A Letter from Adriana: A Fair Trade Artisan Shares Her Story

Adriana Isabela Morales Quino is an artisan from the Artesanas Mayas cooperative in the small highland village of Panimatzalam. Her sewing group has worked with Mercado Global for the last two years, benefiting greatly from sales opportunities that we have been able to develop for them.

Adriana Isabela Morales Quino from the Artesanas Mayas cooperative

Yesterday, Adriana visited the office to write a letter to our supporters in the U.S. She dictated a letter to me expressing her appreciation for the opportunity Mercado Global sales have given her to earn enough to support her family and send her children to school. So, without further ado, here’s what Adriana says to everyone in the States:

Dear Mercado Global,

I want to tell you that Mercado Global, more than anything else, has been a great help. Before, we artisans had no work. There was no market for our crafts; we could find no one to sell to. Our cooperative, Artesanas Mayas, struggled a lot. Many people had no way to earn enough to provide for their families, and many children could not study in school.

Mercado Global came and gave us a way to sell our crafts. This has been a huge support for us and our families. Now, we have lots of orders. We like making the conference bags because it gives us work and money to support our families. It is important for women to support their children and husbands. Through Mercado Global, everything is getting better. All of the members of our cooperative are happier with each other, and we are very happy to help each other with the work.

We’ve received training from Mercado Global, too. Before, we knew how to use the sewing machines, but Mercado Global trained us to use them well. Because of the training, we are better sewers now and we are able to make more bags. We are very grateful for Mercado Global, and we are always available and interested in whatever project we can help with.

I am hopeful that we will continue to have orders from Mercado Global so that my children can keep studying and I can support my family as I have been. Thank you to everyone in the United States who has helped to give us the opportunity to work and earn an income. I would like to ask you to please continue to support our work however you are able to.

Sincerely,

Adriana Isabel Morales

One final note. Adriana never had the chance to finish first grade, so I had to take dictation from her. Her children, however, have been encouraging her to get back in school. They’ve kept telling her that she’ll be able to finish a primary education if she works hard and believes in herself. Finally, they convinced her. Now that she has extra money through her work with Mercado Global, Adriana is taking classes on the weekend. Next time she wants to send a letter, she won’t have to dictate it. She’ll get to write it herself.