Meetings With Remarkable Women - Dr Ina le Roux

Carolyn Foley writes: I would like to tell you about Dr Ina le Roux and the wonderful work she has done for Vena women in South Africa. This entry from the Community Project website says it better than I can. The Tambani Community Project (www.tambani.co.za) is based in the towns of Fholovhodwe and Muswodi-Tshisimani, which are in close proximity of each other. These towns are situated in the Limpopo Valley, approximately 50 km south-east from Musina, and approximately 750 km north-east from Potchefstroom. The founder and head director of the project is Dr. Ina le Roux of Johannesburg. She is a retired lecturer of Afrikaans and Dutch whose Ph.D in religious science dealt with the worldview presented in the song-stories (ngano) of Venda women.

The dire financial and social plight of these rural women’s realities captivated Ina and motivated her to launch an embroidery project that currently helps to support about 65 women and their families. Ina makes sketches on fabric of scences from the stories that she has recorded and the members of the project then embroider these scenes. The pieces of fabric are applied to items such as handbags and wall hangings, and marketed together with the specific stories. Money generated from selling the articles is used to further fund the project.

With each embroidery I have purchased I receive a copy of the story they illustrate and a photo with a little piece about the embroiderer. These women are inspirational. Embroidery does make a difference! Just click here to see more of this inspirational project yourself.