugee Services Program



It is a shame to lose Haiffa. She understood the importance of educating others about refugees. She was not only willing to be an advocate for refugees, but her personality made her a great one. I met Haiffa while at the African Community Center and we worked together on various outreach activities designed to educate the people of Denver about refugee issues. She was willing to tell her story to the broader public and declared as much while interviewed on NPR’s Colorado Matters. I got to know her well while developing the Voices of Refugees lecture program. We spent numerous hours together going over her presentation. She told me several times how nervous she was to speak in front of hundreds of people, but from the audience you could never tell. She stole the show that night with her amazing charm, powerful words, and ever-present humor.


I miss Haiffa but I am grateful she was able to have the impact that she did.
Kevin Mohatt


One of my favorite memories of Haiffaa is from when we went to the jewelry show together. I had been her teacher for several months and had learned that Haiffaa was beginning to make jewelry with the refugee group on Saturdays. Having a jewelry background, I was planning to go to the show and I invited her to go with me.

The first trip to a jewelry show can be a little overwhelming for almost anyone. It is huge and there are about 100 booths selling jewelry and all of the things you need to make jewelry.

When we first arrived, she acted like a child in a candy store going from booth to booth exclaiming over the beads and jewelry. I had given her some money to purchase items for the refugee group, and she went right to work looking for exactly what she thought that they needed. She would bargain with the merchants very carefully to get what she wanted; however, when she found what she wanted for her own jewelry making, there was no limit to what she would do to get it. She went back and forth between several booths and eventually the booth owners would laugh when they saw her coming because she was so good natured about her bargaining. Needless to say, she walked away with the best deals of the day.

One of the impacts of Haiffaa in my life has been flowers. She used to bring flowers to her teachers on a regular basis. Sharon promoted her to my class and I began to get to know her. She would bring flowers to me and tell me that I should always have beautiful things around me. She struggled in my class and returned to Sharon’s class after a week; however, she continued to bring me flowers.

Sharon sent her back to me later and she not only stayed in my class, but quickly became a class leader. Her thirst for knowledge was unstoppable. She eventually progressed on from my class into GED classes, but would come to see me and frequently bring flowers.

I came to the conclusion that she was right. Life is too short to not surround yourself with things that you love. Thus, she inspired me to keep fresh flowers in my classroom all of the time. In this way, she has spread her beauty to all of my students.

Dana Harper

Haiffaa was the link to one of the most rewarding experiences I have had. She facilitated my introduction into her family, with the goal of teaching English to her husband. My husband and I had dinner a few times with Haiffaa and Majeed. The first in a restaurant to facilitate reading menus and ordering food, and the second within the warmth and hospitality of their home. Haiffaa made an incredible dinner with a multitude of choices. A truly exquisite meal.

During the dinner, we asked how Haiffaa and Majeed met--they were neighbors in Baghdad. We heard some funny stories about their relationship. My favorite was Majeed’s story that Haiffaa was described as having a “long tongue” (meaning she talked a lot) by his father. Additionally, Haiffaa’s father told her mother, “she can never be a teacher of young children, she doesn’t have the patience.” I don’t know if that is true, but she was a great teacher of people. She was persistent, strong, caring and clearly goal directed. She knew how to get things for herself, her family and others, all of whom are better for the experience of being in the “eye” of the Haiffaa tornado. Her “long tongue” was a gift to all who she showered with care.

I am a better person for my experience with Haiffaa and her family.

Sandy Hittman

I was so shocked and saddened to hear of this great loss to us all. I am very grateful for the posts on this blog which are beautiful stories that keep Haiffaa with us. I just want to share a quick one of my own-- I used to work at Safari Seconds and Haiffa came to shop there sometimes. She was the master bargainer. Even when she had a gift certificate she somehow managed to bargain and you just couldn't refuse her, especially when she would be so pleased once you have in! It was always a pleasure when she stopped by and her radiance was certainly contagious. I send my love and support to her family and friends throughout the world.

--Emily Huston

Gone too soon

On Sunday, October 23, 2009, two massive bomb attacks killed well over 150 people in Baghdad and wounded hundreds of others. Those are hard numbers to comprehend, let alone think of on an individual-by-individual basis. What does that look like? Who were those people? It was so far away, does it matter?

In the United States , war tends not to meet us on a personal level unless it is one of our own who dies, and then only if it is a member of the military. In that case, we get the full press treatment from family reaction to funeral.

Well yesterday, one of our own met the war head on and did not survive. She wasn’t a “civilian casualty;” she was a woman with friends, family, and a compelling life story. You won’t read about it in the news and you certainly won’t hear the story singled out on television. That doesn’t make this loss any less significant. The war has a face and it is the face of Haiffaa Ali.

Haiffaa came here with her family in March, 2007, a refugee at the age of 53. She was my student for months, until she learned enough English to move on to a higher level class. She also took a free class on Saturday mornings, a class we had set up for refugee women living in east Denver.

