For Katie Galli ’06, empowering the women of Calcutta to build new lives begins with two pieces of brightly colored cloth. Working with , a non-profit organization that uses the traditional art of kantha dorokha (or creating a quilt made from recycled sari material), she helps create an opportunity to move beyond life on the streets.
“As a Christian, I believe God has a special concern for the people who are the margins of society,” Galli says. “This, in turn, motivates me to be involved in their lives. Working with Hand & Cloth was a concrete way to do that.”
Providing Much-Needed Educational and Employment Opportunities
Since April 2007, Hand and Cloth has been working closely with Calcutta’s young women to provide alternative employment options than those that red light areas offer. Galli notes that with little education or job skills, there are few other choices available for the women once they turn 18 years old.
Business partner Sarah Aulie sought to turn the situation around after a visit to India. She noticed the women making the kantha blankets and developed a friendship with them as they sewed. She asked if they would be interested in making blankets to sell in the U.S. “At that point, I came alongside to help make everything ‘official,'” adds Galli. ” I knew that if we wanted to really help these women in the long-term, then we would need a structure that could support them. In the U.S., that meant creating a non-profit organization.”
Hand & Cloth partners with Destiny-Reflections to export the goods. Destiny-Reflections serves as the Calcutta branch of Made By Survivors, a non-profit organization that fights human trafficking around the world.
Unique, Hand-picked Designs
Hand & Cloth sells these one-of-a-kind blankets via . The vibrant, jewel-colored saris used to make quilts are hand-picked by one of the women, Pushpa, who has been with Hand & Cloth from the beginning. “As our Design Manager, she goes to the market to buy vintage sari cloth and works with the other women to match the colors that they think look good. We love giving her this extra responsibility and have loved seeing the creativity of the girls come through in their choices!” says Galli.
Hand and Cloth is currently working with seven young women between the ages of 18 and 26. The women are paid a fair market wage for their work, and once they begin making blankets, the non-profit organization pays for tutoring as well as school fees and offers regular Bible studies.
The organization encourages the women to become literate in their native language (Bengali) first, however, they also work with a private tutor on their English skills. “One of the main reasons we work with private tutors is that the women are often embarrassed to go to school since they are older, but so behind academically,” notes Katie. “Once they feel like they are ready for prep school or college, we will work with each woman to find a school that is a good fit for her goals and dreams. Pushpa, our design manager is enrolling in a prep school this winter.”
Putting Profits Back into the Organization
More than 90% of the proceeds from the blanket sales is put straight back into the program in the form of the women’s wages, school fees or for part-time project managers/social workers who work closely with the women.
Currently, all of Hand & Cloth’s online blanket sales come by word of mouth. “Though we occasionally have purchases from outside the country, the vast majority are within the U.S.,” says Katie. People from Illinois, Texas, Arizona and Florida 鈥� some of whom we have no connection to 鈥� have found our website and been interested enough to buy a blanket!”
To help support Hand & Cloth’s efforts and to view the beautiful kantha dorokha quilts, visit .