Ten Thousand Villages

Joyce Doran has had a long career with non-profit organizations. Experienced with volunteer management and planning, she started as a volunteer with Ten Thousand Villages in 2013. After word got out about her skills, Ten Thousand Villages offered her a management position at the new downtown Calgary location in May of 2014.

“Helping others has always been a pull for me,” Joyce says. “This company is especially interesting because of their goals. They aim to support artisans and artisan groups in developing countries.”

Edna Ruth Bylar from Kansas began this fair trade company. She travelled to Central America and bought the products made by local women. Bringing these products home and selling them out of church basements helped start the company that is today Ten Thousand Villages.