Teen promotes African jewelry as prom wear
Donning a beaded necklace, Francie Fisher pins a flower on her prom
date with a glass-bead stickpin. The jewelry was made by Ethiopian
children she met during a mission trip to Africa last year. A UMNS
photo by Jamey Tucker.
By Jamey Tucker
May 1, 2009 | NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS)
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During
her mission trip to Africa last year, Fisher visits with Ethiopian
children making glass beads. A UMNS photo courtesy of Francie Fisher.
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High school senior Francie Fisher is hoping to convince students around
the country to start a new tradition at their senior prom.
Instead of flower corsages, Fisher wants them to buy
heart-shaped beads made out of glass by Ethiopian teens. Memories of
their big night would not only last in the form of beautiful jewelry,
but include the knowledge they helped provide food and education for
needy children.
"How awesome," she says, "You're paying $25, which is probably
cheaper than a flower anyway and you keep it. You don't lose it by the
end of the night or press it and keep it for what, 30 days. It's more
special," Fisher said.
Fisher, who is a member of West End United Methodist Church in
Nashville, Tenn., said she became convinced that this idea could become
a new tradition after seeing Ethiopian girls making the jewelry while
on a mission trip to Africa last year. The teenagers work as part
of a ministry called "Project Mercy" in the Yetebon region of Ethiopia.
Fisher said.
The teenagers, mostly girls, make bracelets, necklaces and earrings in a little room.
“When I walked into the bead room for the first time, I just
broke down and started crying; not out of sadness but out of so much
joy." Fisher said.
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Each bead is created using a blow torch and colored glass rods.
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The joy inspired her to bring their work back home. She ordered
hundreds of the beaded necklaces and stickpins in a variety of colors.
Ensworth School officials allowed her to set up a table during breaks
where she sold the jewelry for $25 each.
"I designed it so that girls would buy the stickpins for the guys as an
alternative to buying a flower, and the necklaces are for the girls to
wear instead of corsages on their wrists," she said.
During one break at school, three high school juniors stood
looking at the colorful necklaces and stickpins. "I'm wearing a navy
dress, what color should I buy my date" one girl asked Fisher. "A solid
red would look nice" she said.
But the humanitarian effort isn't lost in the talk about
fashion and style. Fisher explains to each student where the proceeds
are going, and the inspiration she found with each Ethiopian teenager.
"We've sold so much", Fisher told one student buying a stickpin, "I've made $3,200 to send back."
Helping others comes as a natural outpouring of her faith in Christ and her United Methodist Church youth group, Fisher said.
"The biggest inspiration to me was these young kids," she
said. “So what I'm trying to do is to be the inspiration to everyone
else who wasn't able to see what I saw.”
Fisher said with each sale, she thinks of those teenagers.
Each $25 purchase goes directly to Project Mercy and "pays for a
child's food, education, teacher's salary and uniform for an entire
month" she said.
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Ensworth students bought more than $3,000 worth of jewelry. A UMNS photo by Jamey Tucker.
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On prom night, her efforts paid off. At a home where nearly two dozen
couples gathered for pictures before dinner, about a third of the
students were wearing either a glass-beaded heart stickpin or necklace.
Many of the young men used the colorful stickpins to hold their
boutonniere in place on their lapel. Girls wore their necklaces either
around their neck or on their arm.
Andrew Colton, a senior at Ensworth, purchased one of the
small multi-colored beaded necklaces for his prom date. "When I first
thought about buying beads instead of flower corsages for prom, I
thought it sounded fun because it was something new and out of the
ordinary,” he said. "I knew it would help the ministry in Africa and I
knew my date would want one."
As photographs were being taken, Fisher walked through the
crowd looking at all of the jewelry and remembered the teenagers in the
small bead room in Africa.
"I think about them every day" she said. "The background on my
computer is always a picture of an Ethiopian child or me with them. I
just can't fathom what all goes on there. It's just ... seeing every
one of these glass beads, they're all different. And they're all coming
from these girls who are so gorgeous on the inside and out and are just
so smart and beautiful. It's amazing."
*Tucker is a freelance producer and writer based in Nashville, Tenn.
News media contact: David Briggs, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5472 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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Resources
West End United Methodist Church
Young People’s Ministries
Youth and Young Adults
United Methodist Committee on Relief
Project Mercy | 
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