The Make-A-Difference-Market

Wednesday, January 3, 2007

Mimi Hollinger-Janzen
As a second year anthropology student at the University of Waterloo, Conrad Grebel resident Mimi Hollinger-Janzen has resolved to make a difference in the world.

Born in Benin, West Africa where she spent her first thirteen years, Mimi returned to Benin last summer to work in a children's home called Casa Grande. From the dream of its founders and the support of a small Mennonite congregation in Spain, the home has grown into a permanent family for 24 children who have been separated from their biological parents through death or because of health or financial hardships. La Casa Grande is expanding its facilities to accommodate the growing number of children needing a loving home and to begin to realize their long-term vision of becoming a more viable Christian community for 100 children with a school, a health center and training opportunities in agriculture, crafts and technical vocations.

Upon returning to school in the fall, Mimi brought back necklaces handmade by the children at La Casa Grande. Her personal project was to sell this jewelry to raise money for the home. After some brainstorming, Mimi, the Conrad Grebel Chapel Committee, together with Chaplain Ed Janzen, decided to host a Christmas bazaar at the college and invited Ten Thousand Villages and Nazareth Village ministry to be part of it.

The Make-A-Difference-Market evolved to host eleven individual vendors and two organizations, drawing more than 250 local shoppers.

There are times everything comes together in pretty amazing ways - the heart of who we are, our experiences, and our opportunities, find expression in our daily life,

mused Ed Janzen.

The Make-A-Difference-Market was one such time for various members of the Conrad Grebel community.

All vendors donated 10% of their proceeds to La Casa Grand, raising over $500. While Mimi was happy with this amount, she said,

the more important thing is that now people are aware of La Casa Grande. Also, the event showed people that they have an alternative to shopping at the mall to buy Christmas presents, and that they can buy thoughtful, meaningful gifts that not only bring pleasure to the recipient but also help the person who created that gift. You can feel good about your purchase because you know that the money is going to a good cause instead of to a large corporation.

Mimi Hollinger-Janzen at the Make-A-Difference-Market
With an impressive variety, quality, and number of vendors, there were a lot of international crafts like handmade paper, jewelry and wood carvings, as well as food, like fair trade coffee, tea and chocolate, jam and dried fruit. The individual vendors each specialized in one area, such as knitting, wood carving, handmade candles, handmade greeting cards, Christmas decorations, hemp clothing, knit purses and accessories, and vinyl purses and bags. In addition there was a display set up with the stories of the children and a slideshow and some information about La Casa Grand’s building project.

Reflecting back on the event, Ed Janzen said that

the relationships that Mimi had with Casa Grande through her family's experience as missionaries in Benin, her and her friends’ concerns for justice and peace, the support of the college and the opportunities of the Christmas season all came together to make a difference for the children's home in Benin. Such an event turns the circumstances of life into a lifestyle of Christian commitment.

Despite the enormous amount of work it took to organize, Mimi was pleased with how the market turned out. It is not certain that the Make-a-Difference-Market will be an annual event since Mimi will be participating in a Serving and Learning Together (SALT) term next year. However she hopes that some student or perhaps the chapel group will step forward to coordinate it next year.

In addition to planning this event, Mimi is part of the chapel planning group at Conrad Grebel, and has been or is currently involved at the University of Waterloo in the African Students Association, the Women's Centre, Peace Society, and the Genocide Action Group.