The initiative helped to raise funds for the 9th Youth Festival for Peace, taking place in Salvador on the last Sunday (28th).
From the outside, the large porch of the cozy house at Vila Planalto in Brasilia looked more like the window of a large store. Rails and hangers displayed colorful clothes. On the improvised shelves there were shoes, trinkets, housewares, and even toys were on display. “Those who walked by on the street felt as if they were passing in front of a store. A great variety, everything tidy and well organized,” says Helda Pinheiro, the coordinator of the Light-Network of Brasilia, an association connected with Fraternidade – International Humanitarian Federation.
The strategy to draw the public was not for commercial profit, on the contrary. The 12 volunteers, led by Helda, knew that the reason for the work was noble.
The 12th edition of the “Bazaar of Peace,” taking place on the weekend on July 13 and 14, gathered resources that were destined for the organization of the Youth Festival for Peace, carried out in Salvador on July 28.
The “Bazaar of Peace” happens every two months, always with goods offered by the community and by members of the Light-Network of Brasilia. “We all give. And the cool thing is that all members of the Light-Network give and buy. Besides that, we receive offerings from our friends that are not of the Light-Network as donations,” says Helda.
The space for the bazaar has been provided by dona Lúcia to the Light-Network of Brasilia for the last 3 years. “She was a friend of one of the members of the Light-Network and now is a friend of all of us. It is a greatly looked-forward-to bazaar; the whole neighborhood waits for it,” says Helda.
It was two days of a lot of activity in the house of dona Lúcia, with lots of people coming in, choosing, and buying the carefully selected items. More than 400 pieces were sold. As well as providing the house, dona Lúcia offered to take care of the food for the volunteers. “She makes delicious vegetarian food. She didn’t know how to do it, but learned. It is a time of great integration, of harmony, of joy, that mealtime there with her,” says Helda.
Two volunteers, Ana Paula Cavalcante Vieira and Dulcemar Coelho, are those responsible for organizing it all, as if it were a department store. They separate the pieces, put on prices, and even attend to those who come. “Everybody knows Ana Paula and Dulce. They already know what people like and what they don’t like. They take charge of the checkout and make notes of the pieces; how much each person took,” Helda emphasizes. “The cool thing about the bazaar was that we were all happy. We, because we are helping raise resources to help others; and those who buy, because they are doing a good deed. It’s very emotional”, says the coordinator of the Light-Network of Brasilia.
