Shop Refugee, a small business run by some of our staff at GoTEN, was recently given the opportunity to showcase its products on a city-wide scale as Phoenix recently hosted its annual World Refugee Day. A couple of years ago, GoTEN saw an opportunity to provide refugee women in Phoenix with an outlet to not only do something they love, but also to earn some money as they do it. With that, Shop Refugee was born. Many ladies that become refugees often feel stripped of any opportunity they had to follow their dreams, use their skills, and most importantly to them, bring earnings to their families. GoTEN offers sewing classes, free of charge, to many of these same women. Led by Phoenix team member Grace, Shop Refugee gives ladies enrolled in GoTEN's sewing classes the opportunity to sell their products online. All profits go directly to the creator of the product. The company has shown to provide an outlet for these ladies, empowering them in ways they may not have thought possible and giving them "a seat at the table".

A couple of weeks ago at World Refugee Day, Shop Refugee was represented with a booth. Grace and other sewing teachers and volunteers were able to market products to local shoppers, share stories about the students and their accomplishments, and bring overall awareness to the company. Phoenix mayor Kate Gallego even made an appearance to speak at the event, and was gifted a Shop Refugee Kindle case by the organizers of the event. GoTEN and Shop Refugee are very grateful for the exposure that World Refugee Day provided. If you are interested in purchasing any refugee-made products, visit shoprefugee.com

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