Today Rachael was introduced to our girls in Sri Lanka, and it turned into one of the most hectic, emotional workshops she could have visited. Hectic because the workshop wasn’t run like normal. We are about to change the workshop bead colors from Spring/Summer to Fall/Winter, so instead of handing out new beads we only collected products, and asked the girls to finish up their current supplies before next week. Hence Rachael didn’t get to see the Emerge Store and Bank in action. Emotional because

Yesterday I received the official documents from the Sri Lanka Registrar of Companiesthat approved Emerge Lanka Foundation as a charitable company (company numberGA2271). This approval is the culmination of my work in Sri Lanka, and very fittingly arrived two hours before Emerge’s new Sri Lanka Country Director did. When I arrived to Sri Lanka in late-August of 2008, I realized that we needed to formalize and standardize our Bead Program before we would be ready to expand to other homes or projects. Hence I developed our Bead Program curriculum

On her recent visit to the US Ellen, my youthful and vivacious Boss, created an impact with the students of Harrison High School in West Lafayette, Indiana when she shared the stories of the girls at Ma Sevana. The students of Mrs. Coors Fashion and Textile Class, excited about the work we do at Emerge, wanted to send back gifts for the girls in Sri Lanka. When Ellen and I had our usual Skype chats which we had planned prior to her departure she asked

Four days ago Emerge Global was featured on the front page of ColomboPage, a Sri Lankan internet newspaper. With the title “A beaded necklace can transform the life of a troubled teen in Sri Lanka,” the article is a beautifuly written tribute to the work that Emerge Global is doing in Sri Lanka. I met the author, Chandrani, when I was back in the United States in August of 2008 and when I found out she would be visiting Sri Lanka, along with her family, I was

Muffin was a gift to me by Nadiya, she was two months old when I got her. The very next day I had to go down to the Vocational Training Institute for the beading class and I had no place to keep Muffin. I packed a bag with her food and the pillow she takes her nap on and took her down to Moratuwa. The girls were overjoyed to meet her, she went from hand to hand, hugs, kisses and cuddles is what she got