Her participation in both classes is what brought her to be one of the first four “Beadwomen,” the women who became the core of A Little Something. Haiffaa was our champion. She not only learned faster than the others, she taught new women how to make jewelry and she explained to them why it was good for them to be part of the group. She cried when she made her first sale, and then she asked me to help her write about the experience. We each wrote our own version and we named the essay, “Eight Dollars.” Haiffaa kept a copy of our blogged version, just as she kept the actual eight dollars cash from the sale, which she had proudly framed.

Haiffaa was a one-woman public relations machine for A Little Something, and she was never subtle about it. She wanted everyone to know about the work we were doing, even after she left us to become her own brand. We had hoped she would stay with us longer as a member leader, and then go onto micro-enterprise class and our Board of Directors. Big plans, for sure, but there was no stopping Haiffaa—she always maintained her resolve to do things her own way.

Once she learned some English and began to relax in this country, Haiffaa soared. She made friends everywhere she went in Denver. She met the Mayor and the Governor; she had her own gallery show; she did two public radio interviews and she was the subject of at least two newspaper articles. She presented at the national TESOL conference and at the COTESOL conference, as well. She knew almost everyone at Emily Griffith Opportunity School, it seemed, as well as a hundred more outside of school. She loved Barack Obama, books (and she read them in English so she could talk about them with friends), Michael Moore, education, people, empowerment for women, and above all, the tenets of peace and justice and the teachings of Ghandi and The Dalai Lama. She was also the woman who took the time to cook many excellent and much appreciated meals for my husband, Leo, because she felt sorry for him, knowing that I was much too busy to cook for him myself.

Haiffaa used to love to sit and talk. We would talk for hours sometimes, discussing life, home, family, and healing a battered soul. She knew when I was hiding something, and she gave me a hard time about a lot of things. Sometimes we didn’t get along at all, and we argued, each of us determined to prove we were right. Of course, it was probably just because we were both hard-headed and opinionated. Haiffaa never hesitated to take a stand.

When Haiffaa first arrived in Denver, she was angry and afraid. She only knew Americans by way of the military presence in her country and from what she had seen on television. She believed Americans would be hostile, especially toward an Iraqi. She was surprised and relieved to learn that she was welcome here and that strangers wanted to help her make a life here. She used to say that in a person's heart, it was easy for love to turn to hate, but together, we all had truly accomplished something by turning her hate into love.

Haiffaa loved to travel, and her family made it possible for her to go overseas to visit her friends and other family members. On this trip, she said she would go to Germany and then to Jordan . She stayed far longer than she had said she would, and many of us were wondering if she was planning to come home at all.

Unbeknownst to her family, Haiffaa sneaked into Iraq late last week. She was so close and the temptation was too great to ignore. She had some unfinished emotional business she needed to take care of. Haiffaa’s elderly father had been murdered while Haiffaa and her family were in exile. The crime was unrelated to the war and it remained a cold case amidst the chaos of war. Haiffaa never had closure—she had no way to say goodbye to her father, and she was always pained that he didn’t have a proper funeral. As his only child, she felt his loss keenly. She often spoke of the day she could return to Iraq to visit her father’s grave and to finally say goodbye.

When Haiffaa called her husband in Denver to say she was with relatives in Baghdad, he was furious. He told her to get out of the country immediately. Who knows what Haiffaa was thinking. Perhaps she thought the conflict had eased to the point that it really was safe enough to visit. Apparently, it wasn’t.

Ironically, Haiffaa was at the travel agent’s office making arrangements to return to the U.S. when the bombings occurred. Her relatives who survived the blast called her husband to tell him that his wife had been killed.

Haiffaa was outgoing, creative, tenacious, stubborn, witty, amazing, and full of personality—probably enough for several people. She had a way of immediately connecting with people, and as a result, she had many, many friends and just as many fans. It was easy to be impressed with Haiffaa.

All who have heard the news are mourning. Those of us who work with refugees understand more than most what the true cost of war really is. We know why refugees aren't supposed to go home during an active conflict, and we know that for many, never being able to go home again is the deepest wound of all.

Haiffaa had said numerous times that when she died, she wished to be buried in her homeland, a country she loved and missed deeply. Unintentionally, she has truly gone home to stay.

Haiffaa was buried in Baghdad on Monday, in a grave alongside her father’s.

May the journey of your soul be peaceful.

We will miss you.

On Wednesday, October 28, KCFR (Colorado Public Radio) re-ran an interview with Haiffaa that was originally broadcast last year. Ryan Warner, the host of Colorado Matters, included an update on Haiffaa's death. Click here to hear the ten-minute story.

Haiffaa's eight dollars

Haiffaa making jewelry in Sharon's back yard

Celebrating our first successful bracelet!

Haiffaa's very first trip to Hobby Lobby

One of her first jewelry lessons

Haiffaa was a natural born teacher

Speaking at "Voices of Refugees" at the University of Denver

Sharon and Haiffaa

Haiffaa and the bear...???

