Alegria Accessories Prayer Partners

52 years...and I'm just grateful! My birthday was quiet this year, thanks to a headcold I came home with from SING Conference. I was supposed to be at Mt. Vernon River Days, but kept my germs to myself. I did a little work and then Randy ordered pizza and we watched a movie at home. My phone buzzed all day with birthday wishes from family and friends, and I even got a beautiful video from Honduras of them singing both in English and Spanish to me 💖. I'm sitting here on Sunday morning with a hot cup of coffee and just thanking the Lord for another year of getting to serve Him, being blessed with a family I love so deeply, and a job that I wouldn't trade for anything.  And I'm thanking Him for you, because you are choosing to walk with me in this calling to bring work and wages to the women from our Faith Home family. This next week, I will get to see so many of you at the Inside Out Conference in O'Fallon. Or at Kunstfest in New Harmony. Please pray for the volunteer who will be helping Alegria be in 2 places at once.  This week also holds a very important meeting for a prospective partnership that could produce new jobs. Please pray with me that God would use it to make a way for more artisan jobs. Lots of moving parts this fall, lots of jewelry being finished for our winter gifting collection. Join me in celebrating, giving thanks, and seeking God for his wisdom and blessing on behalf of Alegria.

Good Sunday morning Joy-Creators! As you're reading this, I'm probably driving to Nashville, unloading the booth, setting up the booth, or already sharing Alegria with the SING! Conference attendees. The next 8 days are full of incredible opportunities for Alegria. 4 days here at SING! in Nashville, and then 2 new Joy-Partner meetings, 2 days at Mt. Vernon River Days, and wrapping up next Sunday at Myriad Craft Fair in Newburgh. Oh, and my 52nd birthday is Friday! (come say hi to me in Mt. Vernon). Plus, last night and today, our artisans in Honduras are being blessed by the women's ministry team and their conference.  Here is what I'm talking with Jesus about early this morning: Thank you Lord for how you are moving and working on behalf of your daughters in Honduras with Alegria. Continue to speak and move at the Women's Conference in Honduras today - encourage our artisans and all the women attending and participating. Keep me and our booth and inventory safe on the road this week. Protect us from theft and weather and other drivers. Give me words from you, full of wisdom and passion, to share with SING attendees, the two prospective Joy-Partners, River Days attendees and Myriad attendees.  Draw them into our booth and move them to join our story through a purchase. I'm asking for 52 orders to come in through our website by the end of my birthday Friday. God you are able to do exceeding, abundantly above all we can ask or think (Eph 3:20). I'm asking for all of these things and more according to your calling and vision for Alegria. Thank you for praying with me today! Enjoy your Labor Day holiday tomorrow. - Sarah

Good Sunday morning Joy-Creators and Joy-Partners!  If you've been praying with us for a while now, you know we have some ongoing requests, and one of them is still to create our first job in our 30 by 2030 campaign. Currently 7 women work for Alegria in Honduras, 6 artisans and 1 admin. The need is great for more jobs. And those jobs are created by sales - to our Joy-Creators (customers) and our Joy-Partner stores. If you know me, I'm not the greatest at waiting, patience is not something I am good at or that I pray for. But the God we serve is, and He will patiently prepare us for what we need in the next season. I know and believe that growth in Honduras is coming, and it's coming soon because He sees His daughters there and He knows the need for safe, living wage jobs. It's why He planted Alegria in our hearts. We're working on systems in the US and in Honduras, because scaling to larger production is needed for larger sales, and we have to up our game in other areas too, like packaging and shipping. So even when we're waiting for that next step and more growth, we are working. Thinking back, isn't it already amazing that God has provided through your shopping a steady salary for 7 women for so long?! 5 1/2 years! (That's a lot of jewelry!! 48,301 pieces to be exact!) And it sells 1 or 2 or 20 pieces at a time to customers and stores. You're keeping me very busy showing you jewelry, sending emails, visiting stores, and posting on social, as well as setting up at markets, like my last day at Frog Follies today. Today, would you pray about making a purchase? In the season of preparing, we need sustainers. Christmas shopping will be picking up soon, and our Joy Box Subscribers will be receiving their new September box in a few days. We have a packed September...but August has been quiet, and we need a little boost of our online shoppers to finish this month well.  Alegria's artisans have created a stunning fall collection and you would look amazing in a new set! Or maybe someone you know needs a little pick-me-up with a new pair of earrings or a necklace or bracelet. And even thought the purchase will be a blessing to you or your gift recipient, the blessing it is to the hands that made it cannot be overlooked - you are investing in a woman's career in a country where the barriers to a living wage job were impossible to overcome without Alegria. Yes, you can order on Amazon and it will be cheaper...but who made it? Did they earn a living wage? Is a big corporation taking your money and exploiting the maker? You know exactly who made your Alegria pieces, they are the models on all of our social posts and online. And I assure you on payday, their salary will take care of their needs and give them enough for also having dreams and goals for maybe owning a car, or a house.  Pray for us in this season of preparing. And also pray about financially supporting this mission today with a purchase.

