Giving Back
HOW IT STARTED → HOW IT'S GOING → WHY IT MATTERS ❤️🌍
AATC × ACAFP × Marylene Wamukoya — Fashion. Compassion. Community. Bigger tomorrows.
Who we are: ACAFP
African Culture, Arts and Fashion Preservation (ACAFP) is the giving-back branch of Atieno's African Treasure Chest.
We educate, we preserve, we empower, we connect.
How it started
In August 2025, Marylene Wamukoya broke her ankle while hiking in the Ochils in Scotland.
But in Marylene's telling, the ankle wasn't the only thing that broke.
The injury forced a pause — and that pause became an invitation to examine her identity, her beliefs, her purpose, and what she wanted her life to mean.
Months later, at N.I.T.T.I London, Marylene shared that transformation. Her journey had moved through:
Injury → Self-examination → Healing → Identity transformation → Service.
And one of the identities she intentionally stepped into was PHILANTHROPIST.
Not philanthropy simply as charity. Philanthropy as becoming what she describes as a conduit for abundance — using what she has, what she can create, and who she can bring together to help another human being experience greater dignity.
How it's going — The Warmth Project
Marylene wanted to create a collection of 12 blankets for children in hospital — including blankets she would make herself — while inviting others to contribute materials, resources, creativity, and support.
She told Atieno of Atieno's African Treasure Chest what she wanted to do.
Atieno said, essentially:
“GET IN. WE'RE DOING THIS.” 😂❤️
And AATC went to work — collaborating with vendors in Kenya 🇰🇪, sourcing the African prints, coordinating the fleece colors, and bringing another part of Marylene's vision to life.
What began as an intention after one woman's own experience of vulnerability and healing has become something tangible: beautiful African-inspired blankets traveling from Kenya to Scotland to bring warmth and comfort to children at the hospital that cared for Marylene after she broke her ankle.
Why it matters
Marylene brought the vision and the WHY. AATC brought its relationships, creativity, African craftsmanship, and ability to make the idea real. And ACAFP gives us a vehicle to keep building this kind of work beyond one project.
Because Afro Luxury can be beautiful AND useful.
Culture can become connection.
Business can become a vehicle for service.
And healing can move beyond the person who experienced it and become comfort for somebody else.
Marylene's larger philanthropic vision says it beautifully: to connect as many human beings as possible to a dignified existence — in sickness and in health.
This is what that looks like in motion:
🇰🇪 KENYA — where the blankets are being created.
❤️ MARYLENE — whose healing journey sparked the mission.
🌍 AATC + ACAFP — helping turn intention into action.
🏴 SCOTLAND — where that care will eventually wrap around a child.
Want to help?
Marylene's original vision was never to do this alone. You can contribute toward materials, sponsor a blanket, create something yourself, or help us extend the impact.
DM AATC / ACAFP if you would like to participate. ❤️
Sometimes giving back begins with a very simple sentence:
“I want to help.”
And then somebody else says:
“Okay. Let's build it.”
How your purchase helps
A portion of every purchase at Atieno's African Treasure Chest supports ACAFP's giving projects — like the blankets traveling from Kenya to Scotland.
When you wear your culture, you help share its warmth.