Empowerment Center Graduation Ceremony  

In March, Sambhali Trust held a graduation ceremony for 307 women and adolescent girls who had completed training from Empowerment Centers in Jodhpur and Setrawa. In May, another 46 became the first graduates of the new Empowerment Centers in Jaisalmer.

When a student graduates from a Sambhali Empowerment Center, she receives a sewing machine she can use as she wishes to further her own economic power, whether by starting her own business, continuing with Sambhali Dastakar, or making the clothes she and her family need. So, on this day, as graduates and their families gathered with pride, awaiting them were literal walls of sewing machines and sewing tables.  

If you’ve ever doubted that a sewing machine could change a life, these photos may convince you.