Happy Sunday Prayer Partners! I'm packing my cooler for the final day of the Centralia Balloon Fest, and then wrapping up August next week with our first appearance in Women's World at Evansville Frog Follies. There has been Christmas shopping going on already at the Alegria booth - yep, just 4 months away! As I'm about to hit the road, I'm going to be praying my way over to Centralia with these things on my heart and lifted to the Lord: A fantastic last day of sales in Centralia, with lots of new faces in our booth to hear about our talented and hard-working artisans in Honduras Safety on the road and in breaking down our booth For our DHL shipment to deliver tomorrow as scheduled For our artisans this week as they are planning the next production schedule for their PO, and for supplies to be available and shipped on time to them For our Joy-Partner stores as they are being called this week and next for their fall restocks - and that it will bless their stores and sell through quickly Thank you for praying with me today!

Zephaniah 3:17 has been a favorite verse long before I knew that "Alegria" appeared in it twice!  Do you know about Zephaniah? And what was going on in Israel and Judah at that time?  Zephaniah was God's profit warning his people that Babylon is about to come and conquer them and take them into exile. Why? Well, God is a Father to this nation and like a good parent, when kids are off the rails and not making wise choices or listening and obeying, He is going to practice some tough love. He needs to regain their attention. But in this chapter, Zephaniah is delivering this promise - the exile will end, they will be brought back home. He IS (present tense) living among them. (they are not abandoned, only being disciplined) AND when this is over, He is going to save them. Here is the part of the verse I adore because as a parent, I know this feeling. Pulling my child into my arms and loving them with everything in me. Delighting over them. And singing over them in the night when they are scared or sick. Nothing on earth makes my heart rejoice more than my children. And how much greater is the love of God than my imperfect human love?!  And when I read it in Spanish - Alegria is gladness and joy! Today, I'm praying gladness and joy to be sung over our artisans in Honduras, that work now at Alegria, and those who will join us. We WILL reach 30 by 2030, even if we have started so slowly in 2026 - know that God is working behind the scenes. Do not lose hope and pray that those awaiting a job will also be protected and not lose hope. The enemy wants to keep these women enslaved in poverty, exploitation and hopelessness, BUT GOD! I'm also praying gladness and joy to be sung over our Joy-Partner stores - that their inventory of Alegria will fly off the shelves in the next few months and they will be moved to restock and continue to be part of the mission.  And for new stores to join us and be blessed by Alegria in their stores. And I'm praying gladness and joy to be sung over YOU, our Joy-Creators! That the pieces you wear will make you feel lovely, and that you will be able to tell others about our mission and artisans. That you will be able to shop more, and choose to give Alegria for gifts. And every time that you bless Alegria, that God would bless you 10 times over! This week, we are going to be starting a fall campaign for online sales - join me in praying for wisdom in how we communicate and how we set up the advertising so it will return in greater sales. And I will also be at the Centralia Hot Air Balloon Festival in Centralia Illinois. Please pray for safety and for good weather and a huge turnout and sales. Lastly, this week in Honduras, we are wrapping up our next shipment. We are still awaiting some supplies (always silver). So as with every month, we would love your prayers for shipments both to Honduras for supplies, and to the US with the finished jewelry.  For safety and health for our artisans and their families.

Good morning sweet Joy Creators! Thank you for praying for me at the Christian Products Expo this past week. It was a success and 7 new stores added Alegria (check them out on our Shop In Person map on the website). Let's thank God for these new Joy-Partners and ask Him to bless their Alegria inventory to sell quickly in their stores. I have several current CPE Joy-Partners to follow up with this week for virtual meetings for fall reorders and I'm asking God to bless those calls and the stores that reorder. Honduras is buzzing with stocking up our best sellers for Christmas, designing ornaments and new items for gifts and our winter collection. We always pray for creativity and wisdom when we design. And of course for our supply chain in Honduras to stay reliable with our bisuterias that order and stock our materials.  Thank you for joining us to pray for these things as well. We do have a new baby on the way in Honduras and one of our artisans that will soon be on maternity leave. Thank you for praying for a healthy baby and healthy mommy (and daddy). This will be the wonderful couple's first baby. We all know the fears and anxieties around your first. But what a joy to anticipate and pray with them! This week in the US we are inviting everyone to come to a fashion show at Posh on Main and we pray for a large turnout and a great sales day that provides wages and expenses for our artisans. If you are close to Evansville, we'd love for you to come and bring a small crowd with you! Happy first week of school to so many of you that are teachers and moms sending kids back or getting your homeschool classroom ready.  We pray for a wonderful, safe, and joy-filled school year for you.

