5 places in 5 days

1. Kolkata, West Bengal 2. Asensol, West Bengal 3. Jamtara, Jharkhand 4. Thimmaipalli, Telangana 5. Hosur, Tamil Nadu. I had a whirlwind adventure to start off my new year with visits to 5 places that are potential sites for Choti Hooks production centers. With the help of my dear aunt, sister and brother-in-law, we were able to travel, meet, and share the vision we have for empowering women in different parts of India.

All of the people we met were involved in reaching out to their communities. They are already doing the hard work of educating women and training them for a successful life. It was great to talk with like-minded people and see the tremendous work that each of the groups are doing in their own ways. These are exactly the type of NGOs that Choti Hooks will partner with to bring high quality hand made products to you.

Kolkata, West Bengal The NGO in Kolkata is literally a safe haven in the middle of a slum. You have to walk past makeshift dwellings to reach the house which doubles as a community center. After stepping over about 50 pairs of shoes we walked in to find children of all ages playing and learning under the supervision of volunteers and teachers. The house is full of action! They have a training program for women who are interested in acquiring knitting, crocheting, and tailoring skills. They have already had several batches of women (groups of 10-20) that have completed the courses in the past years. The women make purses and other handicrafts to make some extra money and help make ends meet. The unique opportunity we have with Kolkata is that the women are already trained and excited to get started. I have a added a few pics the first meeting I had with the ladies on the rooftop explaining the business idea.

Thimmaipalli, Telangana Karuna Kendara has been around since 1993 is was a pleasure to see their work among orphans, widows, and the underprivileged. The have beautifully cultivated their green campus. I call in a green campus, because it is like walking through a botanical garden. They employ local gardeners and caretakers who would otherwise have a difficult time finding a job. My sister and I got the privilege of visiting on the day that they give out their New Years gifts. We met a lady who is 90% blind and boy who is unable to speak, both smiling from ear to ear because they have a place of work that values them and empowers them to rise above their circumstances.

Hosur, Tamil Nadu Back in familiar territory, I met with an old friend in Hosur the day before I left to come back to the US. She knows many women in the village that are looking for jobs and also have young children. They are not training in crocheting but they are eager to learn. We will work with the ladies in Hosur to first pilot the training program. We are working on creating some simple designs that will be good for training and also converting English written crochet instructions into international crochet symbols. This will make it much easier to share and teach new patterns.