In honor of International Youth Day, this "From the Vault" episode of Big Blend Radio features Kristen Welch, who along with her husband Terrell, founded Mercy House Global. Each month they partner with fair trade, faith groups across the globe to bring their Mercy House Global subscription members high quality items. These artisan groups represent young girls and women in hard situations, including those rescued from human trafficking, and those who live in extreme poverty, who are in need of work in order to support themselves and their families. MHG Clubs (formery Fair Trade Friday) were created as a way to financially support the rescue and care of abused, pregnant teens in their maternal rescue center in Kenya. More at https://mercyhouseglobal.org/
Big Daily Blend
Kristen Welch - Mercy House Global
(upbeat music) - Hey there, welcome to Big Blend Radio with your host, Lisa and Nancy, editors of Big Blend Magazine.com. (upbeat music) - Hey everyone, welcome to Big Blend Radio's quality of live show with Nancy and Lisa. You know, the crazy mother-daughter travel team on the Love Your Parks store, we travel full-time across the country documenting parks and public lands while we produce our digital magazines, our different ones, one of them being quality of life. And, you know, we're very excited today 'cause we're, you know, we're really into fair trade and also companies and organizations that help people and the planet. And one of our friends, Cheryl, we were at our house over in Lubbock, Texas a couple months ago and she got all this cool mail. And one of the boxes is from a subscription from Mercy House Global, it's an awesome organization. And she got her fair trade Friday box and all these beautiful artisan products came out and we're like, well, what's this about? And she's like, look what I have. And she goes, you know, I'm helping these women over in Kenya by being part of this gift box that comes every, I think it's every quarter, there's all different ways to do this, different levels of the subscription through Mercy House Global. So we've got Kristin Welterner, husband, Cheryl founded Mercy House Global and we've got her on the show today, but I want everyone to go to fairtrade Friday dot club. But welcome Kristin, how are you? - I'm good, thank you so much. I'm very excited to talk with you guys today and share a little bit about what we do. - Yeah, it's fair trade Friday, I love the name of it. Do you have to, does everything go out on a Friday or do you receive it on a Friday? Can you make that happen? - So Friday's the best day of the week, right? So we did that and then we actually, originally we shipped on Fridays now we ship every day, but we started with a group of refugees and a Friday class, an empowerment class here in Houston. And so that's where we got the name and we really want to make every day feel like Friday because of the power and work that happens through fairtrade. That's a little bit about the name. - Oh, that's awesome. So Mercy House Global, that is a non-profit, right? - Yes ma'am, it's a non-profit that started in 2010. I am a writer by profession and travel with-- - Yeah, you have a blog, you have a parenting blog. - Yeah, it's a parenting blog and then I've written six books and I'll tell the story of really just what's happened in the past decade or so in this journey and how it's really changed my perspective and helped me, I think be a better person by caring about other people, loving my neighbors. But we started in 2010, we have three maternity homes in Nairobi, Kenya, where young girls between the ages of 12 and 16 who have gotten pregnant due to survival prostitution or trafficking are removed from a dangerous situation and provided a beautiful home, temporary place for them to have their babies and really rehabilitate and learn holistically how to care for their children and become moms and we really are an organization that keeps families together and provides an opportunity for the most oppressed people group in the world, which is women and so in Kenya, we have an indigenous staff there, we have helped 70 teenagers have their babies and keep their babies and we basically provide jobs for their families, dignified work so that they have an opportunity other than survival prostitution to provide for their families because when you take away an undignified job like trafficking, if you don't replace it with something dignified, then it's easy to go back to it. So that's how we got into the artisan fair trade world was just kind of going upstream and looking at why are these young girls being put into this situation to begin with and so we felt like we could help even more women not just in the aftercare once they've gotten pregnant but maybe we could provide some opportunities where families would never have to make this choice and so we work with artisans, we have seven artisan groups in Kenya, all of our fair trade sells the product that we sell in various ways, we try to sell product in every way imaginable. - Yeah, I know when I get on the site, you get sucked in man, I'm like, there's so many ways, I'm like, okay, you can explain all that, yeah, there is. - Yeah, so we do that in order to support these maternity centers and we love it, it's empowering work, it's really beautiful, it has its challenges but it's really about educating consumers that every purchase we make can really make a huge impact and we can be a part of really changing the world for good. - And these are products that are handcrafted, when I was looking at what Cheryl had, I was like, wow, this is so nice and it's so much different than buying everything that's mass produced, right? So there's the quality of the product but going back to Kenya, Nancy and I lived there, I grew up there as a kid and there's definitely a problem, and Nancy taught in a convent, taught art in a convent when we lived in Nairobi and some of the women that became nuns were doing so right, Nancy, to get out of negative situations. - Yeah, they really weren't-- - They didn't want to necessarily be a nun, they were-- - Yeah, they just found it as a easier road rather than being