CARPINTERIA, US: Wilja Happé, Owner Farmers’ West Flowers & Bouquets, is pleased to announce the first aid mission to the nation of Rwanda in Central Africa.

On November 1, 2008 Owner Wilja Happé and General Manager Will Stewart will travel to Central Africa to meet with members of the respected relief group SOLACE. They will be working with volunteers, genocide survivors, war widows and orphans to establish a community garden and flower farm. “Rwanda has three commercial growers who export all of their flowers to Europe,” says Happé “and in the past there were large pyrethrum ranches, so there is a good climate for the women and orphans to grow flowers and sell them at local markets, as well as embassies, aid agencies and markets in the capitol city of Kigali. This will be a way for them to support themselves and their children. There is more information available at www.solacem.org.”

Between April and June 1994 over 800,000 Rwandans were killed in a genocide that left the country in a state of social and economic devastation. Due to the rapes and atrocities that took place during the genocide, many women are infected with the HIV/AIDS and over 500,000 children have been orphaned. Currently over 45% of the children in Rwanda are malnourished. SOLACE is helping the survivors by providing health care and means to help survivors become economically self sufficient. “Through SOLACE I have donated the money to pay the salary for a nurse for a year to treat families.” explains Happé. “We have also donated a dairy cow. Donating livestock is one of the best ways to help these women provide for their families. A donation of $40 is enough to purchase a goat for a family. Donations can easily be made at www.goatsforgifts.org.”

Besides donating money, Happé decided that she wanted to get personally involved in the relief efforts. Together with Production Manager Will Stewart, who was born and raised in Zimbabwe, they will be traveling to Rwanda and taking with them the necessary seeds and tools to help the women of Rwanda start their “flower farm”.

Happé is a founder and sole owner of Farmers’ West Flowers & Bouquets, Inc. a leading cut flower and greens nursery and bouquet manufacturer. Farmers’ West, a subsidiary of Brand Flowers Holdings, has 4 growing locations on the Central Coast of California with over 1.5 million square feet of cut flower production. The farm specializes in Dutch flower varieties such as lilies, tulips, dahlia, and gerbera as well as California specialty cut flower varieties and hand-tied bouquets.