Haiffaa Ali

We gather, we have a ball

Last Saturday, we had planned to have our first meeting of the Board of Directors of A Little Something, followed by a drop-in session for women who needed help with their crafts or needed to pick up supplies.

The weather forecast wasn't very encouraging. Since most of the women come by bus, we figured we would have our meeting and go home--we didn't really expect much of a turnout.

Sometimes, nothing is what you expect. We had over a dozen women in attendance, including four newcomers from Bhutan and one from Burma. Not only did they come on a freezing Saturday morning, they showed up about 40 minutes early. So much for that business meeting. Not a big deal--spending time with the women is much more fun than writing bylaws and setting goals.

Sharifo brought her son, a chubby, healthy, active 18-month old. Mama Moumina is in Denver until the weather turns cold in earnest (and then she spends the winter in Phoenix). She brought two of the baskets she weaves from bread wrappers and plastic grocery bags. Hind once again dazzled us with her innate design sense and excellent technical skills. Our two newest weavers/knitters, Pampha and Durga, went home with plenty of rich, wool yarn with which they will create sumptuous-yet-quirky hats and scarves.

Katrina was able to spend time with the members in attendance explaining the co-op contract and how members are paid. Anna worked through quality control with the Somali women (and a successful lesson with the "Yes/No" board), while Jaime worked on materials distribution. I was busy giving a starter lesson on bracelet making, bead selection, crimping, and using tools with the new members.


I regret that I was too busy to take a picture of Susan diligently assembling tool sets and findings for the teen girls. Because I take medication that sometimes makes my memory a bit foggy, I make lists for everything. I created a visual picture list to use when making starter sets so I wouldn't forget to include anything. It was very validating, then, to see Susan deep in concentration checking her sets against my rumpled visual list.

It's looking more and more like we're going to have a large community of weavers within A Little Something. Our weavers' styles are as different as their ethnicities--Karen, Karenni, Nepalese, and Burmese. This is something we've tried to foster from the beginning of the project, and it's finally about to happen. Next steps: sewing and soap making. More on that later.

Although we had expected a slow Saturday morning and only two hours of "hands-on" time, we barely had time to sit. I believe it was 3:00 when we finally got in our cars to head home. There are not enough hours in the day. Not even close.

Around the Web

All over the world, populations are moving, fleeing, evolving, hurting each other and helping one another. For those of us who work in refugee resettlement, it is especially important to remember that although there is always more work to be done, good things are happening all over the planet, as well.

Jaime and I have found a few articles and Websites that we hope will provide some insights into the ways hope and courage are still alive and well in our world.

A recent article in the New York Times gives a glimpse into the lives of newly resettled Bhutanese refugees in the Bronx, New York. The article is accompanied by an excellent photo slide show by photojournalist Suzanne DeChillo.

An excerpt of the article follows. Click here to read the entire story, but do it soon--articles in the Times aren't available online indefinitely. you can access the archived stories simply by registering with the Website--it's quick, easy, and free.

Bhutan Refugees Find a Toehold in the Bronx

By KIRK SEMPLE
Published: September 24, 2009

Nearly every immigrant group in New York City has a neighborhood, or at least a street, to call its own. But for refugees from the tiny South Asian nation of Bhutan, the closest thing to a home base is a single building in the Bronx — a red-brick five-story walk-up, with a weed-choked front courtyard and grimy staircases.

Eight families — more than 40 people — have taken up residence here in the past several months, part of a stream of thousands of Bhutanese refugees who have flowed into the United States in the past year and a half. With the help of resettlement agencies, many have found apartments in the Bronx, and the largest concentration has ended up here in the building on University Avenue.

This is their small toehold in a strange new world. The only life most have known was in the rural plains and Himalayan foothills of Bhutan and the dusty refugee camps of Nepal. Few have ever lived in homes with electricity or indoor plumbing, or between walls made of anything but bamboo. continued online

Weaving together a community of hope

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Website currently features a story about a weavers' co-op in Bangladesh. Ethnic Chin refugee women from Burma are using their traditional weaving skills to earn their own money instead of depending on handouts from UNHCR or local Bangladeshis. the goal of the program is to empower the refugee women in the co-op as well as to help them become self-sufficient in a country where it isn't easy to do so. When women have their own money and they have the leeway to make choices for themselves, their families benefit, as well. This project rings a familiar note for us at A Little Something since our goals and beliefs are very much the same. Click here to read the entire story.

The Blue Sweater
The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World is author Jacqueline Novogratz's memoir of a life spent trying to understand and document global poverty. From her Website, thebluesweater.com,

It all started back home in Alexandria, Virginia, with the blue sweater, a special gift that quickly became her prized possession—until the day she outgrew it and gave it away to Goodwill. Eleven years later in Africa, she spotted a young boy wearing the sweater, with her name still on the tag inside. That her garment had made it all the way to Kigali, Rwanda, where she was helping a group of African women start a micro-finance bank, was ample evidence of the way we are all connected, and how our actions—and inaction—touch people every day
across the globe, people we may never know or meet. This awareness continues to
drive her efforts to fight poverty, and to bridge the gap between rich and poor.

