The Dalai Lama Recognizes Batsiranai

When Lynn Poole moved to Zimbabwe in 2002, she began helping out her friend, Pippa, with the Batsiranai Handicraft Project for Mothers with Disabled Children.  When Pippa's visa was revoked, Lynn was unexpectedly handed the responsibility of the Batsiranai Project. In an inspirational act, she embraced the challenge and took charge of Batsiranai as its head as a volunteer. Under her guidance and through her ceaseless hard work, she grew the project from 14 families to its current size, employing 100 women. Through Lynn's perseverance, she succeeded in getting Batsiranai certified as a member of the International Fair Trade Organization, a difficult task for an organization as small as Batsiranai. 

On April 26th, 2009, Lynn was honored by the Dalai Lama as an "Unsung Hero of Compassion" for her tireless work with Batsiranai since 2002.  Lynn states that "seeing the transformation of the mothers and the families" into  "empowered, wise, strong, plump feisty women with curious, happy, well-nourished children" is the most rewarding part of her work.