Asante Means Thank You - Questions and Answers with Mary Ann Sheets-Hanson

Q: How did Asante get its name?
A: We started calling it Asante, Asante, Asante because that’s “thank you” in Swahili. And then last year, at the beginning of the year, I applied for non-profit status and that’s when we made the permanent name Asante Network. 

Q: What initially inspired you to found Asante Network?
A. It started because we became members of the Hunger Network Committee for the Sierra Pacific Synod when we lived in Northern California. We were speakers for Stand With Africa. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod and Lutheran World Relief were spearheading that program to raise awareness of the AIDS and poverty problems. We spoke at churches. One night a missionary friend of my husband’s came to dinner and we were telling him about our work. He got all excited and told us how he had just gotten back from Uganda where he had met these wonderful women who make beautiful baskets but didn’t have anybody to sell them to. He wondered if when we were out speaking on Stand With Africa, we might be able to sell some of their baskets? And that’s how it started.

The first church we spoke at after that was Elim Lutheran in Petaluma, California, and I called ahead and told the pastor the story about the women. He said he didn’t have a problem with setting the baskets out where people get their coffee and if they want to buy baskets, they can buy baskets. All of them sold.

In April of 2003, my husband went to Uganda to make sure it wasn’t a scam and that the women were getting the money. He also went to Tanzania at the urging of a friend of mine. She urged him to get out near Mount Kilimanjaro to see the Lutheran churches. He met the president of Mwika Lutheran Bible College right at the base of Mount Kilimanjaro. When he and his wife heard about the work I was doing for the women in Uganda, they wondered if I could sell the beautiful batiks and other items they make. He purchased a batik and brought it back to me. I didn’t think I had time, but it bothered my conscience. God didn’t let go. So a few weeks later I sent them a check for $150 and asked him to send me samples that the $150 would cover and I’d see what I could do. About three weeks later this huge box landed on my doorstep, and it was all these beautiful pillow covers and bed covers and shirts and dresses, wax batiks and cloth batiks and batik fabric. I thought there’s no way $150 paid for this, but tucked in there was a little invoice for $500, so I was in business selling their things, too.

Then, when I went over there in 2004 and met them and saw the circumstances under which they live and work and produce these absolutely gorgeous products, I said, “You know, I could do more. If I didn’t have to work for a living, I could do more.” That’s what prompted the move back to North Dakota. It just keeps growing and growing.

Q: What is Asante’s Mission?
A: Asante Network is committed to helping women’s groups, artisans, secondary (high school) and vocational students/educators in Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya and Madagascar. How?  By providing skills training, micro loans, entrepreneurial opportunities and markets for their crafts. All efforts are designed to reach the goal of sustainable employment, which will provide dignity, hope and a better future for these people.

Miichi Women’s Group, Tanzania, has asked for assistance with building a women’s/girl’s Sewing/Training Center. All profits from this Christmas season’s African Bazaars will be used to fund this project. The Sewing Center will be built by two Lutheran Vocation Schools—Kotela Lutheran Vocation School and Kiumo Lutheran Vocational School. Both are within a few miles of the center.

Q: Could you walk me through Asante’s process?
A: I order the crafts via e-mail. With each of the women’s groups there is one woman who is in charge of this part of it, so she’s my contact person. I e-mail her the order, and they ship directly to me. As soon as I get the shipment and check everything in it against what I ordered, I send them their money. I wire them their money through wire transfer directly from our bank to their bank. Then that group leader pays the women for whatever amount of work she contributed to that order. They also use the money to buy the basic supplies they need for the crafts, and the rest of it, of course, they use to help with their children’s education and all the basic necessities.

Q: Where do you sell the products? Who buys them?
A: I have two prices, a wholesale price and a retail price, my wholesale price is made up of the cost that the women charge me, the shipping charges, my accountant, the brochures, any of those kinds of things that I’ve put together. That’s my wholesale price. If churches anywhere want to order from me for their fundraising efforts, they purchase from me for the wholesale price. When I do an event at a church where I set up an African bazaar I charge the retail price.

Q: Where does the money go?
A: All of the profits go back to Africa. Right now we’re working toward building a women’s training center in Tanzania. We’ve already helped build a women’s center in Uganda. We’re building classrooms and helping with some micro loans and things like that. So, we don’t keep any of the money. We’re all strictly volunteers.

Q: How many women’s groups do you work with?
A: Right now I’m working with six. I started with one, but word is getting out to some of these other women’s groups over there and they’re contacting me and asking if I would try to sell their products. It just keeps growing. It’s pretty unbelievable.
In the month of October, we sold $14,600 worth of product. That was both wholesale and retail. To me, that’s just phenomenal. Some of that $14,600 was the wholesale price to churches and some is the retail price. Basically, after expenses, all of it goes back in Africa.

Q: What’s the next step for Asante Network?
A: Now that we’re an official nonprofit, our next step is to try to get some grant money so we have more operating expenses. It really does get kind of expensive. Now, I have six churches that have ordered from me, and I’m having it shipped directly to them by two of the women’s groups that I’ve been working with the longest. I’ve just been on the phone hours each day working with customs and tracking the shipments. It’s a full-time volunteer position. It’s a different world.

Q: How many volunteers do you have working with you?
A. We have three in California, my husband and myself. The California volunteers went to Africa with my husband in September so they’re much more motivated. Once you go to Africa, you come back changed. They’re going to be doing more and more speaking engagements and trying to look for more opportunities to sell the products.

Q: What is the most rewarding part about your work with Asante?
A: Knowing that I’m making a difference in the lives of these people. As one person—and now five of us—we’re making a big difference in the lives of about 400 people over there. It makes you feel good to know that you’re doing something that is making a difference and helping people, going right to the people. We’re not going through any government agency or anything like that. It’s direct person-to-person.

Q. How can churches or others interested in having you speak to their group and/or set up an African Bazaar, purchase crafts at the wholesale/retail price, donate to your work or contact you?
A: People can reach the Asante Network at 888-627-4543 or by e-mailing masheets@asantenetwork.org.