Calgary, Alberta, Canada – Sewing Seeds has been transforming lives and communities on four continents for over fifteen years. June 2017 saw the opening of the first student run Sewing Training Centre in Sierra Leone by N’mamah Kamara – one of Sewing Seeds’ very first students. N’Mamah is an entrepreneur at heart and began with just one sewing machine over 15 years ago. Her business of sewing custom orders for women and men all over her country continues to grow and is sustaining her new venture of teaching others through her very own sewing training programs. Sewing Seeds was honoured to be a part of the recent opening and pilot program at N’Mamah’s Centre in Lungi, Sierra Leone. N’Mamah has been a student, a supervisor, a mentor, and models her programs after Sewing Seeds. Currently she is teaching 15 students, including feeding them lunch. N’Mamah remembers how the Sewing Seeds team came to her war-torn country and provided not only sewing skills, but also food and water when most of the students had not eaten for days. N’mamah embodies the vision and values of Sewing Seeds. This years Gala is focusing on ‘The Gift’ of teaching teachers, and our Special Guest is N’mamah Kamara. Watching her go from student to teacher is what Sewing Seeds is all about. Come and meet N’mamah and hear more of her story on October 14th.
In April 2017, the Calgary Sewing Center had its first Beginners Sewing Training program with students new to Canada. It also boasts the success of its new teacher, Jean Shatalow, who has been trained by Sylvia Rempel, over the past five years. The Calgary Sewing Centre is partnering with community social workers as well as the New Canadian Friendship Centre to offer programs to students who have an interest in starting their own business endeavours. It has also connected with indigenous communities and was a part of the Indigenous Fashion Week at Mount Royal College September 18-23. The Gala will highlight these programs as well.
Updates on other regions are available on their website www.sewingseedscanada.com or check out their Facebook page here.
Sewing Seeds Canada is hosting their 4th Annual Gala event on Saturday, October 14th where they will be sharing real life stories of the empowered people in their programs. Together with a full service meal, MC extraordinaire Rick Castiglione, and student-sewn items for purchase, it promises to be a fun-filled evening. Get your tickets here to be a part of this magical evening.
SSC 4th Annual Gala Event
Saturday, October 14, 2017 5:30 pm
Markin MacPhail Centre at Canada Olympic Park
Sun Ice Ltd. founder and distinguished Calgarian, Sylvia Rempel began giving ‘The Gift’ of sewing back in 2003, when she started her own non-profit, Sewing Seeds (SSI). The first trip was to Sierra Leone just as the country’s civil war was coming to an end. Sewing Seeds had their first ever sewing training program with 40 war widows—now 15 years later one of those widows has seen her dream of opening her own Sewing Training Centre come to life. N’mamah Kamara embodies the mission and values of Sewing Seeds by teaching teachers in her own community. She will be our special guest at the upcoming Gala. SSC, is a registered Canadian charity, offering a unique sewing training program plus micro-credit lending, bringing independence, empowerment, skills, confidence, and employability to the students they serve. Sylvia, along with family members and volunteers, are continuing to give ‘The Gift’ of sewing in Sierra Leone, Ukraine, Peru, Mexico, and Calgary. In 2017, the Calgary Sewing Centre implemented two beginner sewing training programs to immigrant communities in our own backyard. Sewing Seeds Canada is transforming lives and communities at home and abroad.