Kiva

Well, I finally did something I have been planning on doing for years!

I just made a loan to someone in Senegal through Kiva (http://www.kiva.org/).
I am excited at the process and plan to continue to read stories of people in developing countries seeking out funds to be paid back to further their small businesses.
Our first loan was tiny to evaluate the process but we hope to begin to give more once we have been through the process.

We'll let you know how it goes and send updates on the woman from Senegal that we chose.
I will post a picture later as I keep getting errors when I try to post a picture to this entry.

Here is some information about lending on Kiva.

You can go to Kiva's website and lend to someone across the globe who needs a loan for their business - like raising goats, selling vegetables at market or making bricks. Each loan has a picture of the entrepreneur, a description of their business and how they plan to use the loan so you know exactly how your money is being spent - and you get updates letting you know how the entrepreneur is going. The best part is, when the entrepreneur pays back their loan you get your money back - and Kiva's loans are managed by microfinance institutions on the ground who have a lot of experience doing this, so you can trust that your money is being handled responsibly.
I just made a loan to an entrepreneur named Sona Badji in Senegal. They still need another $125.00 to complete their loan request of $475.00 (you can loan as little as $25.00!). Help me get this entrepreneur off the ground by clicking on the link below to make a loan to Sona Badji too:
http://www.kiva.org/app.php?page=businesses&action=about&id=148149
It's finally easy to actually do something about poverty - using Kiva I know exactly who my money is loaned to and what they're using it for. And most of all, I know that I'm helping them build asustainable business that will provide income to feed, clothe, house and educate their family long after my loan is paid back.
Join me in changing the world - one loan at a time.
Thanks!