Novogratz has managed to tie together her experience as a venture capitalist in developing nations with her idealism and optimism into a story that will inspire readers to look for ways to effect real change.

Women Leading for Livelihoods
Imagine our surprise at coming across this project on the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Website. It was like reading a page from our own book, another telling of the A Little Something philosophy:

This UNHCR initiative is aimed at promoting the economic independence and
empowerment of refugee and displaced women and girls around the world. For WLL, women are not victims or passive recipients of aid; with access to the proper
resources, they are capable of changing their lives and those of their children,
families and communities.

Refugee and displaced women face a series of barriers to work: legal restrictions, physical and psychological trauma, lack of financial resources, child care issues, the wrong skills for their environment, and much more. WLL aims to break down these barriers through the funding of a full range of programmes aimed at empowering refugee and displaced women. Projects range from language and vocational training to classes on farming , marketing and computer literacy as well as basic courses in finance and how to get access to business centres and savings and loan schemes.

Read more about Women Leading for Livelihoods here.

Photo: UNIFEM

The Women’s Crusade

The liberation of women could help solve many of the world’s problems, from poverty to child mortality to terrorism.

In August of this year, New York Times journalist Nicholas D. Kristof and and investment banker Sheryl WuDunn wrote an extensive article about the plight of women struggling to survive and get a foothold on basic human rights throughout the developing world. Thanks to the availability of micro-finance business and development programs, women are making progress toward a better life, one at a time. The article points out the powerful effects of micro-finance projects and specifically addresses the benefits to women in parts of the world where they often suffer the most and have the fewest rights. With structured programs, small loans, and the opportunity to begin entrepreneurial ventures, women are changing lives far beyond their own.

To access the entire article, click here.

The article includes an audio slide show and a short video about women who are newly empowered and whose lives are being transformed by their participation in the micro-finance movement. Additional information about the Kristoff and WuDunn's Half the Sky Movement (get involved!) can be found here.

'Tis the season

Check the right column of our blog for information about upcoming sales.

We're going to be very busy!

We're getting ready for a meeting with the A Little Something members this Saturday. We can only hope that they come! The weather is supposed to be dreadful.

We hope to finally explain the new contracts and pay arrangements. For the past two years, we've been paying the women 75 percent of the selling price of their items. The other 25 percent goes into the business to buy supplies and pay for registration fees when we attend festivals and sales events.

Going forward, we'll pay the women outright for whatever they make. This will also give us the opportunity to inspect the women's work when it's turned in. That matters because we've spent hours upon hours fixing jewelry so it could be sold. Now the women will get immediate quality-control feedback and they'll have the option of taking "quirky" pieces home or staying for the workshop where there is help immediately available to bring the work up to a saleable standard.

It also appears that we may have recruited some new members--including a half-dozen weavers from Burma and Bhutan. We still need looms, but just knowing there are more women in our community with this skill is exciting. The woven items we carry at our sales are some of the best-selling and most in-demand items the women bring to us.

Here's hoping for a successful and crafty Saturday!

It's time for a sale!

A Little Something will participate in a multicultural event this weekend!

Aurora Festival International

Saturday, September 19

11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Fletcher Plaza/Martin Luther King, Jr. Library

9898 E Colfax Ave.

Aurora, CO

This free event celebrates the world's cultures with music, food, crafts, dance, and more. Please stop by and see us!

For event details and a performance schedule, click here.

For a map, click here.

Lessons here and there

Summer is over, and we didn't write a thing about it! Looks like we were busier than we thought. Even when we appear to be idle, there's a lot going on--you just can't see it unless you're with us.

Back in mid-July, we had another lesson day. We always say that our meetings are like throwing a party: You can send out the invitations, but you never know if anyone is going to show up. The size of our group was just right.

Two new volunteers joined our group, Carol Amato and Amanda Czarnecki. They have a steep learning curve ahead in terms of learning to make jewelry and learning about the many aspects of A Little Something. For Katrina, Jaime, Anna, Susan and I, it can be a surprsie to realize how much we know and how much information we actually have stored in our heads. It's when we set out to share our knowledge that we can really see how we're each like a different volume in our unique set of encyclopedias. Let's hope Amanda and Carol weren't too overwhelmed on their first day.

The first order of business--before the women arrived--was to create a "Yes/No Board." Since the overall English level of our members is very low, we wanted to create a display of clear exaples of good jewelry and problematic jewelry. Every piece on the board was a real-life example. When it was all laid out, it was evident that although there was a lot unorthodox technique in front of us, our women are consumate and creative problem solvers.


The four women from Iraq had finished work they brought for us to look at. Quality control revealed that we need to schedule a lot of lessons in the next few months. Technical issues aside, the jewelry was beautiful, original, and highly marketable. We told Hind and Zainab they'll definitely make some money when we resume our sales.

Beda is a petite woman from Bhutan who already knits but also wants to learn how to make jewelry. She said she hadn't been making anyting at all because she can't see. It took some careful listening, but we finally figured out that Beda needs glasses. There is no money for an exam or prescription lenses. A quick trip to the nearest ESL classroom proved to be worth the effort. Beda tried on four or five pairs of reading glasses (we buy them when they go on sale at Walgreen's) and when she found a pair that worked for her, we were back in business.


The time flew by, and we had to pack up and call it a day long before we were finished. Many thanks to the security staff and Saturday custodians at Emily Griffith Opportunity School for their hospitality.

About a month after our group meeting, several of us gathered at HQ (Sharon's basement) for some bead sorting, organizing, and planning. There is always far more to do than it appears at first glance. We dream (often) of the day we have our own dedicated office and studio space so the tasks related to keeping the project running wouldn't have to be put off until we can all synchronize our schedules.

We never actually stop working on this project, even though it may appear that way. We have big plans for the future of A Little Something. In the meantime, at least one of us will be at the Denver Bead Renaissance show on Sunday, while others will be taking care of other business. There is a full schedule of sales and craft fairs coming up in the near future, plus new members to welcome into the family. So much to do, so little time.

Borrowing a wrist to measure a bracelet's size.

Susan and Hajia enjoying the moment

Anna helps Fatuma conquer the crimp tool.

Our newest teen--from Congo.

Anna reviewed finishing techniques with the Iraqi women.

Jaime works with Zainab on a refresher lesson.

Overheard as I was passing by: "You. Children? You have children?"

Anna teaches.

Hajia is always ready to try a new technique.

Smile! Look at our awesome yes-no-board!

Beautiful

About two months ago, we attended the Bead Bazaar sponsored by the Rocky Mountain Bead Society. As usual, we met up with the generous Betcey at Beyond Beadery. She told us that she had some donated beads for us that were actually from Raven's Journey. (I can't include the Beyond Beadery link right now--they're having server problems, but you can find them on Facebook!)

After the beads were in my home, I set about rinsing them off and setting them out to dry. Awhile later, I walked past the beads glittering in the sunlight and I was delighted by how beautiful they were. I felt compelled to take a picture that just needs to be shared. Czech glass beads are so stunning--we can't get enough of them!

(To see this picture full size, click on it.)

Under the radar

Sometimes, the busiest people are behind the scenes. Jean has been handling sales for us, but met the disappointment all of us have faced since the inception of the project: A windy day with no foot traffic and abysmal sales. The worst, but not the only way it goes. Thank goodness.

Katrina, Anna, Susan, Jaime, and I have been working out some new plans for the women in the group. Our membership grew so fast, we were caught off-guard. We all do this in addition to our real jobs, so we can't dedicate the time we'd like to. Still, we get together every two weeks to talk about how best to proceed so we can go ahead with a plan that will best suit the needs of the women. All fifty of them.

We're going to implement a contract for the participants. Everyone in the program will agree to learn more about different aspects of the project, including financial literacy. They'll have to agree to help with at least one sale or sale preparation per year. They'll also have to agree that, since this is a co-op, they will not sell their creations outside of the program. All supplies are provided to the women for free, but when they are paid, a percentage goes back to the project to pay for supplies and other expenses to keep it viable. We hope that by adding this formalized structure, those who are truly interested will take a greater role in making this a member operated project.

Our biggest news is our imminent incorporation. Yay! Once that's complete, we'll need to put together a Board of Directors and start the process of becoming a recognized nonprofit. In the meantime, we'll have the purchasing power of business owners, and that should save us some money when we buy our supplies.

Supplies. Women who come into our program receive about $75 worth of supplies to get set up, but at no cost to the member. Here's an example of how our supplies--donated and purchased--are used. A jewelry maker receives a bead box with enough beads and findings for at least ten projects. This includes wire, beads, earring wires, head pins, different types of clasps, crimp tubes, accent beads, and stretch cord.

In addition, we assemble a full set of new tools: round nose pliers, chain nose pliers, wire nippers, flush cutters, and a crimp tool. To help with design concepts, each woman also gets a new design board, a bead mat, and alligator clips.

Finally, everything goes into a flat-bottom tote bag. Trial and error have shown that the bags sold at Lowes work the best. They are wide, sturdy, and very inexpensive at about a dollar each.

It takes one person about an hour to assemble one starter kit. We also assemble refresher kits and color coordinated project kits for those women who are color-matching challenged.

Over the course of the first year, we learned a few lessons that still hold. We don't buy cheap quality tools. We only buy 49-strand (sometimes 21-strand) wire because the women are not always gentle in handling their supplies and lesser wires kink far too easily.