married to somebody and 40 years older than them. - Mm-hmm. - And, you know, it may be sometimes even strangely enough and to a different tribe. - Yes. - Whatever the parents of the child did was because they had other younger children and they were trying to finance their families. - Yeah. - So, you know, it's easy to look at those families and be mean about it or say, "Well, you shouldn't listen, you shouldn't." But when you live there and you see it on a day-to-day basis, you realize that the whole system there has to progress, which it is. - Yeah. - But it's just taking longer than normal or than longer than we do. - I, you know-- - Yeah, this was the '70s and the '80s for us, the late '70s and early '80s. - Yeah, since to see how it's really working now. - Yeah, what is the situation there now, like? - I mean, it's definitely a generational cycle of poverty and what's incredible, you know, life expectancy is much lower because life is harder and we provide jobs for the grandmothers of the babies that come into our maternity homes and the grandmothers are in their thirties and many of them have never left the slum. They've never been out of a two-mile radius and so, you know, uneducated, depressed, marginalized. And like you said, Nancy, I, in the very early years of starting this, it's easy to say with all of our privilege and opportunity I would never make that choice until you sit in the home of a woman who is really sacrificing one child to save the other seven. - Exactly. - There are no choices, basically. And so, the best they can with what they have and we're really trying to redeem future generations by breaking that cycle of poverty and we're doing that through dignified work. And the result is beautiful handmade items that make incredible gifts and we're really, you know, changing lives through keeping artisanal craft alive that- - That's awesome. - Yes, and we have weavers weaving rugs and ceramic artists making ceramics. We have basket weavers weaving baskets every day and making made and it's things that are indigenous to the country. And also part of being sustainable where they're not totally dependent on us but they can go to the markets there and to the stores there and sell what they're making because we're keeping a skill alive that is generation sold. - And it's something that can be done immediately. It's not like you have to go to college to do this. - Right. - You know, that's also very important. And I think also the big thing that you're doing not only raising the funds to help these women but you're also creating awareness through this. So if you've seen that happen where people are buying like gift subscriptions to their friends, family that people may not know the situation in Kenya or other women 'cause I know this isn't just Kenya, there's. - It's around the world. - It's global. - Yeah. - And we actually provide jobs in 30 different countries. - Wow. - Very good product development. Our homes are in Kenya. So we have the biggest impact there but this is a global issue. And I think awareness is such a key component. It's a really a complete leg of our nonprofit because you don't know what you don't know. And when we're shopping big box stores and we're contributing to modern day slavery where 40 million people are currently trapped in labor trafficking, we don't know that. Like we're ignorant to that fact. And so once we're, that light has been turned on and we realize we're contributing to it, I think it demands us to make a decision. Are we gonna continue this? But we don't know, we don't know. And so we try to encourage shoppers to start small, choose one area of your life. Gift giving is an easy area because our culture loves to give gifts. We celebrate holidays. And that's why we try to provide something for everyone. We're really trying to compete with the main market and say we can provide trendy items that are gonna last a long time that provide empowerment, that are unique. You're gonna feel good about the purchase. And there's a person behind the product. And it's the people, I mean, they are our passion. And when you buy something from, you know, a big box store, you don't know who made it, right? Like that tour is not promoting that person. They're promoting their own agenda, their own bottom line. And so we really want to connect the consumer with the person behind the product because there are people behind everything that we buy. We just know who they are. And so we are pulling that bill back and saying, this is the person who made your rug. This is her name, this is her story. And it feels good to be a part, to use our money in a way that impacts the poor. And, you know, as a faith-based ministry, we know that we did not choose to be born, where we, you know, like North America because we had the opportunity, right? In God's sovereignty, we're all, we are where we are without choice. So I feel like there's a responsibility for those of us in the global North to do something to impact, you know, those who were born into a place where they did not choose to be a part of systematic oppression. And we have this responsibility. And I love that about fair trade because it does protect our environment. It protects, it protects people, right? Like, it says beautiful. And so when you buy fair trade, you're helping the ecosystems and the environment, you're helping people, you're putting those, I think it's just a prioritizing of how we're consuming. And it's a really beautiful opportunity to make a difference in-- - It's huge, we have to make a change because you want to keep making the top rich people richer or do you want to help those? I mean, we're all connected, right? So we have these choices to make. And, you know, you want to change something. And, you know, I look at it, being entrepreneurs, this country's got to kind of wake up a little bit more to how we buy and how we do things and support entrepreneurs. And that's what I think the fair trade program is so important because it brings that entrepreneurial spirit back into, hey, this is why we need it. And part of these mass trafficking, there's always someone making money at the