Meet the
makers
Mercy House Global has artisan groups in Kenya that create custom product for our online stores and fairly traded subscription clubs. These groups began as an overflow from Rehema House, the maternity homes we support in Kenya.
We realized early in our endeavors of working with young and vulnerable pregnant girls, we also needed to empower their families with dignified jobs to break the cycle of generational poverty. In 2018, we launched our first wholesale line in an effort to provide regular and sustainable work to our Kenyan artisans.
Miujiza | Kenya
Miujiza means “miracles” in Swahili and that’s exactly what this group is. This group is composed of the grandmothers of some of the babies of the teen moms from the maternity homes.
Against all odds, these women have become master weavers and ceramicists and are creating gorgeous rugs, throws, and home goods. This miracle group is a beautiful example of how we break the cycle of generational poverty from grandmother to teen mom to baby. And much like the clay pieces they mold from the Kenyan earth, their redemption story is a work of art.
Each woven throw takes five days to make and the process of turning red Kenyan dirt into gorgeous glazed ceramic beads and small goods is intricate and requires a lot of hard work.
The lives of these vulnerable families are changing in significant ways with this sustainable work and new opportunities. Many of their daughters are now able to return home because of what God has done.
Street Hope | Kenya
Street Hope is composed of sixteen women in Mathare Slum in Nairobi, Kenya, who have lived most of their lives on the streets. Many were orphaned as children and have only known a life of poverty, while others became homeless due to difficult circumstances, forcing them to do whatever necessary to survive. Mercy House Global began training and employing these women in 2016, and one by one they have moved into homes, gaining skills, confidence and overcoming addiction.
In addition to artisan skills, these women are learning literacy and vocational skills and begin every work day with worship and bible study.
Have Hope | Kenya
The lovely women of Have Hope from Kariobungi slum named their Bible Study group in 2010 “Have Hope” because they didn’t have any. They have been slowly and faithfully working their way out of poverty, one piece of jewelry at a time for years. They are diligent to save money as a group and have started multiple small businesses.
In 2022, with your generosity, they began training to become expert basket weavers. They are learning a skill that will make a way for them to sell in both the Kenyan market and in our fairly traded subscription clubs, stores, and seasonal wholesale lines.
Forged in Hope | Kenya
Forged in Hope is a Mercy House Global brass jewelry group from Kibera slum in Nairobi, Kenya. We are excited to partner with this talented family of artisans and step into a place of empowerment after they lost their business covering as a result of Covid-19. We believe God created this intersection of opportunity for a new season of dignified job creation. We see His redemption in every forged-in-fire work of art.
Rehema House | Kenya
Our paper products and packaging are designed using art inspired by our Rehema House residents-teen girls who have been rescued from desperate situations and are pregnant or learning to be moms. We call it Sanaa Art because sanaa is Swahili for "work of art."
The highlight of every year is our annual art camp with the girls. It's an amazing opportunity to share new art techniques and skills, and it gives them a creative outlet to express feelings and experience healing through art therapy.
As the girls work towards independence, they have the opportunity to earn money from artisan projects including sewing market totes and rolling paper beads for jewelry and garlands.
Local Hope | USA
Our Local Hope Program focuses on supporting women in Houston, TX, who are coming out of a life of oppression and are in a vulnerable situation and offering them opportunities that provide hope.
We host quarterly lunches, ESOL classes, and work with other ministry partners like Hands of Justice and Redeemed to identify vulnerable women who would benefit from job and skills training. This program allows the women to obtain the necessary skills needed to hold a job in the USA, while also focusing on their personal growth and development.
Where You Shop Matters
Through our artisan programs, families are receiving much more than a dignified job. We work to empower them with practical and useful skills that will help develop them for their futures.
Mercy House Global offers our online store, as well as our subscription clubs, MHG Clubs, as a way for the ethically-made products created through our programs to have a place in the market. Because of the extent of the ministry and development that goes into every person, we could never sell their products for a fair-market value (they are priceless!). Our economic development program is considered a part of the ministry of Mercy House Global and is funded through donations.