There are never enough hours in the day to get everything done. The basement at my house is under construction as my husband attempts to install better overhead lighting and an upgraded sink to make the space more A-Little-Something-friendly. It has been a slow process since funds are tight at our house and we still need to hire an electrician and a drywall finisher.

We're always looking for eager, dedicated, competent volunteers and some skilled teachers who can help us on the Saturdays when we teach and correct our eager students. Our email address is at the top of this page, on the right. Let us know if you can join us in some of the many tasks that keep this project going.

For now, it's time for bed. Katrina is coming over tomorrow to learn about our customized system of bookkeeping. Not enough hours in the day...

Board position open

As we go through the process of incorporation, we are required to assemble a Board of Directors. We have a good team put together, but there is one position we haven't yet filled.

The Board needs a member who has a legal or financial background. Ideally, this would be an attorney, specifically one who deals with financial matters, or else an accountant or someone who works in a similar discipline.

This position is not compensated; at least, not monetarily.

We need to file our articles of incorporation imminently, so if you or someone you know would like to help out and be on our working Board, please contact Katrina Wert via our main email address: beadwomen@gmail.com.

A Little Update

It might appear that we've been quiet, but that's because we've been so busy, there hasn't been a whole lot of time to write about it. Here are the highlights:

Shopping for our cause


Last Sunday, Sharon and Katrina made a trip to the Rocky Mountain Bead Society's annual Bead Bazaar. Due to financial and scheduling constraints, we weren't able to bring any of the women this year. Instead, we devoted our time to buying beads--much-needed beads! Now we need time to wash and sort them so the women can replenish their supplies. It was a busy afternoon for us, but we knew it was time to quit when our debit card waved the white flag in the middle of a sale. After checking the bank balance, it turns out we have only $65 left to our A Little Something name.

Curb your enthusiasm, ladies
Many of the women who came to the "big" meeting in February still need jewelry making lessons. Unfortunately, that hasn't any effect on their enthusiasm, so they're trying to make jewelry without first earning how. On the upside, most of what we've seen is very good--beautiful, in fact. On the downside, the women have no idea what their tools are for, how a crimp is used, or how to actually finish a piece or attach findings. Most have just tied the wire in knots where findings would go. It's an ugly situation and we desperately need some help recruiting experienced jewelry makers who would like to donate some time instructing the new women in our program. We just don't have enough ours in the day between the five of us!

Dotting the T's, crossing the eyes
About four months ago, we started the process of incorporating. All this time, our organization has never officially existed on paper. We had tried to figure out the process on our own, but in less than five minutes on the state's business Website, it was obvious that we were going to be in waaay over our heads if we tried to go it alone.

Enter Laura and Kami, our wonderful attorneys. Thanks to their support and knowledge, we'll soon be an official business with nonprofit status to follow. Katrina and Jaime are working with the attorneys to get through this complex and often confusing process. There are so many variables to take into consideration, so much language, so many scenarios, so many complicated documents, so many head-spinning moments! Stay tuned for the day we can announce our official officialness.

There are sales coming up this month, and probably more to follow. We still aren't in a position to sell online, but we'll let you know when that's ready to roll out.

More news soon!

When our group presented at the TESOL conference last month, we had a slide show running as we were setting up and folks were coming in. All together, the pictures are a retrospective of our work, a short history of A Little Something from the summer of 2007 to three days ago.

These pictures are not in any particular order, but even randomly selected they tell our story pretty well.

For best results, move your cursor off of the picture screen while viewing. To see the photos full size, click on the picture, and when a new window opens, select slide show. Slow the speed to five seconds so the pictures have time to load completely before advancing. The entire show takes a little over 10 minutes to run in its entirety.

Enjoy!

Remember when you asked if you could help?

Now that our program just had a major growth spurt, we're having some growing pains. We need to get many of the new women up-to-speed on learning to make jewelry using basic-to-intermediate techniques, understanding mistakes and quality control, and working through design issues (there are many).

We plan to hold a series of Saturday instructional sessions for the new BeadWomen throughout the spring.

If you live in the Denver area and you have the skills we need plus a lot of patience and a willingness to help across cultures, please contact us at beadwomen@gmail.com, or call Katrina at 720-289-9090.

We look forward to meeting you!

April 1 - May 2

A Little Something, The Denver Refugee Women's Crafts Initiative, is excited and honored to be part of a new new exhibit at TACtile Textile Arts Center in Denver.

Worldly Open House
Sunday, April 19
1:00 - 4:00

Meet the women of A Little Something as well as the founders of the participating humanitarian groups as they share information about their work and the artisan crafts from the many developing countries featured...North and South Laos, Vietnam, Uganda, Guatamala, and Denver refugee women. Private collectors will also speak about the exquisite works they have chosen from many more countries around the globe.

In addition to the exhibit of private textile collections, textile items will be for sale from six Colorado non-profit humanitarian assistance organizations that see textile work as art that can elevate lives.
Other participants include:

• Indigo Threads, working in rural Laos to help with the sale of traditional crafts and to provide opportunities to school-aged children.

