"The Boys" T-shirts are here!

 

SNSD's new album "The Boys" is out, and so are our new T-shirts! We have designs for Jessica, Taeyeon, and Yoona based on the album concept, with more of the girls to come. Shop here (just in time for the holidays!)



Sierra Leone Muslim Brotherhood Primary School

Remember, all profits from the sale of these T-shirts go to charity. We've chosen to support Project Equal Access, an initiative to start a library for the Sierra Leone Muslim Brotherhood Primary School in Magburaka, Sierra Leone. Children at this school lack basic necessities like running water, electricity, textbooks and furniture. The project will collect donations of books, supplies and money to establish a library by April 2012 and equip the school with modern amenities. By giving these children the access to education everyone deserves, we hope to expand their future opportunities. Your support of Crafts4Change goes toward this worthy cause.  
Thank you for your support, and enjoy the girls' new single!

Donation to Kiva.org

Hi everyone,

We haven't had an update in while, but don't worry, Crafts4Change is still around! We wanted to let you know that on December 4th we donated $75 of our funds to a small business owner in Guatemala via Kiva.org. Kiva is a non-profit organization that makes loans to people in need around the world, empowering them to improve their lives and the lives of their families. Kiva takes donations, as little as $25, through the internet and works with microfinance institutions who administer the loans in areas that lack traditional banking systems. Over 98% of these loans are then repaid!

We contributed to a loan to Felipa Manuela Vasquez, enabling her to buy thread and cloth for her sewing business. The loan was administered through the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral Rural (Association for the Development of Rural Communities) in Guatemala. Felipa Manuela's loan was 100% funded thanks to our $75! You can learn more about Kiva and how it helps budding entrepeneurs here.

Thank you for supporting Crafts4Change and helping us make a difference to people like Felipa Manuela!

Support Japan

Hi everyone,

As many of you already know, Japan is suffering from a serious disaster after a massive earthquake triggered a tsunami on Friday, March 11. The quake registered at 8.9 on the Richter scale, making it the most severe earthquake on record to have hit Japan. The tsunami swept inland on the northeast coast, near the city of Sendai, leveling buildings and sweeping away cars. Nearly 13,000 are confirmed dead or missing, according to BBC News, with hundreds of thousands more without shelter in freezing temperatures.



Source: bbc.co.uk

Crafts4Change hopes that you will join us in supporting those who have been affected by this tragedy. There are numerous ways to help the people of Japan. With the internet and modern communications, some are easy as pressing a button. Here are some ways you can help:

1. Text REDCROSS to 90999 to give $10 to relief efforts in Japan. (For more information about the activities of the Red Cross, click here)

2. Donate to the Red Cross via Facebook.

3. Donate to the Japanese Red Cross, UNICEF, Save the Children or the International Medical Corps on Google's Crisis Response page.

4. Donate to one of a number of other organizations including the Salvation Army and GlobalGiving on Yahoo.

In our increasingly connected, global society it is even more important that we support relief projects for people in need around the world. With one click we can watch live video and pictures of the devastation in Japan. With another click, we can help those who are suffering from it. It has never been more possible for people across the globe to come together to support those in dire circumstances. If we all give a little, even the smallest contribution makes a difference.

It is also key that we spread awareness of the disaster; the more people that know about it, the more that can help. Follow news updates on the situation in Japan on Reuters live newsfeed. Twitter's Hope140 Blog also has suggestions for how you can get connected and learn more about Japan.  

Thank you for reading and supporting Japan in its time of crisis. We hope that everyone's efforts are successful in saving lives and bringing hope to Japan.

Crafts4Change

Shady Grove Hospital project

Hi everyone! Our latest update is to tell you about our Shady Grove Adventist Hospital Project, which we finally completed just before the winter holidays.

Some of our bouquets

If you remember from a previous post, our local project was making tissue paper flower bouquets to donate to the pediatrics division at the hospital. We worked on this with members of our club at Richard Montgomery High School and at home and after several weeks, made it to a grand total of 250 flowers! We also decorated bottles to use as vases for the flowers.

Shady Grove Adventist Hospital is a 336-bed hospital located in Rockville, Maryland. Opened in 1979, it serves thousands in Montgomery County. It is part of the Adventist Health Care system, a non-profit health care provider that includes hospitals, emergency centers and rehabilitation centers in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. It specializes in pediatric and maternity care, with the only Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and Pediatric Emergency Department in Montgomery County. You can learn more about what the hospital does at their website.  
 

Two Crafts4Change members at Shady Grove
Adventist Hospital

   We donated our tissue paper bouquets to the Pediatrics division to brighten up the hospital and add some cheer. Thanks to all Crafts4Change members for their hard work, and to Shady Grove Adventist for making this project possible!

In other news, Crafts4Change is now at work on our next project, making beaded strawberry charms. Also, don't forget to check out our SNSD T-shirts and sweatshirts, which we are selling to raise funds for charity, at our website. We are hoping to launch a new and improved website very soon, and we will let you know when its ready!

As always, if you want to get involved or have any questions, comments or ideas email us or check us out on Twitter and Facebook.