How One Woman Became Involved

My name is Libby Casas and I am the representative for Kabul Dolls in the USA.

I saw my first Kabul Doll in February of 2007. It had been brought back to the US by someone who had been working in Afghanistan and had bought it at a fair or bazaar in Kabul. I was captivated by this unusual and distinctive doll, which clearly had been made by hand.

I tried to find out more about Kabul Dolls, but there was not much information anywhere on the internet. Through a website for the dolls which existed at the time, I was able to find an email contact address and in a few weeks I received a reply from Wheeda Mehri, the manager of the women's group. Her simple reply touched my heart. She apologized for taking so long to reply but said she hoped I understood the difficulties that women have in finding a safe place to use the internet in Kabul. She also said that, though dolls were being made and offered for sale, they were unable to ship them to the US.

I had an immediate and strong desire to help these women to bring their product to the US. After several months I received two small shipments of dolls and began in July to show them and sell them to my friends. Their response was enthusiastic! Everyone was impressed by the skill shown in the making of the dolls and in their costumes. Most people had never seen anything like them before.

Since then, I have received several more shipments from Afghanistan and have sold altogether nearly 200 dolls. This is a small number, but each doll sold represents a victory for the women who work so hard to make them to support themselves and their families.

My involvement is completely voluntary. I have taken no profit for myself and have sent 100% of the money from sales back to the Kabul Dolls enterprise. My reward is knowing that I have made a difference in the lives of some women in war-weary Kabul, and someday I hope to be able to meet them and tell them how talented and skillful they are.