Is "Pearls for Girls" (P4G) a charitable organization or a program within "Help Lesotho"?

P4G is a leadership and fundraising initiative that collaborates with Help Lesotho (HL) to offer leadership development opportunities for girls and young women in Lesotho and in developed countries, such as Canada.  Information on P4G can be found on HL’s site (www.helplesotho.ca) under “Projects”. 

“Help Lesotho” is a registered and incorporated charitable organization with an Executive Director and a Board of Directors.

A Member of “Help Lesotho’s Board of Directors works closely with P4G along with other individuals who act as advisors. The staff of “Help Lesotho” is closely involved with Pearls for Girls activities.

Who started Pearls for Girls and what is her role today?

Mary Murphy of Ottawa, Canada created the idea and name for Pearls for Girls and invested the initial $10,000 to purchase the pearls and other materials required to make the bracelets and get started.  With the sale of the pearls over the first 18 months, Mary’s investment was returned to her.  She also funded the creation and initial maintenance of the web site and works primarily from September to the end of December building awareness of “Pearls for Girls” in schools and communities, networking and reaching out to potential volunteers, meeting with interested young women, helping girls get started with their first Pearl Bees, organizing and working at Pearl Parties sponsored by individuals and organizations, and promoting the goals of Pearls for Girls.  There is a strong, yet small, group of dedicated volunteers who have been essential to the success of this initiative.  Without volunteers, Pearls for Girls is not sustainable.

Where do the pearls come from?

The pearls are freshwater cultured pearls from the pearl producing regions of China.  Mary/Pearl goes to China on a regular basis to work on environment projects and when she is in Beijing she visits Ken, a pearl jeweler from whom she has been buying pearl jewelry for the past eight years.  He and his wife have a small shop in the well known Hongqiao Market. 

Mary trusts Ken and knows that his pearls are of good quality. He is well recommended by people from the Embassies in Beijing and the airline pilots and attendants who often come to his shop for pearls.  In Canada, jewelers have assessed the pearls that Ken sends for “Pearls for Girls” and they have confirmed their high quality.

What is the goal of “Pearls for Girls”?

One goal is for girls in developed countries to acquire leadership experience as “citizens of the world”.  They learn about their values as a leader, what it is like to live in another part of the world and struggle, and they learn that they can do something to help another girl.  Through “Pearl Bees” girls, and sometimes boys, make the signature pearl bracelets and then create events where they can sell them and raise money.  These funds will support leadership development programs offered through Help Lesotho for the orphaned and vulnerable girls and young women in Lesotho.

Girls and young women in both developing and developed countries now have the opportunity to learn leadership skills, collaborate with others, and make a contribution to the future health of their community and their country.

How can I get involved with Pearls for Girls?

If you wish to have a “Pearl Bee” and make the signature pearl bracelets, learn about the lives of the girls of rural Lesotho and raise funds to help them grow as leaders who can also make a difference, then please write to pearl@pearls4girls.org .  Organizing a Pearl Bee is fun and can take be sponsored by school or teacher, religious centre, workplace or employee, or community centre.  It is best to have a group of interested participants – a mix of teens and adults or young women and adults - who are willing to give a few hours of their time to work together making the bracelets.  One person needs to take the lead for organizing the “Bee”.  The group can create opportunities for selling the bracelets or return them to Help Lesotho for sale.

The pearls, spacers, and other supplies can be sourced through pear@pearls4girls.org.  There is an upfront cost for the pearls and materials, which will be recovered once the bracelets are sold or returned to Help Lesotho, so it is best that an adult is involved with the “Pearl Bees” and the sales events.

Can the funds raised through P4G be used to support local needs?

If P4G groups have a leadership education initiative that benefits the development of teenage girls and young women as leaders, then a portion of the money raised from the sale of the bracelets can be put to work both locally.  If you have a proposal for a local initiative, send it to Pearl at pearl@pearls4girls.org .