Amna imagined by Hani Abbas. All rights reserved, Hani Abbas for SEP, April 2016.

Amna is 25 years old. She left school after completing her 9th grade and started helping her mother around the house.

Sometimes her mother asked her for help embroidering traditional dresses; Amna was always thrilled to comply. However, work was never stable for her mom and sometimes things got really tough. Amna’s father passed away and her older brother was barely getting by, struggling to provide for his own wife and daughter.  

Amna has been engaged to Abdelkarim for a year now and she yearns for some stability and assurance.

She wants to start a new life with him and she is determined to contribute to her future family’s income. When Amna started working with SEP, she began to earn enough to allow her to set aside a little bit of money every month. Now, she has been able to buy and prepare most of what she needs for her wedding. She doesn't have enough to purchase the wedding dress she wants, but at least she can afford to rent it. “The wedding date has been set!” Amna announces gleefully, “It’s going to be this February!”  

While Amna’s short term dream of becoming a bride and starting a life with her fiancé is finally coming true, she still has bigger plans for the future. Amna would like to have four kids that she can provide for in all aspects; physically, emotionally, and financially. Amna also would love to  open her own beauty salon one day. She realizes it will take a lot of time and energy, but she is a strong-minded woman who is willing to put in the required effort. “I’ll make my dream come true one day...inshallah” Amna said.  

 
What SEP says about Amna: She is one of the hardest working ladies in the team. She’s fast, she’s precise, and her work is top notch. Always asking for more work, Amna has earned the respect and admiration of the SEP team with her strong will and drive. We are all so happy that she is in the process of realizing her first dream and are all very excited for the beautiful wedding. 

By Nada Aradeh and Shuhd Al Sharki

TO PROTECT AMNA'S PRIVACY, WE CHOSE TO REPRESENT HER TROUGH ONE OF HER PIECES: THE ALHAMBRA CASHMERE SHAWL, AS SHOWN BY SEP AMBASSADOR VERONICA DE PIANTE.