Seeing her hungry children in tattered clothing gnawed away at Mama Swedi’s heart. As a mother of 8 (2 of whom attend the ELI Academy), she felt utterly overwhelmed on the best of days. She said:      

Fast forward and just last week she made $11 in profit in 3 days and she has a waiting list of customers! What happened?

Three months after joining the parent training pilot program Mama Swedi gained a pep in her step! Years ago she was trained to be a seamstress. However, she was never able to convert those skills into a sustainable income. The at-home demands prevented her from working in a factory and she didn’t have the business/administrative skills needed to start her own enterprise at home.

Now, with eyes to see new business opportunities and armed with an understanding of tracking income, expenses, and customer details, her small venture is bursting at the seams! She recognized that the local military base often has events that require soldiers and their families to dress “fancy.” So Mama Swedi took a risk: she bought two bolts of kitenge fabric (pictured below), made vibrant dresses for the young girls (2-6 years), and showed them to the soldiers’ wives. She sold all 12 dresses in a matter of minutes . . . and more orders started flooding in.



With her customers’ phone numbers and measurements in hand, she went back home and recruited another young lady in the slum to help! They are now planning to expand their clothing line to include little boys’ outfits from the same fabrics so that they can coordinate with their sisters!

Mama Swedi thanks you: