In 1946 pioneering Mennonite businesswoman Edna Ruth Byler met women in the La Plata Valley who were struggling to feed their children. She began selling the beautiful needlework they made to friends in the US, sending the profits back to the sewing group in Puerto Rico. In 1962 her project was adopted by the MCC as the Overseas Needlework and Crafts Project. Led by visionary Lois Kreider, members of Bluffton First Mennonite opened the first Fair Trade storefront in the country in 1974, and called it Self Help Crafts. They began a thrift store called Etcetera to raise money to buy the inventory. It was renamed Ten Thousand Villages in 1996 and now sells products from 30 countries worldwide, empowering workers to raise their standard of living, feed their families, and pursue an education. In 2024 we will celebrate 50 years of Etcetera, Inc. with events throughout the year.