Good morning sweet Joy-Creators and Joy-Partners! This is a short one as I'm just about ready to head to worship this morning at the Christian Products Expo. And then the three exhibiting Fair Trade and faith founded brands in Mercy Marketplace will start unloading and setting up our booth for the trade show that begins tomorrow. There are 140 Christian retailers (think Christian bookstores, coffeeshops and boutiques) coming to order products for their stores in the morning. We have new products and something new we'll be sharing with you all soon that we hope will excite them to reorder or order for the first time with Alegria. Here are the things I'm praying this morning: That the Lord will go before us and will send to us the stores that will be equipped to share our story of interrupting poverty, exploitation and trafficking with the opportunity of a safe, living wage job. That our booth will just exude JOY Monday and Tuesday as it's filled with the Holy Spirit who is acting on behalf of our artisans to move retailers to order our products to introduce them to their customers. For our goal of reorders, new accounts and sales to be exceeded, abundantly! (Eph 3:20) Thank you for partnering with us in prayer. May your day and week be blessed for your faithfulness! Sarah

Good Sunday morning Joy Creators and Joy Partners! July 26th...we're almost through the 'J' months! If you don't know that term, it's what retail experiences as some of their lowest income months: January (for obvious reasons) and then June and July when everyone is on vacation, kids are home, it's HOT, and all the other reasons why we don't shop for fashion, gifts or jewelry.  But, we also know the fall fashion season is about to start, and so will Christmas gift shopping. Our racks are bursting at the seams with inventory as we keep our artisans working steady hours and try to estimate and prepare for the busy months. Here's what I want to rejoice over. Wages are paid, and  we are almost through our bills for the summer. We have a few more big ones to pay this week, and I'm praying that our continued Summer Sale promotion this week will help us finish July with everything paid. However, we are not in the black, as a few things went on credit cards this summer.  We want those paid off in August so that we can begin to save again through these fall months. And we are still praying for the growth we need to hire another artisan.  Please pray for these women who need jobs to remain safe and to find ways to stay housed and feed themselves and their families while we work to grow. And pray for the growth of Alegria. Here are three other items I am praying over this week and I would so love for you to join me. Preparations for the Christian Products Expo trade show in St. Charles, MO next week. I will be calling and emailing all week to make sure our stores come and order and to prospect new stores to come meet us and hopefully open an account with an order.  We will also be working on some new packaging this week as well. Winter collection design and selection. Praying for inspiration and creativity, for great materials in the bisuterias in Honduras for us to use, and for wisdom as we make our selections. A project in Honduras that leadership is working on to comply with labor department regulations with a new employee handbook. Wisdom and discernment here for putting into writing how our jobs are created to be good jobs for mommies, but also with requirements of artisans' work that will protect Alegria for the future of all our employees. It's a busy week! And it's so good to rest on Sunday, pray and read scripture, go and worship and sit under the teaching of our pastor and tune my heart to hear the Holy Spirit as He will always lead and give wisdom when we ask and we listen.  Thank you Joy-Creators for praying with me. May God go before you this week and give you peace and wisdom and joy! Sarah

As summer blazes on here in Southern Indiana, it's hard to think fall, but in the fashion world, that is exactly where we are. (and in fact in the apparel world, trade shows are showing next spring's collections.) This week is a critical week for us as it is Faire Wholesale market week - the online wholesale marketplace that we list and sell to most of our wholesale accounts on.  We offer discounts and Faire adds a little more, plus tons of advertising and promoting to retailers to make it a huge buying week. We have several new accounts we've been nurturing that we are praying for 1st orders from this week. And we are reaching out to our existing accounts and encouraging fall reorders.  Please pray for God to go ahead of us, to help our emails and messages to reach the right people and for them to choose to restock their Alegria displays this week. Also, we are launching our fall collection to our customers and that is always a hard sell in the blazing heat of summer. We will be starting our fall ad campaign, I'm doing a live tonight on Facebook and TikTok, and we're sending emails and posing organically.  We need our customers to start shopping again after summer (it's been a quiet month online). Please pray that our faithful supporters and shoppers will shop and that we can reach new customers also. Things continue to be sustainable in Honduras and our team there is strong and working on several projects, including designing for Christmas and winter. And we are setting some new things in place to prepare for hiring new artisans. When the sales support it, we will start that. As always, pray for the women who don't have a job yet at Alegria and are struggling for their daily survival. And pray for the safety and provision for our artisans that work hard every day at Alegria to bring beautiful products to market. 

