North Greenville University Global Impact Week

 We are on the campus of North Greenville University this week for their annual Global Impact Week. What a privilege to be able to represent so many artisans around the world! 

Nicaragua Ministry Update

We would like to give an update on how our Building Lives International ministry in Nicaragua is doing. As many of you know, this ministry exists to empower artisans around the world through fair trade, scholarships, and building projects. The collective there has recently undergone some changes.

Exania, one of the artisans we brought to the United States, is working in South Carolina, and we are happy to announce that she just got married! 

As we mentioned in one of our earlier blogs, we also brought our director who was overseeing the collective in Estelí to the United States. As a result, we had to make some changes. Instead of having one group, we now have two. The first is led by Osmara Isabel Molina, and this group oversees all of the jewelry that is crocheted and macramé. The second group is led by Esther Herrera, who has been working with us for three years now. This group handles all of the wire-wrapped jewelry.

In addition to Osmara and Esther, we have added some new artisans! Chelsy Michelle Katin Ramírez will be working with Osmara's group and will be attending university next year, and Marlen Isabella Ramírez will also be working with Osmara and will be starting high school next year. We have also added Josué Lagos and Bessi Rodríguez to Esther's group. Josué will be attending university this year, studying systems engineering, and Bessi will be attending to become an elementary teacher. We are so excited to have these new artisans in the collective and to be able to help them toward their educational goals.

This year will also be the first time that we are giving scholarships to artisans in the United States. Sara Tanjala, who has been working with us for six years, will be attending Co-Starters, which is a local entrepreneur training course here in Lynchburg, in the fall. Sarita, as we call her, is definitely entrepreneur material, and we are very excited for her.

Finally, our desire is to continue empowering artisans through fair trade around the world. We are in awe of how the Lord has blessed our ministry, and we want to say thank you to our valued customers for helping us make this possible.

Artisan Spotlight

This month, we are excited to shine a spotlight on Orlando, a talented Peruvian artist who has been an integral part of Spearman Artisanry for an impressive 11 years! His expertise lies in creating exquisite pima cotton clothing that reflects his rich cultural heritage.

By choosing Orlando's handmade garments, you become a part of a larger movement that uplifts artisans, preserves cultural traditions, and fosters positive change. Together, we can create a brighter future for communities worldwide.

Artisan Spotlight

Yeison Javier and his family makes most of our Colombian hats, bags, jewelry and home decor. He uses Irica palm fibers to make his art. Iraca is a tropical palm that is extremely durable and found in Colombia, South America. We are very blessed to have such amazing artisans at Spearman Artisanry.

Cooperative in Estelí Nicaragua

Our mission for our non profit is simple, we strive to provide opportunities to Latin communities using their unique gifts and skills. 

In 2017, Building Lives International began a cooperative in Estelí Nicaragua, making wire wrapped rings and crochet jewelry. Many artisans began coming from nearby towns and we soon felt called to create a place of further income opportunity for this community that we are in partnership with. This partnership continues to grow and we now sponsor artisans to come to the United States in pursuit of further opportunities.

Artisan Spotlight

A generations old trade that has been passed down to Yoan Alan who creates jewelry and home decor from copper. We sell many of his work at Spearman Artisanry and donate 20% of sales to Building Lives International / Tejiendo Vidas Internacional. This local 501c3 supports latin communities, like Yoan's, build schools, homes, and sending students to universities. Come see Yoan's beautiful work and support these communities.

We Rise by Lifting Others

While in Peru and in business school, boutique owner Jannett Spearman, dreamed big dreams for building a special type of shop. Through the encouragement and friendship from an inspiring teacher, Anita, Jannett's passion for wire crochet propelled her to create a business honoring fair trade practices for international artisans. To this day, the deep friendship that helped nurture Jannett's dream remains strong and Anita is now the director of Peru for Spearman Artisanry. 20% of ALL sales are donated to the non-profit Building Lives International, directly helping artisan communities.

Meet My Friend, Anita!

While living as missionary teachers in Lima, Peru, I became very ill due to mold allergies. My doctor had prescribed medication and suggested that I find a hobby to destress. So, I began to attend a local artisan school and had decided to just take as many classes as I could before returning to the United States. I took everything from business administration, marketing, art, etc. However, the class that I took where I learned wire crochet was my favorite, so I decided to specialize in it. 

One of my teachers was named Anita. She was simply a delight to learn from, a Christian, and amazing teacher. From that point forward, she was the teacher that I chose to work with. We got to know each other outside of the classroom as well and became close friends. We had so much in common as teachers, mothers, and wives. Her faith was also such an encouragement to me. Before leaving to return to the States, I asked her if she would like to continue working with me because I knew that I wanted to start a fair trade boutique wherever we moved. 

Anita is now our director in Peru. Her focus is on training artisans to make some of the jewelry that we carry and find artisans that supply some of the different merchandise that we carry. Of course, you can also find some of her amazing pieces in our stores as well. We have been working together now for almost eleven years, not only me, but many artisans have been truly blessed by her. COVID was a huge test for us, but we continued to provide for all of the artisans because our shops, and online store, were able to stay open because of the loyal support of our customers. I will be forever indebted to Anita. What was once a dream has now become a reality because of her willingness to help others. Please pray for her, her family, and the country of Peru as they go through many political changes.

Tejiendo Vidas Cooperative

We are very excited about the growth of  Tejiendo Vidas Cooperative which is part of Building Lives International in Nicaragua. This year we were able to welcome Osmara who is our director’s sister. She knows how to crochet very well and has been training the team how to crochet jewelry. It is amazing how this small group has grown, and we have been able to help them make their dreams become reality.

We have also decided this year to support Karol Rivera, who is one of the original artisans in the group.  She is currently pursuing her bachelor’s degree and we would love to help her achieve her

goal.  Part of our goal is to help support the young people, not only in Nicaragua, but around the world, so that they can achieve their dreams in education. 

Others in the group include, Esther who graduated three years ago with a degree in environmental science, Exania who graduated two years ago with her degree in education, and Moises who just graduated last year with a degree in international business.

On a side note, we are currently attempting to sponsor Moises and Exania to come to the United Stated legally. Please help us to pray that the government will grant them Visas. They, like many young people, do want to come to the United States, but legally. 

Congratulations, Moisés!

We would like to congratulate our director in Nicaragua, Moisés, who just graduated with his bachelors degree in Political Science and International Relations. We are very proud of him. We are also thankful for our countless customers, who through their purchases in our shops, allow us to support artisans around the world!