This post marks the start of a series of biographies featuring the women participating in Profugo’s Tailoring Training Program. Our initiative aims to allow these women to develop skills in tailoring, spoken English, and woman empowerment and business. Each month we will feature one…
This past week we had the pleasure of welcoming a few folks from Pondicherry to Prashantagiri. Mr. Rajendran, his wife, and a trainer from TAS, TImeaid income generation program. The Profugo team had the privilege of visiting TAS back in July in Pondicherry. We…
Dear Friends, I’ve returned Stateside after a productive summer in Wayanad, India. One major accomplishment is the purchase of 2.7 acres of land, just outside of Prashanthagiri. We are getting ready to renovate the property to accommodate our field fellows and other field volunteers….
This week the ladies of the tailoring workshop made an excursion to Manathavady. One by one, they entered the Profugo rental house donned in some of their most beautiful sarees. We talked a bit about Onam and then we sat in a circle and…
My two months in Prashanthagiri ended just one week ago, and already I can see how my life has been changed by the experience. Visiting with family and friends since I’ve been home always brings up the same question. “So,” my grandmother would say…
Good communication is the key to building strong and meaningful relationships, whether between a husband and wife or two business partners. The lack thereof can cause great strife and misunderstanding. Communication can be difficult between two close friends who share the same language, so…
The bags are ready! The tailoring assessment period is over… contracts are signed! The six months tailoring project begins!!! AND… We already know 70 more words in Malayalam including: Budhimutt joli= hard work; thunni= fabric; and (my favorite!) uhchabashanam… oru mani!= (lunch time!) I’ve…
People say I make strange choices, but they’re not strange for me. My sickness is that I’m fascinated by human behavior, by what’s underneath the surface, by the worlds inside people. – Johnny Depp. This is one of my favorite quotes. For the past…
Negotiation has become an important practice in these last few weeks. I have learned that anything and everything is negotiable in India. Meeting times, prices, partnerships with other organizations, crossing an intersection, everything requires a bit of negotiation. And more importantly, all things require…
These first two weeks in Bangalore have been very exciting and incredibly hectic. For now, our team consists of our director, Jenny Koleth; her two little daughters who are 5 and 6 years old; Aunty, her mother in law; Victoria, the other volunteer, and me….