50 Days and Counting!

In less than two months we will be heading to Africa. Our trip will be filled with meeting with artisans and searching for new product and materials. I am so excited! Our team will consist of Maggie, Travis, Kerbi, Brady, Rebecca and myself. Here are a few photos from my last trip in 2009. Safari :)

Can't wait to show you new photos from this upcoming trip! And of course we'll keep you updated along the way.

-Katy
Team RETCo

Media Monday: News that Rox

We were on Channel 2 News at 5pm yesterday. Thank you Roxanna for featuring us!



Have a great week!

-Team RETCo

Spring has Sprung!

Winter was officially over this past Sunday and a new season has begun. There's nothing like the inspiration that comes from new life in the Springtime.

We just discovered these little guys right outside the office.

Springtime here at RETCo also means lots of exciting things coming up. 

This is Love Banquet is only two weeks away. We are ready to get together and share what we have been up to. Tickets are still available so join us!

Our International Coordinators Katie and Chris have been back in the states visiting for the past two months.  We got to sit down together yesterday and talk about all things RETCo.  We planned for the future, which includes our upcoming trip to Africa in May.  It's getting so close and we can't wait to get over there and see everyone!

Spring is off to a great start so far!
Have a great weekend!

-Team RETCo

Media Monday: Zach Farro

When we make our videos, we like to get our friends involved as well. If you had a chance to check our last blog, you might have noticed that the music was by a band called Half Noise. It's main contributor is our close friend Zach Farro. A few weeks ago, he came to us and said that he loves what we are doing here at Red Earth and that he wanted to write the music for one of our videos. When we decided to start our Artisan Stories series, we thought it would be the right fit. He and Edwin spent a whole day recording, and this song can now be heard in the video on Vincent and his cow horn business.

Check them out and stay tuned for some more amazing music from Zach and Half Noise. Maybe we'll even convince him to work on another video someday. :)

Have a great week!

-Team RETCo

Artisan Stories: Cow Horn

Meet our friend Vincent and his company Horn Crafts Limited from Uganda. He makes all of the cow horn products here at RETCo.


Artisan Stories - Cow Horn from Red Earth Trading Co. on Vimeo.

We are so thankful to be working with talented people like Vincent and we love watching his business continue to grow.  We're so excited to visit him again in May on our next trip to Africa!

Be sure to check out his amazing artistry at the online store!

-Team RETCo

Media Monday: Japan Relief

Japan has been on our hearts and minds since Thursday. For this week's Media Monday, instead of blogging about bands we've been listening to, we wanted to turn your attention to a couple ways you can get involved in helping those affected.

Samaritan's Purse is an amazing International Relief organization. They currently have a team on the way to Japan to distribute food, water, blankets, hygiene supplies, and other aid. Click here read more and donate.

If you're on Twitter, there are several organizations that will donate money based on tweets. One of these is @vitacoco, a company that sells coconut water. They'll give $1 for each ReTweet.

These are just a couple avenues to help- there are so many available! Compassion is love that must act, so get out there and help those in need.

-Team RETCo

We like to party!

Host a Red Earth Party! from Red Earth Trading Co. on Vimeo.

If you'd like to host a party, email us: info@redearthtradingco.com.

-Team RETCo

Just another day at the office.

Office Video Blog from Red Earth Trading Co. on Vimeo.

Stop by and hang with us some time... but be careful, we might put you to work!

-Team RETCo

Media Monday: Afterlife Parade

Our Monday morning meeting at RETCo has been accompanied by Afterlife Parade's new EP Death. Check it out here. We are also secretly listening to the upcoming EP Rebirth. Get excited!

Our friend Jacob Blaze did the cover art. Check his work out here.

Have a great week!

Team RETCo

Know.Think.Act

Know.Think.Act, another GSM program, is an online community that lists specific needs in Africa and allows you to pick a project and raise money for it. These projects include everything from mosquito nets and building wells, to HIV treatment and transportation. You raise the money, and locals carry out the change. 100% of the money raised goes towards the project you choose, and you get to see the progress.

Yes, 100% of the money goes toward the projects. Know.Think.Act is able to do that because of us (this is where part of RETCo's profits go) and GSM Legacy Partners (people and businesses that support GSM's operations).



Moses' Story from Global Support Mission on Vimeo.