• Bridging Hope works directly with underprivileged women and children in Vietnam helping them attain sustainable living conditions.

• Silks of Laos provides sustainable income for silk weavers in northern Laos, South-East Asia. Training equips them with the skills needed to participate in fair-trade projects in northern Laos and to avoid human trafficking that is so prevalent in these rural areas.

• Cielo Maya (Maya Heaven)is a Guatemalan economic development association led by Tz'utujil Maya women. The sales of their handwoven wearable art provide decent wages, leadership development and educational opportunities for the artists.

We hope you'll come to see us at the open house on April 19 or, if you can't, at least stop by the exhibit sometime this month. Escape the stress of your days with a relaxing stroll through the world of textile workmanship and beauty.

Accomplishment and a sense of relief

The idea was ambitious, for sure. A presentation at a large conference of English Language Acquisition professionals--more than 6,000 teachers, researchers, policy makers, grad students, community program managers, publishers, writers, software developers, UNHCR and IOM language and culture trainers...TESOL is the who's who of the ESL world.

Given the very large number of proposals submitted, the rigor of the adjudication process, and the somewhat off-the-wall nature of the proposal we were putting up for consideration, I could only come to one conclusion about the possibility of presenting: No way.

Way. The proposal was not only accepted, but scheduled as part of a well-promoted group of sessions in a new category of an experimental/experiential genre. Suddenly what looked so feasible on paper was striking me as impossibly ridiculous. Sigh. We have faced challenges before and met them head on, and we could certainly do it again, right? There was nothing on the line at all, really, just my professional reputation and credibility. Oh, that.

Here is how the session abstract appeared in the program book:

Stringing Together Benevolent Enterprise and Basic Skills for Refugee Women

When a group of refugee women and ESL volunteers collaborated on a crafts empowerment project, the context for English and math skills, critical thinking, and business basics came naturally. In this experiential session, presenters explain the project while participants bead and sell under the instruction of the refugee artisans.
Presenters: Sharon McCreary ; Anna Hebbert ; Susan Renick ; Jaime Koehler ; Haiffaa Ali ; Khadiga Ali ; Fatuma Ali

The logistics of getting ready for the session were enormous. Almost anything that could go wrong, certainly did. The end result wasn't quite what I had envisioned, but it was still nothing less than...wonderful.

First, kudos to Katrina Wert for stepping in at the last minute to help fill in some presenter gaps--and for sharing valuable insight she has about the pre-literate refugees she taught so competently and compassionately for the years we worked together. Katrina also assisted Susan with the formidable transportation duties and logistics. Getting the women there was a job in and of itself, but Susan and Katrina got everyone delivered safely and on time.

When it was time to start, the room was full. Haiffaa opened the session by explaining to everyone what we hoped to accomplish during the evening, some of the things the participants would be doing, and then she introduced all of us in our group. And she did it all in Arabic so the group could get a sense of what it must have been like for our BeadWomen when we had our first meetings and lessons.

After some project background and several PowerPoint slides, it was time for Haiffaa, Htee Ku Paw, Sharifo, Fatuma, and Khadiga to be the teachers. Each woman worked with a group and presented lessons in basic jewelry making technique--but each woman did this while speaking no English. It was time for the participants to get a feel for what it's like to learn something fairly complex without the benefit of common language. Htee Ku Paw is not a jewelry maker, so she gave a lesson in basic crochet.

After the crafting lessons, each of the refugee women had the opportunity to address the group and tell her own story or talk about her experience as a member of A Little Something. Haiffaa is a talented public speaker, and she almost brought the group to tears. Khadiga talked about how much she has enjoyed learning something new that she does just for herself. Htee Ku Paw's voice cracked when she said that although she has been weaving since she was eight years old, she never had money before. Being a part of A Little Something has given her a chance to help her family while preserving a treasured cultural art.

At the end of our two-hour session, something amazing happened--almost nobody left. It was after 8:00 p.m., yet most of the attendees stayed to talk to the women and to help us pack up our bajillion beads and the props we used in the presentation. This project seems to foster a sense of community for anyone who spends time with it.

Fatuma rode home with me, and although she's normally pretty quiet, she was nothing short of exuberant during the drive. She talked a lot, and repeatedly thanked me and thanked me for inviting her to be part of the presentation. I had never seen her so confident or happy.

The next morning, at 8:30, my phone rang. It was my boss, who was a conference co-chair. The managers had just finished a breakfast meeting. Apparently, our session was the talk of the meeting. At least two TESOL co-chairs attended our session--but we didn't know that. They were so impressed with the entire presentation, the women, the activities, they made it the topic of the two-hour breakfast meeting.

