 Since Uganda was under British rule for over 60 years, Ugandans have a tribal family surname and an English given name. Thus the Paper to Pearls beaders are Rose, Paula, Cecilia, Josephine, Mimi, Lilly, Sara, Evelyn, Christine and Joyce (to name a few.) To their supporters they say, "Thank you for buying our beads!"
Paper to Pearls is currently working with beading cooperatives in eight camps in the Gulu District of northern Uganda. (Four are represented here.) In addition, we work with two groups of widows in the town of Gulu, most of whom lost their husbands either to AIDS or to the conflict in the region. In the fall of 2008 we added a third cooperative in Gulu, a group comprised primarily of young mothers, including many who were formerly abducted by the rebels and had their babies in the bush.
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Many of our beaders have spent years in the camps; all have adjusted as best they could to the deprivations and limitations of their life of confinement, dreaming of their return home. Our beaders range in age from 15 to 60. Most have the responsibility for  numerous children, their own and frequently those of relatives who have lost their lives to illness or the conflict. Nine to ten children in a household are common. Many of our beaders do not have even a primary education and all state that their highest priority is the education of their children; most use a significant portion of the income they make from our purchase of their necklaces to pay school fees.
Other uses for the income include buying additional food and medicine. Parents are buying the medications their children need. One of the widows in our project, who is HIV positive, is able to consistently pay the fees for the antiretroviral medications she requires. Another, who is one of our best beaders, has earned enough from our project to buy a small plot of land and begin thinking about building a small house.
Having an income generating activity is a first for most of our beaders. As stability slowly returns to the region and they are able to go home, we are encouraged that they plan to take their beading skills with them and continue to bead and develop their businesses. As beader Rose Oyok says: "Paper to Pearls is part of our lives. We consider it our second garden."
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