That's just one of the many stories that we've been able to be a part of through Know.Think.Act. If you want to hear more stories, click here.

Remember, every time you make a purchase from Red Earth, you're not only supporting local businesses in Africa, you're also helping kids like Moses.

If you'd like more information on becoming a Legacy Partner, email info@globalsupportmission.com

Team RETCo

This is Love Banquet: April 7th

It's time for the fourth annual This is Love Banquet! This year it will be held at Rocketown on April 7th at 6:30 pm.

Every year, we get together to share what's been going on at Global Support and Know.Think.Act as well as raise support for all of the projects we have planned for the upcoming year.

This year, Red Earth will be a big part of the event! We'll have tons of our products set up for everyone to check out.

It's going to be an amazing night that you won't want to miss. Tickets are $25 a person, or $400 to sponsor a table (8 seats). You can buy them online here.

For more information, check out the This is Love Banquet website. 

Check out these photos from last year's event!

We can't wait to see you there!

-Team RETCo

How Red Earth Got Its Name.

Back in March of 2010, a few of us grabbed some coffee and sat down for a morning of brainstorming.  Our goal was to come up with a name for the direct trade branch of Global Support Mission, what we now lovingly call Red Earth Trading Co. 

Basically, it was "anything goes." Whatever idea came to mind, we wrote it up on the office white board, shown below. If you look closely, you can actually see at the top, towards the left, where "Red Earth" was written.

We didn't walk out of the office that day settled on the name.  In fact, we still had no clue what to call the company.  A few weeks later we left for Uganda still thinking it over.

A few weeks into the trip, the name Red Earth resurfaced.  Uganda's dirt roads and foot paths are so beautiful.  The deep red dirt and clay is in such wonderful contrast with the saturated green vegetation and crisp blue skys.  Everything started here, and it only made sense to give the company a name that reminds us of that... that reminds us of those who walk those roads and trails every day.

-Team RETCo.

Meet Our Video Editor: AJ Gibboney

Did you see our Behind the Scenes: January Photoshoot video? Our friend AJ Gibboney edited it for us and did a beautiful job! He's got some real talent.

AJ

My introduction to Red Earth came through Edwin, Kerbi and Katy.  I moved to Nashville from Ohio almost a year ago to get involved in filmmaking and music.  I've met so many creative, talented and hardworking people here that I instantly felt at home here in Nashville.  Getting to know them has revealed a group that have a heart for outreach and community.  I was eager to learn more and was honored that they would ask me to help out on a project. Global Support Mission and Red Earth Trading Company celebrate the uniqueness of community and it's power in building something great.  It's a beautiful thing!  It's the community of people like Edwin, Kerbi and Katy that are giving me a vision of what GSM and RETCo can do for others.

If you are interested in having AJ do some work for you, contact him: aj.gibboney@gmail.com

Meet Our Models!

Meet three of our lovely models, Anna, Lisa, and Emilia! We are so thankful for their beauty, time and dear friendship.

Anna

Hi, I'm Anna! I met Travis, Brady and the GSM crew in the summer of 2007 and the vision they shared with me about Global Support Mission was amazing. As I've gotten to know them and work with them through the years, they have consistently been a source of inspiration. From their humble, gracious hearts to their creativity to daily putting their words and ideals into action and growing the organization to what it is today!

Upon meeting them and learning what GSM is all about, I immediately let them know that if there was anything I could do to help them I would be happy to! Since then, I've had the honor of helping out with a couple of their "This Is Love" banquets, hosting a couple Red Earth Trade Co. events at my house, hosting Faith from Bringing Hope To the Family while she was in town, and now most recently modeling for the Red Earth Trading Co. website.

I can't say enough about GSM/RETCo and all the people involved with these organizations. They are truly impacting the world daily and I'm thrilled to get to be even just a small part of it.

 Lisa

 

Hi, I’m Lisa! I’ve known Kerbi and Katy for a couple years. Before Red Earth, I was introduced to Global Support Mission when I attended a banquet and loved the heart behind the organization. About a year ago, Kerbi mentioned starting a new project with Global Support that would focus on new opportunity through amazing handmade products.  It has been incredible to see the project come to life and I’m honored to even be a tiny part of RETCO! The products are absolutely beautiful and they support such a great cause. 

