Global Women
Having fled from political and religious persecution in Burma, the refugee women in UN camps across the border in Thailand survive only by careful rationing of food and necessities. They have no income. 100,000 refugees, mainly women and children, are part of the Karen people group and represent those fortunate enough to escape the oppression of the Buddhist dictatorship, which exploited them for forced labor. The women were raped, their children used as minesweepers during the ongoing conflict. The camps in Thailand have been in existence for 15 years now.
In 2001, a Global Women group of about 20 were able to connect with the refugee women through the Kawthoolei Baptist Convention and the Baptist World Alliance Women's Department. A third of the refugees are Baptist. Global Women leaders trained the women to smock according to American standards, and materials were donated to allow the women to begin making and selling items. The proceeds from the sale of each dress support a woman for one year. The dresses are comprised of a polyester and cotton mix and are machine washable. Usually ironing is not necessary.![dresses[1]](http://www.southlandbaptist.org/media/images/dresses[1].jpg)
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Infant dress |
$35.00 |
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Toddler dress |
$40.00 |
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Infant dress with bonnet |
$45.00 |
The dresses are available through Carol Hiebert at 944-4040 or GlobalWomen@SouthlandBaptist.org. For more information about all the ministries of Global Women, go to www.globalwomengo.org.
Global Women Missions Moment
During August 2007, 12 women from the Southland Sisterhood Bible Study group (ReaLife Sunday School class) contributed supplies and prepared 34 Birthing Kits that a Global Women missionary took to Burma in September 2007.
Distribution of Birthing Kits is a signature project of Global Women. The goal of Birthing Kits is to save lives! Each kit is an investment with the potential to save newborn babies and their mothers. Birthing Kits include disposable items that help ensure sanitary and safe conditions for a woman in labor, her newborn, and those assisting with the birth. The use of Birthing Kits in countries where women must give birth, in very primitive conditions, reduces HIV transmission during delivery and helps reduce umbilical cord infections. This in turn impacts the probability of a newborn’s survival.
Consider these statistics from the United Nations World Health Organization:
Burma
Infant mortality rate – 75 per 1,000 live births (2004)
Maternal mortality ratio – 360 per 100,000 live births (2000)
One woman in 75 of childbearing age dies in childbirth
United States
Infant mortality rate – 7 per 1,000 live births (2005)
Maternal mortality ratio – 14 per 100,000 live births (2000)
As the Sisterhood Bible Study women put together the kits and their own children played nearby, they talked about the dangerous conditions in which many women around the world must give birth. As they worked, they prayed for the women who would receive the kits they were preparing and for their babies and for those who would assist at the births. They prayed for the missionaries who show the love of Christ to these women and their families.
You can participate in this project, too!
- Pray for the women who will give birth in unsafe and unsanitary conditions.
- Pray specifically for the women who will use the kits assembled by women from Southland.
- Pray for the babies that will be welcomed into the world with a birthing kit.
- Pray for birthing attendants.
- Pray for the missionaries who are the hands and feet of Jesus to women in need throughout the world.
For more information on how your group can assist with the preparation and delivery of Birthing Kits through Global Women, contact Carol Hiebert at 944-4040 or GlobalWomen@SouthlandBaptist.org.
For more information about all the ministries of Global Women, go to www.globalwomengo.org.