2015 Winter Sower

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2

When I began working

at Plant With Purpose

22 years ago, one of the

things I quickly came to

appreciate was the or-ganization’s commit-

ment to upstream solu-

tions – both literally and

figuratively.

In a watershed, what happens upstream af-

fects everything downstream. If there is a

source of pollution at the headwaters of a

river, the water will be polluted all the way

to the river mouth. If a river floods and dev-

astates the neighborhoods along its banks,

the cause often lies upstream.

Similarly, many of the problems that af-

flict those we want to serve – hunger, poor

health, lack of shelter, domestic violence,

even human trafficking – have roots that are

figuratively far upstream as well. Upstream

desperation can result in decisions that

barely seem rational to those of us who are

blessed with plenty. Making a decision to

set out on a leaky homemade boat to cross

the open ocean from Haiti or the Dominican

Republic may seem foolhardy, and the de-

cision to send a child into conditions of in-

dentured servitude or even slavery may

seem morally reprehensible, but for some-one at the point of starvation, those choic-

es are often considered and sometimes tak-

en. Choices to drink, gamble, steal or com-

mit other crimes seem like rational choices

for the desperate. (Who of us has not iden-

tified with Jean Valjean’s decision to steal a

loaf of bread in Les Miserables ?)

On the other hand, if we focus on the up-

stream causes of poverty, environmental

degradation and spiritual emptiness, many

of the downstream issues find resolution

as well. Our Impact Evaluations have borne

this out – we have seen nutrition improve,

water quality improve, incomes grow, fam-

ilies stay together, and faith strengthened.

In our 2014 evaluations we see another

downstream impact – an improvement in

educational opportunities. In the Dominican

Republic, churches that have participat-

ed in our church mobilization curriculum

have taken it on themselves to offer literacy

classes for their neighbors, with marvelous

results for both church attendance and adult

literacy. We are also learning that in com-

munities working with Plant With Purpose,

a significantly larger number of girls are

able to attend high school. Girls’ education

is much more likely to be treated as a lux-

ury than boys’ education, which is one of

many reasons why it is something that we

measure. Among desperate families, girls

rarely attend school and certainly not high

school. Yet among Plant With Purpose part-

nering families, this downstream problem

is being addressed. This issue of The Sower

has more on this happy finding.

At times we are tempted to respond directly

to immediate needs. We have been tempted

to start feeding programs or to build hous-

es, clinics, and schools. But we try to stickto what we know best – upstream solutions

that create prosperity, hope, and fruitful-

ness – and operate with the belief that in-

dividuals, once empowered, will begin to

solve their own downstream problems.

Scott Sabin

Executive Director

THE SOWER ISSUE #106

Plant With Purpose, a Christian nonpro

organization, reverses deforestation an

poverty around the world by transform

ing the lives of the rural poor.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR:

Scott Sabin

[email protected]

DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR: Doug Satre

[email protected]

MARKETING AND EVENTS:

Becky Rosaler

[email protected]

ENVIRONMENTAL SOLUTIONS TO HUMANITARIAN PROBLE

STAY CONNECTED:

4747 Morena Blvd. Suite 100

San Diego, CA 92117

Ph: 800.633.5319Email: [email protected]

Web: plantwithpurpose.org

Tw: @PlantWPurpose

Fb: facebook.com/PlantWithPurpose

EMAIL [email protected]

TO LEARN HOW YOU CAN:

• Share your Plant With Purpose story

• Host an event

• Become a Plant With Purpose advoca

Leave a Legacy. Please consider inclu

ing Plant With Purpose in your wills

and bequests. Contact Doug Satre:

[email protected].

copyright © 2014 Plant With Purpose

LEARNING TAKING PLACE

IN RURAL HAITI.

