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Loans 36 - 39

(donatecards) — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 01:07:05 PST

I just made four more loans for $25 each raising the total number of loans to 39. These are the loans that I made:

Marta Garcia

Marta García lives in the city of El Alto. She is from a family with few economic resources. At 16 years old, she was working as a street vendor...

Loans 27 - 35

(donatecards) — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 23:46:46 PST

Lots of loans to catch up on:

Nov Sarim

Mrs Nov Sarim is a 40 year old widow and mother of 4 children, and lives in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. In order to supplement the entire family's expense, she runs a small grocery store on a roadside of her village, which makes on average...

Loan Returned

(donatecards) — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 22:36:18 PST

Wow...time has flown by while working on other projects and I'm way overdue on an update:

I made tha $25 loan to Djikoloum Hubert

Djikoloum Hubert is a 22-year-old artist. While continuing his studies, he does some painting jobs ordered by customers. Now he is intending...

Last Minute Bidding

(donatecards) — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 19:20:37 PST

Due to some good last minute bidding on the auctions I had up, we ended up with $337.40 in profits from this batch of auctions. That means that we have $354.14 to loan out this week and when we're finished, we'll be at the $1000 mark for loans made. We're definitely happy about that...

Loan 26

(donatecards) — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 18:38:14 PST

Thanks to the kindness of Broken Arrow as mentioned in the previous post, we had enough to make another loan. This one we made to:

Mary Meredith

Mary is a single female of 22 years old. She lives in the small Samoan village of Moamoa. Mary says that she wasn�t a very good student while in school. And so rather than continue, she asked her mother if she could attend sewing courses. She went to these courses for two and a half years. And although she didn�t complete her full course, she felt comfortable that she had built up the skills and knowledge necessary to start her own sewing business. She admits that since then she has learned a lot from experience. She joined SPBD to get started and with her first loan, she purchased a sewing machine. She is now requesting a second loan that she will use to buy materials for her sewing. Mary�s ultimate goal is to become a professional tailor.

I...

Special Thanks To Broken Arrow

(donatecards) — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 03:26:08 PST

Just a quick post to extend special appreciation to Broken Arrow. He won prizes worth $20 in two of the blogging contests and decided to donate the money to this cause. That raises the total we have to lend out to $41.74 meaning that we can make another loan before the next round...

Loans 24 & 25

(donatecards) — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 20:09:12 PST

I made two more loans today for $25 each bring the total number of loans to 25. That leaves $21.74 in the bank meaning I won;t be able to make more loans until the next set of auctions finish (they are already up and will end Friday). Here are the latest two loans made:

Agnes Lawer

Nkurankan,...

Loans 22 & 23

(donatecards) — Fri, 01 Jun 2007 20:15:12 PST

Today I made another 2 loans and still need to make a couple of more when I have a bit more time to look. Here are the two most recent, again, both for $25. I actually have to set a time limit when I visit because I could spend a few hours reading thier stories...

Alice Wuala

Alice...

Loans 18 - 21 & Auction Update

(donatecards) — Thu, 31 May 2007 21:16:48 PST

I placed up 8 auctions last week that ended today which brought in a profit of $209.74 for this project. Add that to the $12 in the bank and there is $221.74 to use for new loans.

I went through and made $25 loans to the following four people:

Selau Finnety

The land...

First Project Participant

(donatecards) — Tue, 22 May 2007 01:26:01 PST

Nate and I have started a Kiva Project to encourage others to also give to this cause. If you make four $25 microloans, we will pay you $5 (approximately what you would have earned in interest had you instead placed it in an online bank account). You can read more about the project here

We'd...

Loans 14 -17

(donatecards) — Sun, 20 May 2007 04:03:11 PST

Just finished lending out all the money raised thus far...leaving $12 in the bank still to be lent out. here are the new additions:

Julio is a native of Salitre, Ecuador, and he has been working in rice farming his entire life. On his farm, he has rice and also some cows and bulls. With the loan, he will buy fertilizer for rice farming as he hopes to increase his productivity. The fertilizer helps increase the yield per plot and it also provides rice of better quality. He dreams of fixing his home, which is made out of wood and is vulnerable to rains. On his farm he also has a couple of horses.

He is the latest addition to one of the new Communal Banks in the Mifex Rural Finance Program. All of the members of the 10 de enero Communal Bank are part of an Association of Rice Farmers in Salitre named 10 de enero. They will use the microloans to prepare the lands and cultivate rice on their farms. Because they form part of a communal bank, they are all each others' guarantors for the loan. This means that if for some reason one person in the group cannot fully repay the loan, the other borrowers and the 10 de enero Association are responsible for the amount in default. The members of the bank also participate in a program designed to teach and encourage savings among the group. Promoting savings is often forgotten in many microfinance programs, but is imperative for the communities Mifex works with to have capital reserved for future investments or unexpected difficulties.