top. There's always someone there getting that cash. - Not necessarily. - And not necessarily. And when you have these kind of programs, it's something that's easy to be a part of. You know, we want to do a lot of good in our lives, right? And so to me, it's like, it's a simple choice of, you know? We also, a big part of our program is local initiatives. We work with a lot of refugees who have been resettled to the United States from the Middle East and South America and Africa. So we provide jobs for them. And we work with anti-trafficking movements here in our city of Houston and in the South. So women who are recovering from, I mean, because we also have a trafficking problem here in the United States. - Huge. - Yes. - It's huge. - Help in our own backyard. And so locally, we have women who are recovering and who are in turn with us here in our retail stores and in our ministry. And so it's a full circle. Every purchase goes back to empowering women around the world. And it's working in some small ways and some big ways. We're making a dent in this enormous challenge. - You can't solve the world in one day. And that's why we all, it's bit by bit, right? - But there's one thing that I'm, I'm not a couple of tours to Kenya and from this country over to Kenya and there was, people really went mainly to see the wildlife. And it was interesting their outlook on the native people there. And some of them really came in with the idea that the people were, I hate to use this word, quotes backwards, okay? And they really are not. They have the same mental capabilities that we do. But some of the people felt that they did not have the mental capabilities that we do or they wouldn't be still living in the bush. Now when you go out with some of their guides and you're walking through the bush, then you start to see just how smart they really are about their own environment and how to exist in that environment. So there, there is a thing there, you know, that I would, I would just love to see race to where you look at a country or a people's different from your own and automatically assume they're not as smart as you or they can't be as smart as you. And what I saw while I was there is they very much want education and the parents were really strict with their kids as far as getting when they could get them to a school. Getting them to the school was not a easy thing. - Yeah. - Yeah. - And some of like 200 miles away from a school, you know. - Right. Our model is actually to empower indigenous people. We do not have an American presence. We never have on site in Kenya because like you said, we believe that the people that we love and work with in Kenya are every bit as capable as we are. They're smart, they're educated. They want to change happen in their country. Sometimes those resources are limited because of corruption or because access to global markets. And we're very passionate about empowering local people. So from a house mother all the way up to board members to every staff member is a local Kenyan and we are invisible. - That's awesome. - You never know it was an American funded organization because we don't want to be, you know, the savior on the white horse going into the country. I feel like that does more harm than good. We've seen, you know, in different initiatives how we've literally in our attempt to help have hurt and ruined entire markets. Look at them. - Especially in Africa. - Oh my God. And in their world countries. And so we, there's a book called When Helping Hurts and we really take that approach of empowerment through job creation and through, you know, indigenous efforts. Not to say that there aren't other models that work but this is something we're really passionate about is being as invisible as possible and creating sustainability because the people we have met around the world are beautiful and very capable. I want to shine a light on that. - I love it because again it's, you're giving people, you know, especially women this tool to be able to continue to make money and support themselves and their children and their families. I think that is, when you can stand on your own two feet at a certain point and you know, you have that pathway to do it. And I know everyone I know over there was hungry to have that opportunity, you know? - Really what we're talking about is dignity and it's a beautiful, beautiful thing. And it would be easier, I'm, this is honesty very vulnerable, it would be easier for us just to give people money and tell them how to spend it. But there's no dignity in that. And so it's really hard to train and create artisans and there's a lot of challenges in that process. We do that so that they can make a fair wage and they can do what they want with their money. They can buy their children food on the table, they can pay for school fees, they can be empowered. You know, we make a conscious choice to provide dignity and we do that because it's the right thing to do. People don't want handouts across the world. Every country I've been in, I've asked women the same question, what is it that you need? And no one has ever answered money. - Yeah. - Everyone says a job. And so, you know, we were created to work with our hands and to provide for our family. And there's just a lot of dignity to make that possible. And then, you know, sort of get out of the way and let it happen in a way that is beneficial to the people. - That's awesome. - You know, and I think education is so important in this, you know, conversation because there are a lot of people living in their tribal settings that don't have access because of distance to schools and things like that. And providing jobs that provide money will eventually provide education for their children. And what I saw in Kenya was so many parents that their focus was get my children educated, get them educated, get them educated so that they can do it. - Yeah. - That is still the predominant focus of whom average only, especially in Kenya. And it's a huge, I would say, other than health, you know, getting a girl healthy and helping because most of the teenagers have not had prenatal care and they're very young. And