ASHLAND — Deedra Shilliday and Andrea “Annie” Farber returned home from Kenya five years ago with something laid on their hearts.
The sisters had just arrived back in the United States after leading a mission trip in 2021 to the East African country. There they met a 20-year-old mother who had five children.
The woman had escaped from her relationship after being married off as a child, Shilliday said Tuesday afternoon.
“(She) wanted to get an education and wanted her children to be educated,” she said. “We saw the problem and the Lord showed us how to try to be the hands and feet and fix it.”
This story, along with encountering several talented artisans while leading mission trips, inspired the sisters to find a way to maintain global relationships despite hundreds of miles of separation.
Shilliday and Farber launched On The Map Boutique in December 2025. A formal ribbon cutting ceremony was organized Tuesday afternoon for the downtown Ashland boutique, located at 39 E. Main St. in the former Ashley’s Candy & Nut Shoppe building.
Before the brick-and0mortar storefront, the boutique has existed online for the past five years.
On The Map Boutique partners with families around the world to provide fair trade income opportunities in collaboration with Shilliday’s non-profit ministry — Deedra Shilliday Ministries.
“This is a dream come true — a God dream,” Shilliday said Tuesday, surrounded by friends, family and local officials.
The boutique offers items from around the world, including Indonesia, Nepal, Bangladesh, India, Senegal and Kenya, among other countries. It also includes offerings from local artisans.
“We’re helping single moms across the ocean, but we want to help single moms locally as well, so we do have some consignment for them,” Shilliday said.
The boutique is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Every purchase helps make a difference for artisans around the world.
Ashland City Councilwoman Angela Woodward thanked the sisters on behalf of City Council.
“I’ve known Deedra for a very long time. I know her heart to serve in every avenue that she serves,” Woodward said. “I just know that she loves to serve people. I know her heart for this mission and to help women. I just say thank you.”
Proclamations from the Ohio Secretary of State’s office and State Sen. Mark Romanchuk were also presented to the sisters by Amy Daubenspeck, president of the Ashland Area Chamber of Commerce.
“You have a dream and you’re living it here in our own backyard. But really, you’re not — this is a global dream. That is so cool and it’s so cool that it’s happening here,” Daubenspeck.