DIRECTOR’S CORNER



WWW.PLANTWITHPURPOSE.ORG

Investing in a child’s future, providing resources for a family garden, and planting trees are

gifts of hope with the potential to change the future for families in need. Before partnering

with Plant With Purpose, Dismas Ndakazi and his family lived in fear of starvation. Hunger

is no stranger to those living in Burundi. It is the hungriest country in the world with 73.4

percent of its population undernourished. Through partnership with Plant With Purpose

Dismas began planting trees and was able to feed his goats and sheep as well as provide

fruit for his children. By participating in agriculture trainings and a community-based sav-

ing group, Dismas has seen his family’s diet improve tremendously. He’s also established a

small business and is working to purchase a cow. You see, resources like a few seeds and alittle training can change the future of families around the world.

This Christmas, you can help families like the Ndakazis change their circumstances. Plan

With Purpose’s online gift catalog provides the opportunity to purchase Gifts of Hope for

those in need on behalf of someone you love!

GIFTS

OFHOPE

Chickens give families a sustainable supply

of nutrition and income. Eggs provide much-

needed protein for hungry children and can

be sold at market. Your donation will provide 5

chicks and training for a family in need.

CLUTCH OF5 CHICKS

GIVE NUTRITION TO A FAMILY

$ 10

Trees are life. They bring productivity to the

land so that poor, rural farmers can provide

food for their children and income for their

families. Your gift will provide seedlings and

training for farming families as they reforest

a hillside.

PLANT AHILLSIDE

GIVE HOPE FOR TOMORROW

$25

A family garden represents sustainable hope

to a poor family. Vegetables add nutrition to di

ets and provide income. Your donation of $50

will help a family establish a garden and pro

vide training in sustainable farming methods.

A FAMILYGARDEN

GIVE SEEDS OF HOPE

$50

Poor, rural families are not looking for hand-

outs. They’re looking to change their circum-stances. Village Savings and Loan Associations

(VSLAs) are community-based microfinance

groups that ensure financial security and cre-

ate opportunity. Your gift provides training and

materials to equip a local VSLA.

COMMUNITY-BASEDMICROFINANCE

GIVE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY

We believe the church is a key instrument of

change. Plant With Purpose programs areequipping local congregations to teach and

live out the Gospel. Your gift of $50 will pro-

vide Bible study curriculum for a church and

training for church leaders.

CHURCH-LEDDISCIPLESHIP

GIVE SPIRITUAL RENEWAL

$50

There is no better gift than investing in a child’s

future. Your gift helps a family increase theifood production and raise their incomes, giv

ing a child hope for tomorrow. It will also pro

vide VSLA training so that savings can be used

for basic needs like education and healthcare.

INVEST IN ACHILD’S FUTURE

GIVE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY

$ 175$50

Visit plantwithpurpose.org/gifts for the complete online catalog and to print a special

card. You can also mail your donation to Plant With Purpose in the envelope provided.



4

As a young girl, Mrs. Jim Lawan was up-

rooted from life as she knew it when her

family moved from Myanmar (Burma) to

a border village in Thailand. Her years of

attending school were cut short as needs

at home took priority over her education.

Her parents required her to help to care

for her siblings and grow the food they

needed to survive. Mrs. Lawan madeit through fourth grade, an elementary

education that was to sustain her for the

rest of her life.

Mrs. Lawan’s story is not an isolated inci-

dent when it comes to the priority of educa-

tion for young girls. For these adolescents,

an education holds the power to unleash

great potential. International conversations

are buzzing about the right to education.

Funding is being allocated to keep girls

around the world in school longer. Malala

Yousafzai’s Nobel Peace Prize shows that

the global community is waking up to the

importance of education.

In a September 2014 interview with TIME

Magazine , former Australian Prime Minis-

ter Julia Gillard shared, “I think across the

world, as we talk about women in develop-

ing countries, there’s been increasing rec-

ognition that empowering women and girls

is a key change agent for development. …

Education is powerful, which is why some

people want to stop it and why we should

feel so passionate about assuring that it oc-

curs.”

BURDEN OF TIMENearly 3 billion people—close to half the

world’s population—cook their food over

fire fueled by wood or charcoal. Women are

the primary collectors of firewood and as

trees become more and more sparse theyare forced to walk further from the house.