We should be proud and I realize that, but I was so stressed out by the many obstacles we faced up until the moment when we started, I can only feel relief that the session is over with. The pride I feel is for Fatuma, Haiffaa, Htee Ku Paw, Sharifo, and Khadiga. They brought everything they had to share with the people who attended our session, and they ended up giving more than 100 percent. I know that this job challenged them but they all put their anxieties aside and showed nothing but confidence, patience, and personal strength. I couldn't possibly be any prouder of them. Well done, ladies.

To see these pictures full size, just click on a photo and a new window will open. For best results, manually advance pictures--don't choose slide show.

Full circle and a bit dizzy, Part II

Writing in the wee hours of the morning usually means I stray from the thought that prompted me to blog in the first place. At a more reasonable hour, the original thought comes back, perhaps with some lucidity.

It was deja vu. Saturday had a familiar but distant feel. I was back in the community room at Grace. Refugee women were eagerly leaning in to see what I was demonstrating with my tools and somewhat shaky hands. I am self-conscious about my hand tremor, and the original group of women don't even see it anymore. New women, new self-conscious moment for Sharon.

I picked up each tool as we needed it, and I said its name slowly and clearly. Round nose pliers. Repeat: Round...nose...pliers. Say it with me.

A few minutes later I asked the name of the tool and was met with puzzled looks. I drew a circle in the air. I touched my nose. "Circle face tool!" Reviewing material is so underrated.

Jump ring. I think they pretend to forget just to see me act it out. A plump middle-aged woman jumping around is not to be missed.

We laughed a lot. I cursed the hand tremor, especially on a day when there was no one else there to demonstrate what I cannot so easily. The women asked the same questions those first women asked in the summer of 2007. The mistakes were the same, and the smiles born from success were just as beautiful.

I wanted to be a better teacher. I wanted the women to feel satisfied with their lesson. I wanted them to fall madly in love with jewelry making right from the start. This was familiar territory, but no less exciting on the return trip.

I could see it so clearly: It was possible that this project that started with four women and grew like a healthy, loved baby, could keep repeating itself. This scene unfolding in the community room really could happen again and again. The faces and cultures would change, of course, but the ideas that brought the first group together were sound and they were heartfelt.

Creating beauty in the wake of horror soothes a place deep within the spirit. Learning something new and persisting despite challenges builds confidence. A woman who earns money for herself sees new possibilities in a world fraught with uncertainty. Empowerment is more than just a trendy word; it is a fact and in our project, the women themselves are helping those who come after, who will help the next group and so on.

Here's to many more Saturdays explaining the use of the circle face tool.

Life beyond beads

Fatuma sat in on the Saturday beginner's lesson. She was very quiet despite my attempts at engaging her in conversation.

Fatuma has come a long way in her jewelry-making skills. Still, she needed the refresher lesson. She tried so hard to get everything perfect, she started making more mistakes in frustration. She really was doing well, and by the time she was ready to leave, her work was OK. She said she had something else she needed to do, and out the door she went.

Once the Bhutanese women had tidied up, I headed outside and put my things in the car. I spotted activity in the community garden, so I wandered over to see who was there. Htee Ku Paw, Fatuma, and a couple of the other ALS women have plots in the garden.

Fatuma was hard at work hacking at the dry, compacted soil. Watching her, I saw a stark contrast to the peaceful and gentle jewelry making we had just done together. Fatuma was now bent over, working extremely hard. The jewelry lesson and all things bead-related seemed so frivolous now.

Fatuma's work was unbelievably difficult. She showed me the plot she had last year, where someone had already prepped the soft soil. Fatuma's new area had obviously been neglected. It didn't look promising in terms of drainage or sun exposure. This year's drought hadn't helped the soil any, either.

I noticed that Fatuma was wearing flip-flops. She rubbed her hands and I saw that she had no work gloves. When I said that she needed better gardening shoes, Fatuma looked at her feet for a second and just shrugged. I scanned the garden and realized that almost everyone there--the Somali Bantu group--was working in flip-flops and no one had gloves. It seemed particularly hard for the kids. They haven't grown up farming so their hands are the soft hands of school kids who watch TV when they get home. One of Zahara Mahmud's sons was in obvious pain. Like Fatuma, Zahara also worked without comfort items as she swung a pick into the hard soil. Another jewelry maker in need of decent footwear and some sturdy work gloves.

When I asked Fatuma what she planned to grow in her garden, she said, "Everything!" Upon further questioning, Fatuma decided she wanted to plant cucumbers, tomatoes, squash, broccoli, and maybe corn, plus a few things she can't remember in English. I looked at her woefully neglected garden space and wondered if it would be ready for planting in May. I asked Fatuma where her children were. Why weren't they helping? I thought, This family desperately needs the food that will come out of this garden. Shouldn't everyone contribute to Fatuma's gardening efforts?

Fatuma chuckled and told me that this was her "alone" time; it was quiet for her head. That makes sense--she is the mother of eight children.

Flip-flops. No work gloves. Shared tools. I will never complain about how hard my own garden work is. I work in luxury compared to the A Little Something women scratching at the earth for the same reason they make jewelry: So their families can eat.