Measurement: History/Herstory

Our Work is Grounded in the Dreams of Some Courageous Visionaries

Ever dream? Ever gather with kindred spirits to imagine how the world could be better? That's how Salvadoran Enterprises for Women began.

In repeated visits to El Salvador, Sister Anne Marie Gardiner, SSND experienced the courageous spirit of the Salvadoran people despite heart breaking poverty and continued government neglect. The signing of the Peace Accords in 1992 officially closed the violent decade of civil war though literally millions were still mired in the displacement, unemployment, abject poverty, and lack of opportunity that are always left in the wake of war.

Sister Cathy Arata, SSND lived and worked in El Salvador for eleven years from 1989 to 2000. Through those years, she introduced Anne Marie to many women's groups and women leaders in that country. Drawing on those contacts, Anne Marie convened a dream group in January of 1993 with the help of colleague Leslie Schuld. The goal was to dream together how to reduce the harsh poverty of so many Salvadoran women. The consensus from those gathered was threefold: initiate small business endeavors, have them close to home, and have the businesses produce basic items needed in the communities so the businesses were not dependent on export and foreign markets, and consequently, the money stays in the local economies.

The next step was to implement those dreams. Through the generosity of the School Sisters of Notre Dame, the Catholic community of nuns of which she and Cathy Arata are members, Anne Marie again gathered kindred spirits—men and women committed to women's empowerment—to plan how to implement this dream. Thus, Salvadoran Enterprises for Women was born with its goal of "economic and social justice for women through small business development." The first business endeavor was funded in July of 1993. In 2003, Salvadoran Enterprises for Women registered as a 501(c)(3) public charity with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service.

If you dream of a world where all women enjoy human rights, have the means to feed their children and work and live in communities with dignity and respect, you are invited to join our efforts. We're making it possible for women to work their way out of poverty one business at a time.