Walking is the primary mode of transporta-

tion, which expends a great amount of time

and energy. Because most rural communi-

ties lack water infrastructure, the responsi-

bility of fetching water also falls on wom-

en. When moms don’t have time for these

household activities, young girls shoulder

the work. As was the case for Mrs. Lawan,

parents often pull their oldest daughters

from school to watch younger siblings

while they pursue income-generating ac-

tivities outside of the house.

Back in Thailand, Mrs. Lawan worked as

a day laborer before getting married. In

2003 she partnered with Plant With Pur-

pose Thailand. Thailand’s program focuses

on women’s rights and helped Mrs. Lawan

work toward greater opportunity. Through

her Village Savings and Loan Association

(VSLA), she began saving money and even-

tually took out a loan to start a shop. Today,

her family is financially stable and can af-

ford to send their children to school. As a

mother of two girls, Mrs. Lawan is com-

mitted to seeing her daughters grow up

and complete their education.

AN UNEXPECTED OUTCOMELong-term solutions to rural poverty

take time as individuals, families, and

communities are empowered to create

change. Plant With Purpose monitorsprogram impact and every three years

conducts an extensive Impact Evaluation

across the six programs. Data is collect

ed in household surveys of participating

and nonparticipating households. In this

year’s Impact Evaluations, Plant With Pur

pose saw expected program outcomes

like greater crop yields, healthy soil, and

increased savings among partnering

families. Along with these results, a new

and unexpected outcome surfaced. Fo

households participating in Plant With

Purpose’s programs, there is a significan

increase in the number of girls attend

ing secondary school. This means ou

programs are equipping families to send

their girls to school and keep them there

an outcome worth celebrating. With in

creased education comes increased eco

nomic opportunities in the form of both

jobs and wages. The social impacts o

education for girls are also significant

females with an education marry later

have fewer children, and are less likely to

SCHOOL GIRLS IN MEXICO LEARN

ABOUT PLANTING SEEDS.

UNEXPECTED OUTCOMES:EDUCATION FOR RURAL GIRLSBY BECKY ROSALER, Marketing and Events Coordinator



WWW.PLANTWITHPURPOSE.ORG

engage in crime or fall into the trap of hu-

man trafficking.

There are a number of possible explana-

tions for this outcome. Plant With Purpose

is providing solutions to the time-trap

activities that keep girls out of second-

ary school. By planting fuel trees in close

proximity to households, less time is spent

collecting firewood. Analysis of the Impact

Evaluations show that in most of the com-

munities where we work, water sources

are closer to partnering households. This

could be due to constructed cisterns, revi-

talized watersheds, and greater awareness

of their natural resources. Family gardens

also offer a source of income that is close

to home, allowing mothers of young chil-

dren to tend to their gardens and their chil-

dren simultaneously. Economic activities

such as saving money through VSLAs or

developing small businesses provide the

finances to keep daughters in school.

SEWING FOR SECONDARY SCHOOLSara Mtui in Tanzania has experienced

this freedom through Plant With Purpose.

Young and full of potential, fifteen-year-old

Sara lost both of her parents unexpectedly,

quickly making her the breadwinner for

her family. However, the cooking, clean-

ing, and cutting grass for cattle ceased to

provide sufficient income. After fifteen

years of struggling to make ends meet,

she found a small glimpse of hope.

Sara heard about Plant With Purpose’s

programs and decided to join the local

VSLA group. The potential for new sourc-

es of income pushed her to implement

what she was learning, and she quickly

began saving, building credit, and farm-

ing organically. As her resources com-

pounded, she nurtured a tree nursery

of over 4,000 tree seedlings. When her

family garden produced ripe and organic

vegetables, she sold the produce as well

as well as the seedlings to further in-

crease her financial security.

