My Favourite Store and a Giveaway

Ten Thousand Villages is my daughter Kate's and my favourite store.  

We went last Saturday to have a visit.

When we go we spend quite awhile looking at everything, and I do mean everything in the store.
 

 We have to check out the jewelry,

and bags,

and things for around the house,

and toys,

and baskets,

and fair trade coffee, tea, chocolate, spices, rice, and other food items.

 and too many other fantastic things to name them all.
 

One of the things I like best, is that Ten Thousand Villages is a nonprofit program of the Mennonite Central Committee, the relief and development agency of Mennonite and Brethren in Christ churches in North America.  Most of the people working in the stores are volunteers and the products in the stores are all from Third World people.  The aim of the program is to provide a vital and fair income to unemployed or underemployed people by selling their handicrafts in North America.  They not only promote fair trade, but also environmental sustainability.  Kate and I think that being a buyer for the Ten Thousand Village program would be a dream job.

There are stores across Canada and United States and you can also shop on-line.
To find a store, try these websites:
in Canada look here
and in United States look here

We couldn't go to Ten Thousand Villages and not buy something - it's all for a good cause, right?  So I chose something for a giveaway now, and another something for one in April.  

 Since Easter is coming up, this is what I chose:
 

The two hand-painted Easter eggs are from India 

and the mat is from Bangladesh (I bought one for myself as well, since I'm very excited about all things from Bangladesh, as I might be going there in the summer of 2011 - you can read a bit about it here)

So if you are interested in the Easter giveaway, please 

leave a comment (for one chance to win)

become a Follower (for another chance to win)

mention it on your blog (for a third chance to win).  

The only thing I ask is that you please, please, please leave me an email address so I can contact you.  

The contest will be closing on Sunday, March 21st at 6:00 EST.