I first met 19 year old Noeline two years ago on the road as I was carrying Sam on my back. She and her two school friends stopped and wanted to greet Sam, who willingly obliged by waving and giving high fives. From that day on I have bumped into Noeline in town every couple of months or so and have kept a very loose friendship with her. I found out that she had to leave school before completing her final year because of lack of school fees and a not altogether supportive home-life (she lived with her sister and her sister's husband as her mum stays in a village with Noeline's Uncle a few hours' drive away). I also found out that she loves designing clothes and would love to be a tailor. "Where do you live?" I asked. "Acholi Quarter" she replied. "Well it just so happens that there is one more tailoring course being offered for free there" I said and she applied. I didn't see her for a while and then I heard some sad news: Noeline was pregnant. She dropped out of the tailoring course because she was so ashamed. I managed to find her in town and counsel her so that she re-joined the course and tried to catch up. I also found out that she was living on her own in a rented room but she had no source of income and was behind in the rent. No one was helping her beyond giving her the odd hundred shillings (2p - enough to buy a banana) here and there and she was really depressed. I talked with Gareth and decided that this was one of those moments in life where we had to step up and go beyond what we would ordinarily do. We knew that Noeline had potential in life and had felt a need to keep track of her since we met that random day two years ago. We asked Noeline if she would like to come and live with us (we have a room adjacent to the house) and we would help her out with food if she wasn't eating and also pay for her medical fees for giving birth (normal birth costs up to £50 and C-sections can cost up to £100). She is due to give birth around the same time as my sister-in-law so it's as though I am keeping up with new niece/nephew by following Noeline's progress!
So, as time has gone on, Noeline has become part of our family. Sammy loves to go and knock for her and tell her all his tales (he can go on for hours about what stones should be used for or how a car should have a spare wheel!) and Jonah loves to have cuddles with her. I have enjoyed sharing sewing expertise with her (I share my creative ideas then she teaches me technique to do them properly!) and together we have come up with a lot of new sewing ideas for her to sell both in town and back in the UK. This is what this blog is for. Her latest creations are children's sleeping bags for spring/summer and autumn, made from African material with a long zip up the front. The bags are long and can be used up to age 3 if required! The summer ones are a single piece of cotton and the autumn and spring ones are lined for extra warmth. A summer bag is £6.50 and the autumn/spring bags are £9.00. Jonah is modelling his for you in the following picture as an example. You can choose a rough colour scheme and Noeline will try to match your choice with the vast array of colourful materials available here in Uganda.
Noeline also makes a variety of purses (£4.50) and is expanding to handbags (price depends on style) very soon. Her purses have a zipped compartment for coins, pockets for notes and space for 9 credit cards and fold together with Velcro. Choose your colour scheme and Noeline will try to match it.
Please email me or reply to this blog if you would like to buy something from Noeline. We are coming back to the UK for a holiday on December 6th so I can bring things back and they can be posted in time for Christmas!
No comments:
Post a Comment