"Boutique" Service

What is the difference between shopping at a boutique store or a department store? At my favorite boutiques I find unique, curated items instead of row upon row of mass-produced products. Yes, there is a smaller amount of merchandise to choose from, but I enjoy talking with the owners about their goods as they often have intimate knowledge about the products, including who made them and where they come from. I return to the boutiques again and again because of the relationship I develop with the owners and the personalized service they provide. They are invested in their business and see it as far more than a job.

In the same way, Hope Givers United has established relationships with our in-country partners and the people they serve. We communicate regularly, sometimes daily. They personally distribute the funds we raise to those who need it most and report back to us with pictures, videos, reports and financials, ensuring there is high accountability for every donation sent. 

Beyond the legal requirements of our partnerships, we are also aware of our partners’ personal needs and the needs of those they serve. We celebrate birthdays, take pride in a child’s school success, are delighted with every new skill learned, and take satisfaction in another home built and another widow who is now safe. We mourn deaths, pray for illnesses, pay for medicine, empathize and compensate for lost income. We are invested both emotionally and financially. We are “all in.”

Our goal in serving internationally is not to be “a mile wide and an inch deep” but to invest deeply in local communities. We want to grow slowly and fully fund the specific needs of those who have requested our help before taking on new partners.  

Like a good boutique, we are both practically focused and personally invested in those we serve.  We meet the unique concerns of our partners and make it our business to be there for them throughout the life cycle of our funding.  Instead of being nameless, faceless agents of goodwill we know them by name and provide them the best of our resources and our hearts.

—Rebecca Pearce