Through various Plant With Purpose

trainings, Sara discovered an interest

in entrepreneurship and began con-

templating the skills she could use to

start a business. After shadowing a lo-

cal tailor named Mama Happy, Sara de-

cided to apprentice under her and learn

to sew clothes. After two years of train-

ing, Sara was ready to sustain a suc-

cessful business.

Sara took a loan from her savings group

that enabled her to purchase a sewing ma-

chine and rent a room for her shop. With

her small business up and running, her

financial concerns began to subside. The

added income has provided the money

for her two younger sister’s school fees.

They’ve continued their secondary educa-

tions with dreams for the future. Mean-

while, Sara continued learning through

Plant With Purpose trainings and utilizes

her own gifts to sustain her family and

give back to her community.

Plant With Purpose offers opportunity for

parents and guardians to receive an alter-

native education, bringing stability to the

family unit. Parents are able to get their

feet under them, raise their economic

standing, and provide greater opportu-

nities for their children. As their adoles-

cent daughters continue to add years to

their educations, dreams for their futures

evolve. By God’s grace, these young wom-

en will grow to influence and impact their

families, communities, and countries.

SCHOOLING BY NUMBERS

1 IN 5eligible girls worldwide are not attending

primary school.

67 MILLIONchildren are not in school. More than half of

these are girls.

12 %the increase in school attendance when

water is available within 15 minutes

compared to more than half an hour away.

40 MINUTES

the amount of time it takes partnering families

to collect water in Haiti compared to 55 minutesfor nonparticipants.

68 %the increase in Plant With Purpose partner-

ing families in the Dominican Republic who

can send their girls to secondary school.

777 GIRLSattend secondary school in Tanzania be-

cause of Plant With Purpose.

*Half the Sky, Girl Up, UNICEF, ICRW, 2014 Plant With Purpose Impact Evaluation



6

PLANTING HOPE GALA

BREAKING NEWS

THE EVENING WATCH: WAITING FOR

THE COMING PEACE

Join us on December 6 to hear from

the executive directors of Plant With

Purpose and Preemptive Love Co-

alition (PLC) as they find common

ground in working toward reconcilia-

tion, love, and our ultimate Hope. PLC

provides life-saving heart surgeries for

children in Iraq. The night will include a

Christmas gift market, food trucks, live

music, and inspiring conversation. De-

tails can be found on our website.

BLACK FRIDAY, CYBER MONDAY,

#GIVINGTUESDAY

Following the purchasing frenzy as-

sociated with Thanksgiving week-

end comes Giving Tuesday—a day to

focus on giving back either finan-

cially or through a donation of time.

UPCOMING VISION TRIPS

If you haven’t visited one of Plant

With Purpose’s programs, we’d love

for you to join us. Additional trips for

2015 are in the works. Contact Doug

Satre for more information:

[email protected].

Dominican Republic: February 2015

Haiti: March 2-7, 2015

Dominican Republic: March 9-14, 2015

Haiti: March 16-20, 2015

Tanzania: April 16-26, 2015

Dominican Republic: July 13-18, 2015

Thailand: August 8-16, 2015

Be watching for an email from Plant

With Purpose offering ideas on how

you can participate in Giving Tuesday

on December 2.

YOU SHOP, AMAZON GIVES

Are you planning to do your Christ-

mas shopping on Amazon? Be sure

to shop on Amazon Smile—Amazon’s

service for the conscious buyer. A

small percentage of your purchase

through Amazon Smile will be do-

nated to a nonprofit of your choice—

including Plant With Purpose.

RECEIVE THE SOWER BY EMAIL

If you would like to receive the Sower

by email and save a tree, please send

an email to [email protected]

with your name and current email

address under the subject of eSower.

The 2014 Planting Hope Gala was a fitting evening to celebrate Plant With Purpose’s 30th anniversary.Over $375,000 was given, which will allow Plant With Purpose to expand the work that is changing lives

and land around the world. We are thankful to those who attended and deeply humbled by the outpouring

of generosity, enthusiasm, and commitment to the work of Plant With Purpose.





Documents

2015 Winter Sower