so the health side is obviously very important, very expensive. We deal with their emotional health, physical health. But the second key factor is education. It is, I can't even emphasize how important it is that the girl has access to education because well, first of all, once you become pregnant in this specific country, you lose your right education. - Exactly. - And so we have on-site educators for girls who are pregnant so to them where they're not falling too far behind. And then once they have their baby, that baby is a year old, they've been taking classes on-site. We get them back into school and we provide childcare for their children. Well, we help them choose a vocational route if academic is not an option because they've missed too much school or too far behind. But vocational education is also empowering. So education is the key to really solving the poverty epidemic. And so families will do anything to educate them. Kids and it's something we take for granted here, you know, - Exactly, women empowerment, you know, is so important for them to be able to be sustainable. You know, that's the thing about fair trade too. It's sustainable. And sustainable is not always just the environment, which is always important too. But sustainability is about being sustainable as a family, as a woman, you know, the child. And the stress that comes with that, that's where trauma occurs is when a family is not sustainable. When if there's not the financial and the education and the moving forward, then, and also you don't get to make the decisions you need to make. Your options are limited. So you may go this direction, which you're saying that you don't want them to go off that way again, because that's what you have. Once you have that education, you know, doors open up and avenues are there that you can get yourself out of bad circumstances. So I think this is, this is so exciting. What I do want people to know about is how they can join the club. If there's a subscription, but it looks like if you go to mercyhouseglobal.org, you can go shopping all day long, right? - We will help you find your money on things that are beautiful and dangerous lives. We have mercyhouseglobal.org is our ministry website. You can go to our online store from there and make a one-time purchase. What we're talking about today is SpiritradeFriday.club. And you can also find that from Mercyhouseglobal, but that is our recurring monthly subscription option. And we have five clubs available. So something for every budget, as low as $11.99 a month, you can get an incredible pair of handmade earrings, you know, statement or set earrings every single month comes from different countries, provides empowerment for women, all the way up to a quarterly box, which happens four times a year, which is our heirloom items, handmade shoes, wooden items, leather bags. - Cool. - We have a candle club. We have what we call our original box, which is a little bit of everything. That's probably what you're a friend. - Cheryl, well, she had two. She's like, look, I got my, she has a Friday one, I think then the Grace pack, it was what's the Grace. - Okay, yes. - And so she's like, look at this. She's like, I can't help myself. If I'm gonna buy gifts and buy things from my home, you know, I'm gonna do this. And she goes, I'm helping this woman. And she had a picture of the lady and her child, that is my focus. I'm making sure that they are okay. And that's what she is. - Even better, she told you guys about it. And here we are. - Yeah, so just a full circle as a nonprofit that is faith-based, we have been hit so hard the last two years. And so we're, we just, I think most companies have been, we've had a few catastrophic things happen in 2021, right after, you know, I think we all thought 2021 was gonna be better than 2020. One of our three maternity homes burned to the ground. - Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. - But we lost one of our three homes there. And then five months ago, here in the US, the floor collapsed in the warehouse that we call home. And we lost our building here. And so we've been in a temporary location for the last five months, trying to recover from that. So as, you know, when you're trying to do good in the world, which I think doing fair trade is making a good choice, there's always opposition. And you take two steps forward and one step back. So we, we love our community and we're so thankful for their support so that we can keep doing this good work. Every purchase, there's a person behind it. And we wanna keep those people in front of the world and let them know that what we do matters and what you do with your shopping dollars matters. - Absolutely, they do. Well, I hope everything moves forward smoothly now for you guys and having a fire. I know things that, yes, that happens. Yeah, and I really just hope everything is smooth sailing for you guys. I know you were moving offices when we first started connecting and, you know, listen, you gotta be all ready. Cause you know, I'm saying this whole Black Friday thing needs to be, we should just take that whole, I don't even like the, the, the turning of it. I just, they need to stop it. And, you know, if it was a rush to buy things that were fair trade, I know there's giving Saturday and all that, but can we just stay in the holidays and do good? - Fair trade Friday sounds a lot better. - I like fair trade Friday, that's it. - Yeah. - So that's the better. - That's the better term, that new term. - Yeah, you gotta like put that stamp on it, it's yours. - Yeah. - I love it. So everyone fair trade Friday dot club, right? That's the website. - Yeah. - And then mercyhouseglobal.org as well. Thank you so much for taking time on and joining us and get back to moving your building. (laughing) - Thank you. - Get those orders filled. Get those orders filled. No, it's a real pleasure having you on the show. I wanna thank Cheryl as well for connecting us. And everyone keep up with us at bigblendradio.com and thank you so much for all that you do. - Thank you. - Thank you. (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) [MUSIC PLAYING]