Borrowing one of our favorite phrases - which has become our tagline - "scatter joy" practically says it all. In Ralph Waldo Emerson's own words: " There is no beautifier of complexion, or form, or behavior, like the wish to scatter joy and not pain around us."
When I first visited Rwanda, I was overtaken by the joy exuding from its people. It was....everywhere! In the city, in rural villages. Amongst the educated as well as the poorest of the poor. Rwandans are a joyful people. Regardless of circumstance, they are joyful. We knew that "joy" would be central to everything we do at flourFLOWER.
Our "SCATTER JOY" Totes are an ode to Rwanda. But with much of Rwanda closed to a government-mandated shutdown due to the COVID-19 global pandemic, we decided to have all of our Message Totes made right here in South Florida. They give work to artisans living in our Palm Beach community whose livelihoods were adversely impacted as well. It's our way of supporting our local community and scattering joy in our own backyard. As with all artisan products made by flourFLOWER - regardless of locale - profits go directly to our work centers and bakery projects in rural Rwanda. Our over-arching goal remains the same: to feed the hungry and give work to those who might lack opportunity for meaningful work otherwise.
