The work of one North Bay local has created a ripple of tangible, positive change in the world.
A Marin County citizen recently promoted women’s empowerment, supported the continued culture of traditional artisans, and, perhaps most impressively, put warm beanies on the heads of newborn babies who would have otherwise gone without.
Through the work of the Rotary Club of Novato and its president, Robert Marshall, newborn babies in Guatemala now receive beanies upon delivery. This may not seem like a luxury to many Americans, but it makes all the difference to the children being born born there
Marshall began the newborn baby beanie movement after visiting Guatemala for work on a humanitarian project in 2023. While there, he witnessed a NICU with newborn babies wearing diapers on their heads for warmth instead of hats due to the hospital’s limited resources.
“I was shocked and couldn’t believe that’s what they had to do,” said Marshall.
After seeing these newborn babies wearing diapers instead of beanies, Marshall knew he had to take action and find a way to help supply the hospitals in Guatemala with the baby hats they needed. He reached out to his connections back home and, through his network, found exactly what he needed to address the problem. More specifically, he found Friendship Bridge.
Friendship Bridge is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that strives to empower women in Guatemala by providing their clients access to resources in education, employment and healthcare (to name only a few). Through this, Friendship Bridge aims to create a space that provides opportunities for more personal agency to the women of Guatemala and help those who wish to build a better life for themselves and their families.
“When Robert saw newborn babies in Guatemala wearing diapers on their heads to keep warm, he put a lot of feelers out to his connections in California,” said content and press associate for Friendship Bridge, Lydia Shoaf. “Betty Chambers Toguchi lives in Foster City, and she’s a longtime supporter of Handmade by Friendship Bridge. Betty connected him to Friendship Bridge, and she said our artisans could make the hats and give beanies to babies in need.”
Handmade by Friendship Bridge, a subset of the nonprofit, focuses on supporting female artisans in Guatemala by facilitating the creation and sale of their handmade goods both locally and globally.
“One of the big things about the female artisans in our program is that we know when their businesses are doing well in Guatemala, it directly relates to keeping their children in school longer since even children as young as elementary may have to quit school to help their parents,” explained Shoaf.
“The more money they can make, through the beanies or through individual sales, the more education we’re providing to young Guatemalan children. Our clients, they want their children to be educated and to make change for the next generation, but they need help from organizations like ours to support that next generation of children,” Shoaf continued.
By supporting Guatemala’s local female artisans, Handmade by Friendship Bridge hopes to empower women through employment, provide continued education for their children and help preserve Guatemala’s traditional culture of skilled artisans and their crafts.
“I hadn’t been to Guatemala prior to taking the job [at Friendship Bridge], but through working here, I’ve gotten to meet a lot of our clients firsthand,” explained Shoaf. “I’ve learned a lot about the country and the conditions they face—for instance, it’s the most gender-unequal country in Latin America, so the women we serve face a lot of inequality, which affects their ability to work and make a living in their country.”
“So many things are different [for women in Guatemala]…the number one way it’s different is it’s so much harder to earn a living as a woman,” continued Shoaf. “Our goal as a nonprofit is to serve women in Guatemala, and our hope and our goal is to help women thrive in Guatemala.”
According to Shoaf, women in Guatemala face many obstacles that obstruct the path to finding opportunities to make a living for themselves. The high poverty rates of the country play a significant part in the problematic employment landscape. Still, it is the unequal gender roles that affect the agency of female artisans even further.
“If [women in Guatemala] suffer a divorce or if the male partner leaves them, he also takes the business or property they own together,” Shoaf explained. “Even women who have been able to build a business on their own can have their personal resources taken away from them.”
Friendship Bridge, the Rotary Club of Novato and others are working together to create change for these women and their families through movements such as the beanies for newborn babies program. This humanitarian endeavor impacts not only the babies but also allows for gradual social change that empowers female artisans, preserves culture and paves the way toward a better future.
The Rotary Club of Novato needs to raise $6,000 annually to continue the newborn baby hat initiative and make the program sustainable in future years.
“This [beanie initiative] did all happen because of the Rotary Club of Novato and Robert for fundraising and raising awareness within his community in California,” said Shoaf.
“I would like this to be an endless program,” Marshall said. “No babies should have to wear diapers on their heads to stay warm.”
To volunteer or donate to the newborn hat initiative in Guatemala, contact Robert Marshall at **@im**********.com or visit novatorotary.org and friendshipbridge.org.
