BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Tilo Bestova is from Bhutan.
She and around 60 other refugees make up Stitch Buffalo,
and on Wednesday, showed teachers from Tapestry Charter
School how to make hand-stitched Buffalove hearts.
Once a week, the women gather to create hearts,
headbands, cuffs, bags and other items they sell to the
community. While the extra money helps their families,
there's a deeper meaning behind each piece of work.
"You won't know the people if you sit at home," said
Rabi Rai, who's from Nepal. "But, when you come here you
know the people from all the different countries."
It gives the women a chance to break boundaries and gain
self-worth.
"For the first time ever, some of these women are
actually making their own money," said Dawne Hoeg, a
textile artist who founded Stitch Buffalo in 2014.
Three years later and busting at the seams, local
company Rich Products Corporation has offered to give
the non-profit a building on the 1200 block of Niagara
Street. It's been in the works for about a year, but
there's a snag. The building needs to be rezoned from
commercial to cultural and educational.
"It’s with the city commissioner and we are just waiting
for him to sign off,” Hoeg said.
Hoeg hopes they get the stamp of approval soon so they
can continue their mission, and spread some Buffalove,
one stitch at a time.
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They come
here to escape war, poverty and oppression. They
bring rich cultural traditions including handwork
skills. What they lack in language matters little
when it comes to cooperatively creating
handcrafted goods for sale in the community.
The women of Stitch
Buffalo’s Refugee Women’s Workshop meet once a
week at the CEM on Lafayette near Grant Street to
share these traditions and skills. Only one woman
came to the first meeting but word of mouth
travels fast on the Westside and the workshop now
serves about 55 women from Bhutan, Burma, Nepal
and Angola.
To accommodate this
large expansion Stitch Buffalo has been actively
seeking a designated work space and a retail
outlet. Planning is underway for Rich Products to
donate the first floor at 1215 Niagara for this
purpose. At the new site, they will offer textile
arts classes for the general community in sewing,
garment refashioning and other handwork skills.
Refugee women will be paid to assist in teaching;
they are also compensated for their handcrafted
goods when they sell. The new retail shop will
carry the refugee women’s handcrafts as well as
donated yarn, textiles and more to generate
income.
The organization has
transitioned to registered nonprofit status and is
broadening the services provided to include
education in English language, retail experience
and financial literacy, as well as textile arts.
Come celebrate Stitch
Buffalo on Saturday, April 1st from 1:00 – 4:00
p.m. at Resurgence Brewery, 1250 Niagara St. Meet
remarkable women, sample international foods, view
and purchase their products, and support another
amazing grassroots project in Buffalo. For more
information contact Dawne Hoeg or Joanna Stott at
info@stitchbuffalo.org.
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