Some of the beautiful colors we see in Guatemala—
The fabrics of Guatemala artisans
From the fabrics of artesan weavers to the blouse and skirt fabrics, the colors are a vibrant visual, then add in the flower blossoms, the fruit, the lake and you really have captured Guatemala!
I have a challenge for everyone— save all your trash for one week to see how much goes into the landfill. Don’t go to a lot of work to do it- but just set 1 or 2 boxes in the kitchen or back porch area and save the different items that you would normally throw away.
This week I was quite surprised how the little things have added up that I normally throw away. I thought I recycled a lot with cans, bottles, plastic, and newspapers, cardboard — but what about all the other items that I think are not worth the extra bother.
I work at home and have office paper that I sorted out to recycle this week. You know that paper that is extra printed pages that you don’t really need.
Another item I was surprised about was all the plastic bags— not the grocery plastic bags that you get a zillion of if you have forgotten your cloth bags — but the bags that the produce comes in, the bread comes in, the newspaper comes in etc. I reuse many of my plastic bags and wash them and reuse again but they eventually need throw away. Why not put them in with the recyclables. Walmart has bins inside their stores to collect plastic bags.
How much more can you recycle during one week than what you normally do. Our county has recycling bins in various locations around the city and will accept newspaper, mixed office paper, steel, aluminum, glass, corrugated cardboard, cereal boxes, brown paper bags and old magazines.
Check out some websites on your county recycling procedures and learn more about recycling in your area- then see how much more can be recycled.
Did you know that about 50 million pounds of toothbrushes end up in the landfills every year??
We love working with the Women’s Artisan groups in developing new handcrafts and jewelry! They are really creative and talented! We have several new handcrafts that we will be premiering this fall and are looking forward to more new handcraft items and designs for early next year.
It can take 6 – 18 months for us to get new designs and ideas into production with our artisan groups. The many steps include: approval of new handcraft idea, final design work, sample made by artisan group, sample approved or sent back for reworking, production begins, shipment to the U.S.
So, we are always looking for input into our variety of handcrafts and today we would like to ask a favor. We are giving away a handcrafted necklace in a drawing among all who answer this question:
Which of our handcrafts is your favorite and why?
Our Artisan Groups handcrafts are featured on our website at:
and also at: World of Good
So look over our handcrafts and answer the question above then post your comment here and you will be eligible to win a free artisan handcrafted necklace shown below.
If you prefer to email your ideas and comments please send to:
moreinfo@educationandmore.org
We look forward to hearing from you! Drawing will be in July!
We are in the process of updating our mailing list for our newsletter and will also be using a new service to send them out. This new service will help us make sure you receive our newsletters and also give you the option of opting in to receive them or not.
So, if you would like to receive our newsletters every 4-6 weeks you will need to sign up again. You can use this link:
or simply go to the front page of our website and you will find a blue box on the right side of the page to give your email address to sign up.
You will then receive an email in your inbox and you will need to verify that you opted in for the newsletter— or you won’t receive the newsletter.
Also, check your spam or bulk folder if you don’t receive the verification email it may have gone there.
Hope you enjoy our new newsletter format! Thank you for your support, encouragement and prayers for our work in Guatemala!
News Flash!
We have listed our artisan handcrafts on the World of Good website recently and hope you will help us spread the word about this great site and in particular about our handcrafts. World of Good is a site that brings many eco-friendly and people positive companies and organizations together in one place for shoppers to find products that align with their values. For more information about World of Good check here.
Our webpage on World of Good is here: Education And More
Be sure to click the “See All” under the ‘Items For Sale’ because we have over 150 items listed on the site.
Our handcrafts are all produced in an eco-friendly way under Fair Trade guidelines so there are benefits not only to people but also to the environment when you purchase the handcrafted items.
We have many new items listed on World of Good but you can always go to our main website and purchase items also.
Thanks for any help in spreading the word about our handcrafts on World of Good!
We just uploaded a video to YouTube that was shot on our last visit to Guatemala. These two little girls are the daughters of one of the artisans in our Fair Trade groups. I was there to check on our order with their mother and they kept running in to talk with ‘mama’ and then run back to the kitchen. I finally got up to go see what they were doing and they were making tortillas. This is a typical stove that most cooking is done on — very similar to our outdoor grills here in the States. They were really proud of themselves in being able to make the tortillas!
Enjoy the video!
How hard is it to remember to take reusable bags into each store? Apparently it is for me! It is so exasperating to get to the check out counter and realize you have bags in the car!
I have been known to run out to the car and make the checker wait but that was at a small health food store and my car was at the front door.
I have now changed my routine when getting into the car. Instead of just tossing the shopping bags into the back seat I put them on top of my purse or under my purse so that I can’t miss them when I get out of the car. This has made a difference and sure has helped me to remember the bags! If I don’t use all the bags during that trip I leave them in the car in my seat so that I must move them to get into the car next time.
If you need some new sturdy totes check out the ones we have made in Guatemala by our artisan group, Asociacion Red de Mujeres Juaneras T’zutujiles. They are made of material that is actually fabric that the Mayan women use to make their skirts (called a corte). 
The fabric is beautiful and sturdy and we have available 3 different color patterns.
Comment and tell me ways that help you remember to take them into the store with you!
Does anyone know how many plastic shopping bags we could save in the U.S. every year if we all used reusable totes???????
Having done a lot of traveling through the years, I have developed a checklist for my pre-travel preparations. Maybe it will help you get ready for your next trip.
What are some of my must haves that I always take?
This is my list I always refer to before each trip — add to it, delete from it and make it yours. Having a list like this reduces a lot of pre-travel stress!
Andres is the son of one of our artisans and is able to attend school in part because of the Fair Trade wages his mother receives from Education And More. The last time I visited with Andres he was so excited to be able to continue his education beyond Junior High School . He wants to be an architect and I am sure with his determination he will keep trying until he makes it. Another artisan’s son, Daniel, is studying to be an accountant. He finally found a job quite a distance from home and then takes classes on Saturday in order to be able to continue in school.
Fair Trade gives benefits all around– to the artisan, to their family, to the community. It helps the artisans with their businesses, it helps them feed and educate their children and it helps because more money comes into the communities. Education And More guarantees its commitment to Fair Trade principals! 
I need to remember to ask myself if I am so used to the status quo that I don’t even remember or think about who makes our products? or what the labor conditions are for those workers?
Jeremiah 22:13 Who uses his neighbors services without wages and gives him nothing for his work………..
There are many more students needing our help — how can you help??
I read a devotional this morning about our spiritual arms and how our Christian family has arms to encompass as one, our family of believers.
This devotional was so appropriate because of the sharing and Christian love shown in Guatemala. At Education And More, our spiritual arms connect with our Christian family in Guatemala in a way that seems that Christ is with us in our work, our travels, during our meetings, through all.
Our Christian friends have become family and we share tears of joy in our successes and tears of sorrow in our disappointments but we fully share everything through Christ. We connect by wrapping our spiritual arms around each other knowing the Lord is with us in all.
A family without borders because the Lord shows us how to love one another.
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