by Lewis Swann | May 4, 2017 | Beth, Blog |
This Mother’s Day, give your mom a patchwork bag from Togo.
All proceeds go toward giving sight to the blind in Togo, Africa.
Large Bag: $60
Dimensions: 23×17 inches.
Medium Bag: $30
Dimensions: 18×15 inches.
Small Bag: $20
Dimensions: 8x5x5 inches.
To purchase a bag, go to our Gift Catalog or stop by our office in Tyler.
Story behind the bags:
We purchase these bags in Togo from an artisan. We have started to develop a relationship with her. These bags are well made and sturdy and we are in love with them. We think you will love them too!
She shared her story with us and we want to share it with you.
“My name is Anita, I am married with three children, two boys and one girl. I started this business when I was 18 years old. Because of poverty I quit school and started doing patchwork materials. But I don’t do the bags myself, I have people who do them for me to sell. I just make the material, give it to them and they make bags for me. It is really a good business. I don’t only sell the bags, I also have dresses, children dresses, skirts and many more things. I love my work. Thank you for wanting to hear my story, may God bless you.”
by Lewis Swann | Apr 21, 2017 | Beth, Blog |
Farming.
Eye surgeries.
What is the connection between the two?
We get this question a lot at Sight.org.
I got to see the connection first hand when I was in Togo a few weeks ago.
Two members of our Sight.org team, Ishaka and Florent, are currently going through agricultural training at the YWAM base in Togo. I visited them at the training facility and was truly impressed.
They are being trained in modern farming methods that produces ten times the amount of traditional West African farming methods.
I chatted with Ishaka, our eye surgery sterilizer, who is going through the agricultural training.
He said, “My favorite part about this training is that it is all based on Biblical farming. Every single day in class, I learn something about farming that connects to a passage in the Bible. We have studied farming in every book from Genesis to Revelation. I am excited about taking this information back to our Sight.org farm.”
This curriculum is called “Farming God’s Way.” This is how their website describes the program:
Farming God’s Way is simply a tool of equipping to empower the poor to help themselves. Farming God’s Way was originated before man was on the face of the earth, when God first put His ways in place to govern His creation and their interrelations with one another. God is the master farmer who has been farming this way since the beginning and by simply following His Ways, amazing solutions to the food security and poverty crisis can be revealed.
Ishaka is getting classroom and hands-on education at this facility. He grows his own crops in the outdoor classroom and takes care of the pigs.
When they finish the six months of training, they will come back to our Sight.org farm and pass that training onto other farmers in surrounding villages.
Our Sight.org farm already has corn, mangos, moringa, beans, chickens, ginea fowl and a set of classrooms. We are all excited to see what our farm will look like when Ishaka and Florent bring their training back to our farm.
We started providing this agricultural training on the Sight.org farm to surrounding villages three years ago, but have had to pause the program for various reasons. We are all excited to start the program again and see what our farm will look like when Ishaka and Florent bring their training back to our farm.
So I know you are still asking, “What does all of this have to do with giving sight to the blind?”
Two thirds of the population of Togo are farmers.
Yet 2.5 million people in Togo are malnourished.
Malnutrition is one of the main causes of blindness in Togo.
When Ishaka and Florent use their training to train other farmers, those farmers go home and train other farmers.
All of those farmers will then produce bigger and better crops that provide better nutrition for their families. It causes a domino effect. In the long run, this program can affect the rate of malnourishment in Togo, therefore affecting the rate of blindness.
This training also has a discipleship aspect built in. As Ishaka and Florent train farmers, they will also be teaching them the Word of God. This opens the door for further ministry among the farmers.
As Lewis Swann, founder of Sight.org often says, “Our agricultural facility has the potential of making a bigger dent in blindness in Togo than our eye surgeries do. If we can reach many local farmers with this training, we can prevent people from getting cataracts due to malnutrition. Our eye surgeries fix the problem of blindness, but our agricultural training prevents blindness.”
When you give to Sight.org, you are not just giving eye surgeries. You are giving the Word of God and agricultural training. At first glance, the three seem unrelated, but in Togo, they all go hand in hand.
You can impact the blind, the malnourished, and the unreached for $12.50 a month when you become one of our Visionaries!
by Lewis Swann | Mar 8, 2017 | Beth, Blog |
Happy International Women’s Day from Sight.org.
Every month, women in Togo, Africa are being freed from the bondage of visual impairment. They are free again to work, go to school, farm, sell, be a mom or grandma. Their smiles say it all!
by Lewis Swann | Mar 2, 2017 | Beth, Blog |
The region of Elavagnon is the biggest challenge Sight.org has ever faced.
This entire year, we will be serving this region through eye surgeries and ministry. This area is poorer than any region Sight.org has ever served, and the Ministry of Health in Togo believes there are thousands of people in this region that are blind as a result of cataracts.
This region has zero access to eye care, and from what we have seen; the people living in this region are in worse conditions than any population we have ever served.
This week, our medical team will be giving sight to 60 people in this region.
Last month, 50 people in this region received their sight back.
Nine year old Faritte was one of the patients in these surgeries.
When he was three months old, he was hit in the eye with a stick. This caused an immediate cataract. He has not been able to see in his left eye since that day. Because of our mobile eye clinic, he is now able to see again. The photos below are from the day of surgery and a week later. We will check on him again in a few weeks to make sure his sight continues to improve.
After our first round of surgeries, our ministry team started building relationships with the patients and their families and neighbors. Through these new relationships, 75 people put their faith in Jesus.
Our ministry team is now working to start a new house church in this village.
If you would like to know more about this process, read our blog about our last house church.
At the beginning of this year, we asked you to pray specifically for this region. We are already seeing God move. Thank you for pouring your heart prayers into a village that you have never even heard of. God is so good.
by Lewis Swann | Feb 16, 2017 | Beth, Blog |
He is 55 years old. He worked as a road builder, but when he developed a cataract in his right eye 3 years ago, he was no longer able to drive a car.
He knew that he was about to get fired from his job because of his visual impairment and was desperate for help. He came to SIght.org’s mobile eye clinic and can now see.
He wants to say thank you to all the supporters of Sight.org who made his eye surgery possible. He is now able to go back to work and support his family.
You can give sight to someone like Koassi for $12.50 a month or a one time donation of $150. Donate at https://sight.org/donate/