Jacinta Njeri Magondu is 50 years old and is a widow. She has five children, four of whom are of school-going age; some are in college. She is a trained nurse. She also owns some rental houses which support her in meeting her diverse needs.
Despite the fact that Jacinta has really tried to meet all her expenses, she still has problems paying school fees for her children. She now wants to venture into a new business that she thinks will add to her monthly returns and thus improve her financial status.

Jacinta is requesting a loan of US$ 700 to add to her capital and start a cereal-selling business. She has a well-projected market and she is expecting to increase her income if she manages to start the cereal shop. She intends to use US$ 200 to buy 10 bags of maize, US$ 100 to buy 10 bags of millet, US$ 200 to buy 5 bags of wheat, US$ 100 to buy 5 bags of beans, and US$ 100 to transport the cereals to her shop. Jacinta is a hardworking woman who believes that the sky is her only limit.

Juan was born in Salitre over 70 years ago. He has a small farm that has helped him feed and educate his children for a lifetime. On his farm he grows rice, maize and sweet potatoes. He lives with his wife in their home. He hopes to invest the loan in agriculture so he can continue to feed himself and not depend on others.

He is the latest addition to one of the new Communal Banks in the Mifex Rural Finance Program. All of the members of the Buena Suerte de Salitre Communal Bank are part of an Association of Rice Farmers. They will use the microloans to prepare the lands and cultivate rice on their farms. Because they form part of a communal bank, they are all each other's guarantors for the loan. This means that if for some reason one person in the group cannot fully repay the loan, the other borrowers and the Buena Suerte Association are responsible for the amount in default. The members of the bank also participate in a program designed to teach and encourage savings among the group. Promoting savings is often forgotten in many microfinance programs, but is imperative for the communities Mifex works with to have capital reserved for future investments or unexpected difficulties.

Auk Pheakdey is 32 years old and a mother of three children, who are students. She lives with her husband in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. She operates her business by selling grocery products including Chinese noodles, instant noodle soup and porridge, at the local market. She usually makes about $5/day....

Loans 5 - 13

(donatecards) — Sun, 20 May 2007 03:39:11 PST

Here is the update on the loans that we have made:

At 28, Mr. Prospère KPETEKA is an energetic and devoted young man. He is a married father of three who also takes care of his two younger brothers. When he could no longer afford to go to school, he began work as a cassava grater, working either at home or in cassava fields. Now he has totally paid off his equipment, but it is constantly breaking down, at the same time that demand is rising.

He is thus requesting a loan of $900 to buy a new, better quality grater in order to better satisfy his customers. This will allow him to increase his earnings and to meet his family's needs.

Sieraseta has been a member of the SPBD Program for two years. She is married and has two children.

Although her husband is a policeman and earns a steady income, Sieraseta still works hard to bring in the extra income that can raise her family�s standard of living and provide her children a good education.

She knows how to weave in the traditional Samoan fashion, and she leverages this talent to weave mats and bags and other items. She spends the bulk of her days at the flea market selling her products. Locals and tourists alike buy her wares.

Loaning funds to Sieraseta would help her purchase raw materials for weaving.

Tina Sio is 51 years old. She believes that, regardless of age, she still has the potential to build more decorated cement posts. She is a very independent lady. Although two of her children work, she does not want to rely on them. She prefers to have a business of her own. Tina earns good money from her small business, and she is looking forward to working closely with SPBD. She has applied for another loan to improve and extend her business based on a great demand from her usual customers. She will use the loan to purchase materials

Visitasia uses seashells from the shore for her jewelry business. With the help of SPBD, she was able to buy tools to carve and design different sizes of earrings. Other ladies in the program taught her how to make this jewelry. This was her first loan and her first time to do this kind of business. She is a good learner and she was able to earn more money from this craft. Everyday is a learning experience for her as she gathers more ideas from the other ladies of the program in how to be successful in her business. She chose this type of business is because she likes the creativity and it is profitable. She is requesting a second loan so she can increase her stock and income.

Matele is a 41 year old married mother who operates a handicrafts business, a talent that she has had since a very young age. She has chosen to make good use of her ability to set up a business to further improve her family�s standard of living.

Matele chooses good quality but cheap traders of wood to create her masterpieces, which she sells to the local markets and individuals. Her number one customers are tourists and Samoans traveling overseas who purchase her wares as souvenirs.

Mr. Bernadino has a carpentry workshop where he makes all sorts of wooden furniture. He has been using the same equipment for the past 3 years and says "I ask you to please help me buy new machinery to make furniture, because the old one is really hard to work with, it is almost becoming almost obsolete. I believe I can buy new equipment with $1,200."

