FUNDRAISING

To fundraise for my trip, I'm sending out an email to my friends and family explaining Nest, my involvement, and some details about my fellowship. Hope this helps!! Please contact me if you're interested in supporting my trip to Guatemala :) My email is kate.weschler@gmail.com


To my friends and family,

I have recently accepted a fellowship with a non-profit organization that is dedicated to improving the lives of women by helping them reach self-sufficiency. Rebecca Kousky founded the organization, Nest, just 4 years ago; her mission was and still is to support women artists and artisans by helping to create sustainable entrepreneurial businesses through interest-free loans, training, mentoring, and a marketplace. The curriculum at Nest teaches basic business skills, marketing (product developing and pricing), financial literacy, how to appeal to a western consumer while preserving artistic integrity, environmentally friendly methods of production, and professionalism. The loan recipients use the money to buy supplies and raw materials to make indigenous products that they return to Nest to repay the loans, rather than paying interest. Their goods are then marketed and sold to earn revenue and grant more loans.

Nest currently focuses their funds and effort on 7 countries (Guatemala, Togo, Morocco, India, Rwanda, the Dominican Republic, and Kenya) and has funded over 600 women since its founding. Nest has offered me a fellowship at their site in San Pedro, Guatemala! Here, as textile production moved to countries like China and Bangladesh, many skilled female artisans were left without employment options. Nest’s site in San Pedro offers flexible and acceptable working conditions for the women as they weave remarkable Guatemalan textiles while still supporting their families. Nest’s partnership with the artisans also eliminates a middleman, guaranteeing fairer wages. I’m so happy to become a part of this organization, as it empowers these women to develop their crafts into a self-sustaining business by which they generate a stable income to provide for their families.

I am still unaware of some of the specifics of my trip, but I will be living in the city of Antigua, Guatemala and working at Nest’s site in San Pedro for around 60 days (May 12 to July 7). Part of the internship entails maintaining an online blog to share my experiences, memories, feelings, and photos while living and working in Guatemala. Here is the website to access my blog: http://theweschnest.blogspot.com. While at the site, I plan to apply my Spanish skills especially while helping the women with business education, marketing, and training.

In order to travel to Guatemala, I’m required to pay for my airfare (± $500) in addition to $2500, which covers my housing, insurance, transportation to the site, etc. If you feel inspired to do so, I will be accepting monetary donations to support my fellowship in Guatemala. Please make all checks payable to Nest and mail to 318 Prosper Road, Woodstock, VT 05091 (802-291-0153). All donations are tax deductible. Also, please feel free to check out Nest’s website and marketplace: http://www.buildanest.com – they have some really beautiful items!

Thank you for all of your support,


Kate Weschler