We have started several Tailoring Schools where women young and old, poor or marginalized, can come free of charge and go through training for six months. Later they can start their own small business in their village, town or local market.
This initiative has been a tremendous blessing to hundreds of women every year. One year we training more than 240 women from the underprivileged communities, helping them in their livelihood and earning an income in a respectable trade. With skills and knowledge, there is no need to resort to the desperate and demeaning work of prostitution or rag-picking in the cities. Learning a trade gives these women hope for the future and a means to support themselves and their families.
Training a Skill for a Lifetime
One of the core objectives of our tailoring schools in the villages is teaching skills that our students can use for a lifetime to earn an income for themselves, their families, and even their community. Our successful trainings are addressing both issues of skill training & employability. Women who go through our courses learn how to fashion and tailor garments (saris, dresses, baby clothes), as well as crochet and embroidery work.
Most of the women are from marginalized backgrounds: the rural poor, the wives of migrant farm workers (a notoriously unreliable trade in India), or families stuck in debt bondage to money lenders. We have seen women start businesses, employ other women from the village, and pay off family debts through their industry and the skills they have learned attending one of our schools. Not every woman starts a business, but all the women leave with skills they can use to make new clothes for their families.
Along with these skills, we are sharing the Gospel and stories from the Bible, praying for and visiting their families, counselling them, and helping them with other needs. As of the end of 2021, we had 5 tailoring schools and nearly 125 women going through the training in North India. We hope very soon to start a sixth school.