2015 Kiva Update and New Borrowers

 

This blog was badly neglected in 2015. I was too caught up with cancer recovery, advocacy work, and starting a new job to write. So imagine my delight when I logged into my Amazon Associates account and saw that, despite my absence, readers still purchased enough through amazon.com banners on this site for me to issue one Kiva loan to an entrepreneur in the developing world.

 I chose Rember Saturnino, an organic farmer from Peru, pictured above.

Kiva: "Rember is a hardworking 39-year-old man who has three children and lives in the rural Cabanaconde district, located in Arequipa. He makes a living raising organic cattle, paying a great deal of attention to the their care and the food that he provides for them, which is the organic alfalfa that he grows.

Rember also works in organic agriculture, especially in the cultivation of potatoes. It is for this that he is requesting a micro-loan in order to plant organic potatoes. That is to say, to buy organic seed potatoes and to prepare the agricultural fields with organic fertilizer.

In the future, Rember hopes to be able to provide his children a better quality of life and to continue having good health, which is the reason he opted for organic methods. "

 

When Mr. Saturnino repays his loan that $25 will be lent to another Kiva borrower and so on. What started out as a no interest loan to one low income entrepreneur will benefit many other borrowers in the future.

 

2015 completes my third full year using Amazon Associates earnings from this site to issue Kiva loans to entrepreneurs in the developing world. This year brought in $32.17, which I added to my Kiva account this morning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Though 2015 only earned enough for the one borrower, previous loans were repaid this year, enabling us to take on eight additional entrepreneurs.

 

My Amazon Associates account has earned $245.31 since 2013, which is nine loans. Those funds got re-loaned upon repayment so the grand total is now eighteen low income entrepreneurs funded and counting (two ended in loss). There is a metaphoric loaves and fishes aspect at play here. Your initial contributions have doubled so far. You will now be helping feed families of low income entrepreneurs not yet even listed on Kiva! 

 

Several years ago a contestant on Jeopardy was introduced as having raised something like a million dollars for Kiva. Kiva was my favorite charity, too. I figured if she could raise THAT much I could at least raise a little. Thank you for helping make that dream reality. 

 

Happy New Year!