"They may be small, but they have made a big difference to me and my family. I was dying when I started making them... and I had nothing to live for... I now have a house, my children are going to school and I have a reason to live."
- Thandi Chamane
"Little Travellers" are beautiful, beaded pins made by women affected by HIV/AIDS in South Africa.We sell these pins for $5 each across the world, with 100% of funds raised going to help fight HIV/AIDS in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa, where over 40% of adults are infected.
We do this in partnership with the Hillcrest AIDS Centre, whose services include medical care, education and awareness, emergency food parcels, long term agricultural development and income-generation programs.
This project is about sustainable economic empowerment and restoring hope in people's lives.
Did you know that:
- The area surrounding the Hillcrest AIDS Centre has one of the highest HIV infection rates in the world
- The number of people infected with HIV in South Africa grows by over 500,000 every year
- More than 40% of adults in South Africa are unemployed
- The sale of Little Travellers provides an income to more than 100 women and men affected by
HIV/AIDS, in addition to helping to fund the care services of the Hillcrest AIDS Centre
- So far, the Little Travellers Initiative has sold over 50,000 dolls, raising more than $250,000 (and counting!) for HIV/AIDS relief in South Africa
