Posts tagged Microloans
Day 156: Investors! It’s Time to Invest in the World
Mar 4th
Kiva Lending
It’s Kiva time! If you are not familiar with Kiva their mission is connecting people through lending to alleviate poverty. The concept is that you loan money to support a person or group of people trying to start or expand a business in poverty stricken countries around the world. I have some loans that have been repaid which I need to reinvest. Kiva is one of the easiest ways to GIVE back with lots of choice.
You can choose the exact person you are giving to, what type of business, what country and even gender. By investing in the people associated with Kiva, you are investing in the future of the world. If we want the world to be different we need to invest our money where it can do great good. Kiva gives people the opportunity to help themselves out of poverty. It gives them hope, confidence in their ability and the extra hand they need to feed, cloth and educate their children. What better investment can we make for our world.
Day 156: Give 156
One of the best things about Kiva is they remind you to spend your banked money. Most days I can’t keep track of my own money let alone what I have invested with Kiva. I have $67.00 in my Kiva bank account and I have chosen a group of women I am happy to support. My loan is dedicated to a group called “Las Damas de la Colosio” [The Ladies of the Colosio] in honor of their colony. The women are from the Quintana Roo State in Mexico and is made up of 11 members. Mrs. Francisca Acuna C. is one of them. She is 46 years old and attended school until the end of elementary. She has three children, two girls who are 17 and 14 and a boy who is 11 years old. She has been selling fruits and vegetables for three years.
Now this I can relate to. I am also a working Mom and all we want is to give our children the best life we can. Francisca Acuna would like to grow her business and needs some extra cash to do just that. I love helping hard working Mom’s every chance I can get and Mexico has a big draw for me. My sister lives in the Quintana Roo State and we visit often. The people are so lovely and kind. It was an easy loan to find and connect with in a personal way.
If you aren’t familiar with Kiva and you want to find a great organization to begin your philanthropic journey, it’s a great place to look. For as little investment as $25 you to can change the world!
Time Commitment: 5 minutes
Cost: $67.00 I had already spent with Kiva now reinvesting it. No additional funds spent.
Day 9: The Loan Shark!
Oct 7th
I am doing my best to “fly by the seat of my pant”s on my GIVES every day. Today I was getting a little worried. My eyes were wide open but I wasn’t seeing any opportunities to GIVE back. When I got home from all my errands this morning, (playcare, grocery shopping, work errands, conference call, park time) and finally got my son to sleep for a nap, I sat down at my computer and there it was – right in my email.
Today’s GIVE is dedicated to 2 people. My dear friend Mark who has been my number one promoter of 365GIVE and to another friend Kristi who will one day be a super star. Because of them, I have a GIVE today and one that has made me proud.
This is the perfect example of how 365GIVE is already working. Mark told Kristi about 365GIVE and Kristi Googled it to see what I was up to these days. She sent me a fantastic email cheering me and also sent me a list of ideas I could use as GIVES. That’s all it will take to get 365GIVE on the world wide web map and to inspire other people to find one thing in their day they could do to GIVE. Here is the GIVE Kristi inspired me to do today.
The Soul of Money
Sep 23rd
In less than a week my mission to change the world begins. I feel like I am in the process of retraining my brain. I look for, search out and see different opportunities to give back every day. I’m discovering ways to give that I didn’t even know existed without leaving my home office.
Did you know there are sites dedicated to shopping online that with donated a portion of your purchase to the charity of your choice? I like to shop! Anyone else out there reading that likes to shop?
The first site I came across was IGIVE. Understandable the name caught my eye. You can search by brand, charity, retailer. Their mission makes giving simple. “To enable the economic power of individuals to benefit their chosen communities.” Simple put, if your going to shop make choices that benefit others at the same time. Our purchasing power has a huge effect on the world – especially in North America.
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