Medrine’s Dream

The Story of Medrine

Medrine Muhindo had a dream for when she finished her education in sewing and design: she would teach the young people in her community the craft, so they might find work mending, making, or even designing dresses. Alternatives in Kasese were scarce. Many children were forced to drop out of school by age 12 because of the mandatory school fees that their parents couldn’t afford. And without school, there were no jobs. At least not legal, safe jobs.

In a region of Uganda where most people are surviving on less than a dollar per day, the sex slave industry is booming and child brides are negotiated regularly. Hard manual labor like carrying illegal firewood is a common option for young girls and boys. But Medrine had skills, and she could share them.

Unfortunately, when she scraped together what little she had to open a sew school, no one could afford to pay the modest fees she required. “I intended to charge 30,000 shillings (about $10) but students could not afford it,” she told me as we sat in the dim room where 16 sewing machines are now arranged in a neat U.

Luckily, Laurie DeJong, CEO of LDJ Productions and founder of Paper Fig Foundation, had already begun work in that region of Uganda. At the time, LDJ Productions was the agency of record for New York Fashion Week, among other major events. Paper Fig Foundation had started work on a few fashion weeks in East Africa, including Kigali Fashion Week and Kampala Fashion Week. So when Laurie stumbled upon Medrine and her aspirations, it was a fortuitous meeting.

“We were driving through Kidodo Village,” recalled DeJong, “and there was a woman operating a sewing school out of a shack. There were a couple of mannequins outside and I saw she was making patterns out of paper bags. There was a series of patterns she had made from newspapers, and she had strung them across the shack.

And I got out of the car and walked over to her. She just had this gleam in her eye, and I said; “Who are you and what are you doing?” And she said, “I'm Medrine and I want to be a businesswoman.”  

After months of talking, Laurie DeJong and the Paper Fig Foundation decided to support Medrine’s dream of starting a sew school in Kidodo Village.

“Within six months, we grew out of the little shack,” said DeJong. “We combed the neighborhood for a different location, and we were able to find the location we’re in now, which fits about 16 sewing machines.”

Medrine has scaled the program. Each session lasts 6 months, with intakes in July and January. And with each successive session, there have been more students enrolled. More than 300 girls and women have passed through the PFF sewing school since its inception, and there are now two different locations and three full time teachers on salary.

On a personal level, it’s transformed Medrine’s life. When she first told her parents she wanted to make clothes, they refused to let her go to school for it. They didn’t think it would pay.

“I spent one year at home doing nothing,” she said.

Finally, after pressure from the community, her father agreed to let her go to sew school. Now, she is able to support her family with her sewing.

“I bought my father a pair of trousers,” she said, “and I bought my mother a Christmas dress. When I gave my parents these items they were surprised because they realized tailoring is [profitable]. Now my parents respect my career. The Paper Fig Foundation pays me a salary, and I am able to pay school fees for my children.”

Medrine’s parents allowed her younger sister to attend the PFF Sew School, and now she’s a graduate as well.

“So she is also working,” said Medrine. “Paper Fig is a good organization because it is taking care of me and my family.”