Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Whidbey Island
Baskets for Books
A program of the Social Action Committee of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Whidbey Island (UUCWI)
For more than two years the UUCWI Social Action Committee has imported and offered for sale baskets hand-woven by women from 21 Guaraní villages located in southern Bolivia. 100% of net sales proceeds are placed in a scholarship fund to benefit the Guaraní people. Every basket is an individual work of art composed of palm fronds and dyed corn husks. The high quality of the work is immediately self-evident.
The Guaraní are an indigenous people who are emerging from a condition of extreme subjugation that existed until recent times. Education of any sort did not became a possibility for the Guaraní until two decades ago. Even so, no person from the 21 villages we have contact with has been able to afford to obtain an educational degree beyond a high school equivalency diploma. Many eligible youth live in villages so remote that middle and high school attendance is beyond their means without support. Bolivian law purports to assure a bilingual (Spanish and Guaraní) education, yet certified, bilingual teachers are virtually impossible to find. Working with the Guaraní People’s Assembly and a local Catholic relief agency, we have established a scholarship fund to help address some of these needs. As of October 2005, profits from the sale of baskets totaling more than $5300US have been deposited in the fund. The fund is now fully supporting two Guaraní students accepted to a teacher-training college in the town of Camiri, and it is subsidizing boarding expenses for 53 middle and high school students.
This project is an opportunity to support the empowerment of the women who create this craft and to have an extraordinary impact upon the lives of qualified Guaraní youth who are committed to return and use the knowledge gained from education to benefit all their people. Three churches in Washington state have partnered with us in the sale of baskets: East Shore Unitarian Church in Bellevue, the Woodinville Unitarian Church and Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship. If your congregation or group is interested in taking a shipment of baskets on consignment, please contact us. Below is a display showing typical baskets and their prices (including Washington State Sales tax). A wide variety of baskets is included in each shipment.
If you have any questions, please contact our
prices include Washington state sales tax
Christmas Card
Open the Christmas card that the Guaraní basketmakers sent to the congregation. A translation of the message has been added to the card.
For more than two years the UUCWI Social Action Committee has imported and offered for sale baskets hand-woven by women from 21 Guaraní villages located in southern Bolivia. 100% of net sales proceeds are placed in a scholarship fund to benefit the Guaraní people. Every basket is an individual work of art composed of palm fronds and dyed corn husks. The high quality of the work is immediately self-evident.