This Sunday morning is a late start morning, but it's a good tired! I have a drive home from Oshkosh Wisconsin on my agenda, a few audio books ready, a playlist or two, and some Alani and kettle corn. The road trip 'to' always seems more exciting than the road trip 'home' doesn't it?  Well, Lifest did not disappoint in any way! You could feel God's peacefully, joyful presence from the moment you set foot on the grounds. This festival was prayed over and it was just full of all the most beautiful, unique and full of life families and people. Top that off with constant music and you have created a little piece of heaven on earth.  And how the Lifest shoppers that wandered into our booth embraced our mission and blessed our artisans this weekend is spectacular!  So today, Joy-Creators, I'm just asking you to join me in thanking the Lord and blessing Him and honoring and glorifying Him for how he sees and how he cares for us! Now let me tell you about a prayer He took 2 years to answer and then one he answered that I didn't even know to pray for. And it all comes back to Southside GB church in Mishawaka, Indiana and one special family. 2 years ago, our GB Summit made a decision to host in churches instead of hotels. I know this was a cost savings for GBs and I respect their decision. But what it meant for Alegria is that there would no longer be an exhibit space so we could not buy a booth to set up and sell product to our foundational supporters that know and love Faith Home.  This event was typically covering a good portion of July's expenses.  Enter a referral for an event in Nashville from a family at Southside. SING! Conference with the Getty's last year in September was our biggest in person sales event to date. And at SING! one of the other exhibitors referred me to Lifest. We applied and were accepted and guess what month it is? July! Hang on, it gets better.  I was at Mishawaka for their women's regional conference in the spring and was telling another member of the family that I might need a little help at this event and it would involve getting to see the headliners in the evening after the expo hall closed. Well one mention of Josiah Queen and she was in.  Fast-forward and I'm not wanting to reach out because I'm terrible at asking for help. But she was kindly persistent and asked if I still needed help. Yes, yes! So she makes the trek and I can't even begin to tell you what an answer to prayer this was...and I didn't even know to pray it. You see on Thursday, I started sneezing and then my nose started running...and Thursday night I tried to sleep sitting in a chair, tossing and turning in bed...it was a full blown head cold or something that knocked me down. I got up and went on Friday but I wasn't going to be able to pull off a 12 hour day.  She covered while I slipped out a couple of times to lay down in my car and rest for an hour. Without this sweet Joy-Creator friend, I think I might have either been passed out in my booth, or I would have had to close and go back to the hotel. One good night of Nyquil induced sleep and I was better on Saturday. I will always say that Stefani was an angel sent by God for this moment when Alegria needed her.  And as I added up the sales this morning, this event was about 1.5x the sales of our best Summit. One door closed...but one huge one opened! God provides! I think of Jesus saying that if the people aren't praising the rocks will cry out. God can provide water from a rock in the desert, and he can provide for his daughters in Honduras from a Rock concert in Wisconsin! So as I sign off and head on out to get back to Evansville for our Fall Launch, open house and ribbon cutting, I am just full of praise for the God who sees and the God who is faithful!

Good morning Joy-Creators! Did you have a wonderful time celebrating our 250th birthday as a nation yesterday? As I fell asleep last night, I could still hear the celebration booming throughout the neighborhood. Aren't we so blessed that we can fall asleep in safety knowing those are fireworks lighting up the sky with each boom? As the school kids, parents and teachers know, 4th of July marks the middle of the school break and the last month of summer vacation. For me, it marks the middle of the hardest 2 months of our year to make ends meet and keep wages paid in Honduras. As of today, we are behind. All wages for June have not been paid. And our materials account is at $0, which means we cannot purchase materials for our artisans to work. We also have outstanding bills due in the US too, and reserves are gone from the Christmas shopping last year. So in July, we are calling on our Joy-Creators and Joy-Partners to help us through and we are using deep discounts to move inventory and try to get back on track. We're calling it our July Jubilee. Would you please join me specifically in praying for these things today: That we would have $1500 in sales today from our Red, White and Blue BOGO final day. That this week, we would have 10 wholesale accounts place fall orders. For safety in travel for me (Sarah) while I travel to Lifest in Oshkosh Wisconsin Wednesday, and for a huge 3 days of sales at the festival Thursday, Friday and Saturday. I do not know what to pray for as this is the first time going, but I was referred by vendors at Sing! conference in Nashville last year, so I'm praying it matches those numbers for us. I will be working today and all this week, but my work means nothing without God going before it and bringing the rain, so we start the week with prayer. All for His glory and for the sake of His daughters in Honduras! Thank you for praying with me.