Here are some photos that were sent to me by our dear friend Pastora Gutierrez Reyes, who is the founder and leader of the Zapotec Indian women's cooperative Vida Nueva in the village of Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca State, Mexico. Pastora and the women of the cooperative have a heart for the poor, and from their modest earnings, fund many project to provide for the indigenous Mexican people in the surrounding pueblos. Recently, Pastora (above holding the bag of balls) and some of the women of the cooperative visited the tiny mountain pueblo of Benito Juarez to hand out the forty dolls our women made in August at the Doll Making Marathon Retreat.
Pastora writes, "Dear Friends, Many thanks to you for the gifts you sent us at Vida Nueva Women's cooperative. We planned a meeting to bring the dolls you sent along with the games we purchased to the girls and boys of Benito Juarez elementary school and kindergarten. The children's parents and teachers wanted to know about who sent the gifts, and we told them about you and the project between yourselves and the cooperative. They send their thanks to you and your community, and wanted to let you know that you have friends in the pueblo and are always welcome there. You have done a lovely thing, and every doll you made by hand is now in the hands of a child in the mountains of Oaxaca. The children were very happy, grateful for your generosity, and thought the dolls were beautiful. It was a privilege for the women of the collective, myself included, to deliver you gifts, and to see the children's happiness at receiving them. Thank you from all of us at Vida Nueva, Pastora.
Of course, it has truly been OUR privilege to be involved in this sort of exchange, and we are indebted to the women of Vida Nueva for giving us the opportunity to do something for the children of this poor and tiny village. In looking at these lovely photos, we've certainly received far more than we gave.
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