 Emilia

Hello, I’m Emilia! I met Travis and Maggie in 2009 through a friend who was involved with Global Support Mission. I had heard much about GSM and highly respected their vision to help community leaders in developing countries fight extreme poverty. God had placed Africa on my heart early in my life and I desperately wanted to be involved! I went to Uganda with the team in the Spring of 2010. I got to see first-hand all the ways in which the lives of people were drastically changed by the work that Global Support had already done. After one month, I was (thankfully) destroyed and will never see things the same again.

An important part of community development is obviously self-sufficiency, and Red Earth Trading Company seeks to support this by shipping beautiful products straight from the communities who produced them and turning around to return 100% of the profit back to these communities through the work of GSM. THAT is awesome. It’s amazing to see what God’s doing through GSM and RETCo and I am so grateful to be a part of it!

January Photoshoot: Behind the Scenes Video

Hey everyone! Check out this behind the scenes video from our recent photoshoot. We had so much fun. A big thank you to all of our models and helping hands!



January Photoshoot: Behind the Scenes from Red Earth Trading Co. on Vimeo.

And the Winner is...!

Congratulations to Eric Olson (@electedofficial)!  As the winner of our twitter raffle, he gets to pick any item he wants from our online store for free + free shipping!  Thanks so much to everyone who participated!  We'll be having lots more give aways... so keep checking in!  You can follow us on twitter here.

Twitter Raffle!

Hey Everyone! In case you missed it, we are having a Twitter Raffle! All you have to do is tweet "Shop @redearthtrade! www.redearthtradingco.com" to be entered! Don't forget to follow us as well! Good luck!

New Product Video!

Hey Everyone, We got some New Product from Africa! Check it out.

Hey, I'm Edwin

Hey, I'm Edwin and I am the latest addition to Red Earth Trading Co. Being the new guy means that I am here to help with almost every aspect of the organization.

My Red Earth story starts three years ago. After being a full time touring musician for four years, I suddenly found myself without a band and without direction. I decided to spend some time traveling to try to find the path that God had for me. During my travels I met many new people and also became somewhat enamored with the South, particularly with Nashville, TN. One of the people I met was Kerbi, so when I decided to relocate to Nashville from California we became friends.

It didn't take to long for the music industry to pull me back in and I start touring again soon after. Although I did enjoy what I was doing, I found myself once again looking to do something that had more purpose. I went to an event and saw how much dedication Kerbi had to Red Earth, so I decided to find out more about it. All I had to do was sit down once with Travis to know that this was what I had been looking for. Needless to say, God will open doors if you ask him to.

I am very excited and look forward to what God has in store for all of us here at Red Earth Trading Co.


Edwin

Hi! I'm Maggie.

Hey everybody! My name is Maggie and I am the Office Manager here at Red Earth Trading Co.  I help with anything going on around the office or lend a hand in everything from tagging product to setting up house parties.  My main responsibilities are to keep everyone organized, maintain the finances, and work on everything else administrative. 

My story with Red Earth begins quite a while back even though RETCo. is a newer company.  As soon as I graduated from college with a degree in Psychology I had the desire to travel and see new places and learn about different cultures.  I began my travels by taking the excruciating 18 hour flight to Australia with my best friend.  When I returned home, I knew that trip had sparked something in my life that would affect who I was to become.  A few years later I decided to live abroad in Cyprus, a small island in the Mediterranean Sea, where I attended a small discipleship program. From there I traveled to Israel, Germany, and Greece.  All together I was abroad seven months. This trip added fuel to the fire and really ignited my passions for seeing the beauty in cultures and countries other than my own.  I knew that my life would be spent doing whatever I could to help and serve others.

In February 2009, Travis and I met and in October 2009, we were married.  We quickly learned that we shared the same passion for helping others and seeing others lives changed for the better.  I started helping with Global Support Mission and now with Red Earth Trading Co.  Earlier this year we went to Uganda and Kenya for two and a half months.  Even though I had only heard stories about these places, when I got there I felt at home.  I was so moved by the kindness and joy in the hearts of the people that we began to meet and work with.  What I love most about what we do is being able to capture beauty and stories from a different culture and bring that back to the US.  Whether it be the actual jewelry or the story of a persons' life transformed, it makes me really excited to see where this will take us all. 

Maggie
Office Manager