This holiday season, we wanted to offer another way to give back. Many of you may remember our bag auction from last year where we had a few of our employees in Guatemala design their own unique bags and we auctioned them off to all of you. Because it was so successful, we have decided to host the auction again this year! The money raised will be matched by Nena & Co.! We take great pride in paying fair wages and providing benefits to our employees so this extra money helps them pay for or buy that special item that they've been saving up for! Last year one employee was able to pay off his motorcycle which is his main source of transportation! Another employee was able to pay for a year of school! So, the more money we can raise, the better!
Meet these talented Artisans (and see their designs) below! The rules are: Nena & Co. payed for all the materials they wanted to use but the artisan had to create their own interpretation of the Convertible Day Bag on their own time and that's it! Tune in THIS Friday, December 16th at 6 pm MST to our Instagram Live & Facebook Live auction event!
Name: Cesar Antonio Najera
Job: Bag Maker
"I am 19 years old, recently married and we have a newborn child. I will use the money I earn from the sale of this bag to continue my college education to better my family's situation. I really like the style of this bag, and I think that the person who buys this bag will feel that they have a very high quality and unique bag."
Name: Cirilo Guerra Valle
Job: Cobbler
"My name is Cirilo Guerra, I'm married with 3 children. I will be using the money I receive from the sale of the bag to help cover the cost of my son's wedding, which will occur on the 7th of January. I think that the design of the bag is very pretty. This has been a great opportunity to put the skills I've developed at this job into practice. Thank you for this opportunity."
Name: David Geronimo Cabrera
Job: Cobbler
"My name is David, I'm 45 years old. I have been married for 22 years and my wife and I have 7 beautiful children. I will be using the money I earn from this bag to continue paying for my children's education. I am a cobbler, so making a bag was a wonderful experience and challenge that I am happy to have had the chance to complete."
Name: Edgar Colindres
Job: Factory Supervisor/Vendor and Purchasing Manager
"I love the look and style of this bag, but I wanted to make mine extra special, so I searched for a very unique huipil. I found this very rare huipil that has meaning and unique colors. I am the person who acquires the Huipils from their owners, I get to know the people and the previous owner of this bag had many wonderful stories about the Huipils. So the color combinations are beautiful, but the stories behind them are even better. I have two children, a 12 year old boy and a 7 year old daughter. I will be using part of the money that I earn from this bag to pay for their schooling. The rest I will be adding to our savings so that one day my wife and I can return to school and finish our degrees. I was studying Business Administration before I had to drop out to provide for my family."
Name: Ana Gabriela Solorzano
Job: Quality Control Supervisor
"My name is Ana Gabriela, I am currently single, living with my parents. My family is the most important thing in my life. I will be using the money that I earn from the sale of the bag to help pay for the rest of my school costs to graduate, and to help my family bills.
The most important part of the bags to me is the Huipil, it must represent the Guatemalan culture well. I wish to share a part of my country's culture with the person who buys this bag. It is a beautiful culture, full of traditions, ethnicity, customs and above all it is a country and culture of colors."
Name: Heidy Cancinos
Job: Seamstress
"My name is Heidy Cancinos. I live with my 7 year old daughter and my mother. I will be using the money to repair a few things around my house, pay for my daughter's school expenses and doctor's visits. I think that the bag that I created is very original. I enjoy a challenge and I think that I met this challenge head-on. Thank you for the opportunity and for considering my bag for purchase."
Name: Jonathan Amilcar Silva Colindres
Job: Senior Bag Maker
"My name is Jonathan, I am 23 years old. I am single and I live at home with my parents and my brother. I will be using the money I earn to help my parents with the bills and to help pay for the cost to study at the local college. This is my favorite style of bag to make. I added my own flare to the bag so that whoever buys this bag will have something special that I put my heart into."
Name: Luis Lopez Escobar
Job: Bag Maker
"My name is Luis, I am recently married. We just welcomed our first child, she is a beautiful 9 month old. I plan to use the money to continue bettering our economic situation. To not have the stress of money during the holiday season would relieve us of some financial stress and be able to enjoy our new family. My main focus with my bag was the convenience and style. I have been thinking of ideas to implement into this bag all year and I feel that I was able to translate my ideas into a great bag. I also want to win first place in our competition. I hope you like the bag that I've put so much effort into."
Name: Luis Yol
Job: Bag Maker
"My name is Luis. I am married with 2 kids. The money I get from this bag will help me support my family and enjoy our time together more. I love what I am doing and hope to continue working here. I think that this bag style is very beautiful and functional. I put all my effort and dedication into making this bag."
Name: Mary Adela Montezuma
Job: Seamstress
"Hello, my name is Mary Adela. I am 54 years old, I have two children and 2 grandchildren who I love very much. I created this bag with the hope to earn some extra money to help pay off some debt, and to help my family during this time of year. I chose a well liked style because I too like the look of it, I then added a few personal touches to make it stand out."
Name: Vicente Romero Chiquito
Job: Lead Bag Maker
"My name is Vicente. I am 50 years old, and the father of 5 children, who are my inspiration to work my hardest. I will be using the money I earn from the sale of the bag to buy the traditional Guatemalan holiday outfits for my children. I used the Day Bag design, because it is already a beautiful bag. I put a lot of dedication into this bag and I hope that the person that buys it will love it."
Name: Walter Soto Najera
Job: Lead Bag Maker
"My name is Walter Soto, I am 29 years old. I have two children that I provide for. I will be using the earned money to buy a few things that my kids need, and to pay a few pending bills. This is my version of the Day Bag II, made with the Momo poncho fabric. It's not a typical Day Bag."
