Mapusha Weaving Cooperative

Traditional Weaving Supports Women, Families and Community

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Community

Join hands to support the village of Rooiboklaagte

Children at the local Creche (Nursery School)

Children at the Creche (Nursery School)

Grandmas Starting a Community Vegetable Garden

Grandmas Start a Shared Vegetable Garden

The Mapusha Weaving Cooperative is located in Rooiboklaagte (red deer, in Afrikaans), a tiny village in the township of Acornhoek on the border between the Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces of South Africa. Although boundary lines between villages are indistinct, it takes about one hour to walk from the “top” of Rooiboklaagte to the opposite side, passing small concrete houses with their well-raked yards and gardens and many churches scattered throughout the village. Children and chickens and goats are everywhere.

In Rooiboklaagte, the population is roughly 2,000. The unemployment rate is over 70 percent, and the HIV infection rate is over 30 percent. The one elementary school has over 500 children.

The drive from Johannesburg to the village takes five hours; from Rooiboklaagte to the Orpen Gate of Kruger National Park, one hour.

Refreshing the World—Painting a Mural on the School Wall

Refreshing the World—
Painting a Mural on the School Wall

Play Field Near the School

Play Field Near the School

New Dawn Center: Together We Have Power

Join Our Supporters and Volunteers

Mapusha weaver with child and supporter

What

The Mapusha Weaving Cooperative is a nonprofit enterprise of women weavers and spinners who demonstrate their mastery of weaving with carpets and tapestries of hand-spun and hand-dyed Karakul wool.

This Week’s Inspiration

Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tuto embracing

Mistakes are Made, Forgiveness Happens

I hesitate to consider the hundreds of mistakes I’ve made over my years in rural South Africa. I … [Read More...]

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