Mr. Rodríguez has been serving his community for 10 years selling goods at his grocery store. Along with his wife, Mr. Rodríguez takes care of the store and says, "I opened this grocery store with the help of my wife after I retired. We need to keep it well supplied because it is our only source of income. This is way we are asking for a $1,000 loan."

Elena is married and has 5 children (eldest is 14 years, youngest is 4 months). They have a family business. Her husband has been working in their restaurant since he was 20 years old. Now he is 45. Besides this business, they produce cheese and ice cream.
She used her first loan to purchase the premises for their store at the local market. Now she leases it. She plans to use her next loan to extend their restaurant and establish a summer cafe.

Abduvali has run a carpenter shop for over 5 years. His elder son helps him, and he has two assistants. In the shop, they make window frames and doors. He used his first loan to purchase construction materials. He sells them in his own shop. Abduvali has 4 children and 7 grandchildren. His elder son graduated the institute (faculty of physics) and another son still studies at the institute. Abduvali has been working to help all his children to graduate and support their families.

New Blog & Money Raised

(donatecards) — Sun, 20 May 2007 03:27:11 PST

Lots to update - first I have moved this blog to its own blogging page from my personal finance blog since I will also have entries here listed on the microloan website that we are building.

Last week was extremely busy on the sites, and even though I didn't update, a lot happened....

About $250 Raised

(donatecards) — Sun, 20 May 2007 03:16:53 PST

As I mentioned before, I will be slowly placing all the stock that I had from my old eBay business on auction with any profits made going to Kiva. I had four auctions that ended today that all went very well. After did ducting the cost of the items, eBay fees, PayPal fees, etc. the...

First Problem - New Loan Given

(donatecards) — Sun, 20 May 2007 03:15:03 PST

It seems that the loan amount that was requested in for Ramona was incorrect. Kiva therefore refunded the $25 I had pledged and they are going to redo the loan again for Ramona in the correct amount. I've been searching to see if the new loan is live so that I can offer some money...

All Funded, First Loan Distributed

(donatecards) — Sun, 20 May 2007 03:13:25 PST

Just a quick update that all 4 loans have been fully funded and the first of the loans has already been distributed to Maria:

Thank you for your loan. It has been disbursed to Maria Isabel Chi Puc by Admic Nacional in Mexico. We are excited to watch this business grow. Over the next 6 - 12 months, Admic Nacional will be collecting repayments from this entrepreneur and posting progress updates on the Kiva website

Amazingly...

Idea For Microloan Site

(donatecards) — Sun, 20 May 2007 03:11:29 PST

Nate and I have come up with the following idea in our quest to help Kiva.org as part of the $20 challenge. We sat down and thought about what type of organization could we start that could help raise money without actually having to ask people for money donations. That's when we...

Fourth Loan

(donatecards) — Sun, 20 May 2007 03:09:50 PST

The fourth loan, and the final one for this first $100 that I raised, went to Yao who has the following story:

Yao Akissi is a 41-year-old woman with 4 children. She is a war displaced woman who was living in the northern region of Côte d�Ivoire until September, 2002 when the civil war started. She came to Abidjan with her family in March, 2003. She contacted AE&I through her sister in January, 2004 to get a loan in order to a start cassava paste selling activity. She took a $150 loan that helped her to launch her activities. She sells cooked cassava paste with sauce, a locally appreciated food. She wants to increase her volume of product as the number of her customers has increased.

This...

Third Loan

(donatecards) — Sun, 20 May 2007 03:08:07 PST

The third loan went to Ramona with the following story:

Ramona has had a small store in her home for about two years. She and her husband also travel around the local area offering their products to the public from a tricycle cart. They mainly sell eggs, cheese and ham, often serving as distributors to other small stores in the area.

Ramona is hoping that she can take out a loan to improve her profits. She will purchase more of her common products at better prices and much larger quantities. She hopes to eventually start delivering these products to all the small stores in the area.

Ramona is 28 years old and she has two daughters who are in school. Her husband is very supportive of her business and helps her invest with leftover income from his job. They hope they can make some improvements to their humble home in the near future.

This...

Second Loan

(donatecards) — Sun, 20 May 2007 03:06:15 PST

The second loan went to Maria Isabel who has the following story:

Mrs. Maria Isabel is from Mérida, Yucatan, has five children: four men of 28, 25, 21 and 18 years of age and one 24 year-old girl. The children are married and they help her with a small amount of money for expenses, but not enough to cover all her needs, so she decided to start her own business of selling shoes. Fortunately the money and hard work she invested in the business paid-off. In order to be able to fulfill her clients� orders, Maria needs a loan of $700 dollars. She is committed to paying it back in 6 to 12 months. With your aid Maria can improve her life. She sincerely thanks you for your support and kindness.

Again,...