BOOKS FOR SOMALILAND

When we lived in Phoenix, Warren and I had a friend named Mohammed Al Sharmani. Mohammed was from Somalia, and one evening over a dinner at the Cheesecake Factory, Mohammed shared with us his experiences as an Ambassador in Somalia and his hopes for the future of his homeland. Since then I have followed the news coming out of Somalia, eager to see some sign of hope.

In remembrance of that dinner years ago with Mohammed--and the impact that it had on both Warren and myself--I have made our most recent donation to the "Educational Opportunities for Somaliland" program run by Books for Africa.

Right now college students in Somalia spend hours in the library copying their textbooks by hand just so that they can study. A class of 60 students typically has access to only a handful of books!

To remedy this, Books for Africa hopes to raise $9,000 to send a container of 25,000 textbooks to university students at Somalian universities. Our donation will pay for over 550 of those books. It's only a small portion, but it's one step closer.

And maybe, with greater educational opportunites, Somalia will be one step closer to peace.

(Books for Africa's Charity Navigator rating: 4 stars, the highest rating)

LOADS OF CLOTHING FOR NEEDY CHILDREN!

In Warren's memory, we've just helped $1,400 in clothing get to children in need across the world.

World Vision has received outerwear and footwear donations valuing more than $53 million from several generous clothing manufacturers, and now needs the funds to ship and distribute these items to the children who need them most.

Our gift of $100 will multiply 14 times, paying to ship $1,400 worth of new pants, sturdy shoes, protective jackets, and more to children in 20 countries around the world.

From the World Vision website:
Countless children are suffering from colds, influenza, and even pneumonia because they lack one simple thing: warm clothes. Many shiver in sub-zero temperatures. Without protection from the elements, they are susceptible to illness and infection. The poorest of the poor have only tattered rags, or even no clothes to wear at all. Please give now to protect these children with warm coats, sweaters, scarves, pants, shoes, socks, boots, and more.

Imagine facing these temperatures without adequate clothing:
•Mongolia, -58°
•Romania, -20°
•Albania, -2°
•Bosnia, 26°
•Chile, 7°

“If I am warm, I am happy and I have peace ... I am very grateful to World Vision for this jacket,” says Enkhtor, an appreciative 15-year-old boy in Mongolia. Without the jacket, he was unable to attend school, prepare firewood for the family, or collect water from the well. Can you help other children like Enkhtor?

Considering how FREEZING it is here in Utah, I feel very good about this latest donation we've made in Warren's honor.

TWO MORE DEFAULTS… IS THERE A PROBLEM?

I got word a few weeks ago that two of our loans have defaulted. The partner organization that Kiva uses in Ecuador—called MIFEX—went belly-up about a month ago and two of our recipients were working with them. (Kiva sent me a long email explaining what happened, and it’s a long story so for the purposes of this blog…let’s just leave it at ‘they went belly up’.)

Both of the recipients were making monthly payments before MIFEX closed its doors. So, while it’s a bummer that we did not get all the funds back, let’s hope that the money that was loaned to these two individuals did help them accomplish their goals and make a better life for themselves.

You can read their individual stories below, but first a bit on the recent defaults.

Three defaults in a row. Do we have a problem?
Here are the stats: the WPMF has made 29 loans thus far. Of those loans, 6 have been paid back in full, 20 are in active repayment, and 3 have defaulted. Our default rate is much higher than the average lender using KIVA, but I think we will see much success with our 20 active recipients.

Micro-lending carries a risk. Essentially, it is lending to people who absolutely cannot get financial help from any traditional source. The people we lend to don't have collateral; they live on the margins and barely get by each month. With this philosophy, I consider the loans we make via KIVA to be donations. Ideally, we will get that money back and be able to reinvest it in other entrepreneurs, but if not…we did what we could to help someone in need.

So, no, I don’t believe there’s a problem. In fact, I love checking the WPMF’s portfolio on the Kiva site to track the progress of our other recipients. There’s a lot to be excited about. To see what I mean, be sure to check back soon to read some great success stories. :)

PERLA'S BEAUTY SALON

Perla Moreira of Ecuador needed extra money to improve the appearance of her beauty salon and invest in new equipment. So, back in January, the WPMF and 35 other people loaned her money to do just that.

As mentioned above, Perla (or MIFEX) defaulted on the loan. But, she did get the funds and perhaps she was able to fix up her beauty salon exactly as she had hoped.

Here’s a bit more about Perla from her application: “Perla started her business with a little bit of capital she had saved, the fruits of her work as a schoolteacher. Perla runs her business all by herself and has gained the confidence of her customers. With a previous loan Perla was able to buy two new salon chairs, one for adults and the other for children. This combined with better hair products and hard work has resulted in some positive results for her salon. Perla’s problem is now that she has to work too much because of all the positive references her clients provide. She is considering bringing on a new employee but is glad to have the increased business. Perla wants this new loan so she may continue improving her equipment and the appearance of her salon."

MACARIO, VENDOR EXTRAORDINAIRE

“Macario is in the business of selling clothes and other items. He travels around the community and also to the rural sector, specifically targeting friends, family, and acquaintances. Macario has been selling clothes for about six years. Although his business is somewhat profitable, it does not always provide enough for him and his family. Therefore, Macario also buys and sells rice. He travels in his truck to rural Ecuador where he buys directly from the rice farmers. He sells the rice to many small stores around Guayaquil.”

Back in January, Macario needed a loan to buy school supplies. He needed to supplement his clothing and rice business, and knew that the back-to-school time was a perfect time to sell school supplies. So, along with a bunch of other people, we loan him money to do just that. :)

He got the money, but like Perla (above), Macario defaulted on the loan. Actually, I’m guessing the default rests squarely with MIFEX. Our loan to Macario was his third with MIFEX, as he had already successfully repaid two loans in full. In fact, in his application, MIFEX said, “Macario has proven to be a very responsible client who is a savvy investor.”

Regardless, I like his story and really like the funny look on his face in his picture above, so let’s forgive him, eh? :)

HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY WARREN

Environmentalism and conservation were very important to Warren, and since this memorial project seeks to "commemorate the life he led by following his example," we gotta do more for the environment. :)

So...we have just donated funds to have 41 new trees planted--one for every year since Warren was born. The donation was made through the non-profit American Forests and their cleverly named 'Global ReLeaf Campaign.'

And, although we are a bit past Warren's birthday for this year, I think this will be a good birthday gift to Warren in years to come. From now on, we'll commemorate Warren's love for the environment by planting trees in a quantity equal to how old he would have been that year. Soon, we'll have a Warren memorial forest of sorts.

Sound like a plan?

(The picture at right was taken on the Big Island of Hawaii on a hike in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. What a monster fern! So fascinating.)