Fund 43 microloans through Kiva.org

A woman from Tajikistan, running a small farming and cattle business. Her loan is only half-filled so far…

I wanted to spread the word about a charity I support, called Modest Needs. Modest Needs has a similar approach to helping people as Kiva: if someone needs help (say with rent, unexpected medical costs, etc) they apply for consideration, and Modest Needs (after checking the veracity of their claims) posts their applications online. Then, as with Kiva, you can decide how much you want to donate to that particular person. Modest Needs always sends the money straight to whomever it is owed to (landlord, hospital, bank, etc), so you know the money is going to where it’s supposed to be.

Their mission statement:

“-To prevent otherwise financially self-sufficient individuals and families from entering the cycle of poverty, when this might be avoided with a small amount of well-timed financial assistance;

-To restore the financial self-sufficiency of individuals who are willing to work but are temporarily unable to do so because they do not have the means to remit payment for a work-related expense;

-To empower permanently disadvantaged individuals who otherwise live within their limited means to continue to live independently, despite a temporary, unexpected financial set-back; and

-To strengthen small non-profit organizations by providing a forum whereby such organizations can apply directly to the general public for the help they need to complete the relatively inexpensive projects that will allow them to better serve their clients and the communities they exist to serve.”

If you’re interested, please visit them at www.modestneeds.org.

http://www.itsyourworld.org/assnfe/ev.asp?SnID=819242621&ID=2556

Normally I’m leery of lending to groups, but when I got to the part about Mrs. Sokh being a rice farmer, I decided I had to help her out. Being a good Louisiana girl, I have a deep affinity for anyone who produces rice!

I forgot to list this one: number 9 went to help a man in Tajikistan repair his vehicle.

A farmer in Mozambique, who would like to get some new farming supplies.

This is my first loan to a group, and I hope they use it wisely! They are still in need of another $1,350 as of this posting, so if y’all want to drop by and help them out that would be great.

A lady in Ghana who wants to expand her food market business.

5 went to Ni Ketut Sudarni in Indonesia, who raises pigs to supplement her husband’s income. Normally I loan to people in Ukraine, but apparently Oprah Winfrey and a couple news places featured Kiva this week, and ALL of the Eastern European loans had been fully funded when I looked at them today!

I had a loan repaid on Monday, so I reloaned the money to Mr. Uryi Gontaryov, a Ukrainian who wants to expand his house repair business.

I get paid in about a week and a half, so I’ll be able to make another loan soon!

My first paycheck hit the bank on Friday, so I took this opportunity to loan to a Mrs. Alejandrina Moreno Osorio of Peru. Good luck to you, ma’am!