Coming together

Two women harvest grass by hand to feed the goats and sheep during the winter.

I just got the final tally of donations to this project and the number is at $3,956 which is a perfect amount due to international transfer fees and the need for us to leave a little bit in our bank account.  Thank you so much to everyone who has sacrificed for helping the poor in Badakhshan to start small businesses to bring down the 80% + unemployment rate.  We are hoping to send the money over either today or tomorrow and begin purchasing the final items for the office.

Within a week we are hoping to have several lessons prepared.  One will be for village presentations on how to start a cooperative to have a village owned business.  We are hoping that some very poor villages will start canning fruits that already grow nearby.  Another training will be four to five weeks long for potential and current small business owners to come and learn the basics of running a small business.  After completing the training they will continue to receive advice and assistance with research to help them succeed.  Last but certainly not least we will also be preparing a presentation for students in high school promoting small businesses.  Most students now dream of working in other countries to get rich or perhaps working for an international relief organization, but few seem to want to own a business of their own.

It's been an exciting ride seeing all the pieces slowly come together.  Two years of planning and it's finally happening.  I'm overwhelmed by the thought of the people whose lives will be changed for the better as a result of this office.