Another Super Hero

My friend Carol Schillios works in the cooperative credit union movement helping the poor gain access to micro-credit loans to improve the quality of their lives and she’s fifthly stinking rich! What makes her rich? Her volunteer work in working in developing countries’ with the credit union movements made her realized how far little amounts would go. With a mortgage on her home, she formed The Fabric of Life Foundation to fund small projects to help get people out of poverty. It started small with $40 to treat a gangrene wound that would have killed a young beggar, $500 to a woman caring for 13 AIDs orphans in Zimbabwe, $1,000 to start a micro-credit lending program in HoChiMin. Then she started a training center Carol with her Malian friend, Kaaba. Both women have full time jobs and in their “spare” time run a center to help the poorest of the poor — young begging girls — learn sewing, fabric weaving, dyeing and beading skills to generate income and break the cycle of poverty. Two years later — still as volunteers — she and Kaaba graduated the first class of 10 begging girls from the streets of Bamako, who went from begging to businesswoman in 18 months. The First Lady of Mali, handed out the diplomas at graduation ceremonies in the capital city of Bamko in front of a crowd of 300 officials who thought it could not be done.

Carol grew up in a traditional neighborhood in Seattle with both parents working at the Boeing Company to make ends meet. When her father was offered a junior executive position in Switzerland, Boeing moved their family to Geneva. At the age of 12 Carol was surrounded by multiple cultures in an international school environment that would change the course of Carol’s life. While friends back home were preparing for proms and football games, Carol was learning about political conflict at student sessions of the United Nations; debating issues with citizens from war-torn countries; learning about poverty and collaboration and cooperation.

For three decades Carol has worked on 5 continents, helping the poor improve the quality of their lives. One day, while at a stop light in Bamako, Mali, West Africa, Carol and her colleague, Kaaba, in their car, were –as usual– surrounded by begging children with their hands out. It was a moment of truth for both who had had many conversations about how ordinary people could make a difference in the world if they would only take one action. Their conversation turned to how they could help the poorest of the poor –begging girls– off the streets before the girls had to turn to prostitution. The idea of a school for begging girls was born. Three young beggars to whom Carol and Kaaba had been donating over the years, became the first recruits. Atou, 25, and a paraplegic had been sitting on the ground in front of a bank every day for 15 years. Kadia, 16, and lame since birth, begged on the street near where Kaaba worked. Awa, 16, was not allowed in school because of her hearing loss. Now these three girls and 7 more from the first class are producing beautiful fabrics and jewerly being sold directly from their Hèrè Jè Cooperative Training Center in Bamako, Mali West Africa. Now the second class of 20 is being recruited. Their dream is that hundreds will be able to attend school to break the cycle of begging. That’s Living Rich…

You can check out their products on their EBoutique that is run by the girls themselves: http://www.schillios.com/schillios/section.cfm?wSectionID=1384

Tim Richardson is an inspirational speaker who speaks about how giving increases employee morale, lowers employee turnover, increases customer loyalty and creates higher profits for Fortune 500 companies, associations, and national conventions. He is the founder of the The Worlds Biggest Blog Party an event which will connect bloggers from all over the world to raise money for charity. He is also founder and president of the Bill Walter Melanoma Research Fund. For more information on Tim, go to www.TimRichardson.com