Peta gave us a brief outline of the history of the school/vocational training centre. Core subjects as well as vocations are taught at the school.
The age of students ranges from early teens to early 30’s. The goal is for the students to get training for themselves, and to then receive further education for their children. There have been two graduation groups so far from this school, and some have gone on to university or other further training. Although the project began on a small scale, it now has government‐paid staff and is sustainable.
Peta’s main interest is the women who are enrolled in the dressmaking stream. She wishes to encourage these women to expand their skills beyond dressmaking. All the women have a keen design and colour sense, and Peta is sure that if shown how, they can further their horizons. The next step is a four‐week workshop, starting small and simple, using strips, then squares and then moving on to more elaborate designs, then to make quilts - Dream Big Fibre Art is the offshoot. There is the desire to make this project self‐sustaining, with sales in the area, city hotels, gift shops, and online.
Our group was happy to be a part of this initiative!
