Just having returned from an inspirational training at in San Francisco, I’m antsy to get to Guatemala where I will be doing grassroots work with entrepreneurs looking to better their lives. Unfortunately, I still have to wait another month.
Thanks for taking the time to learn more about Kiva and what I will be doing with them. Kiva is a microlending website that connects lenders from all over the world to entrepreneurs in other places for the sake of alleviating poverty. The way this works is that YOU can view entrepreneurs’ profiles Kiva’s website, and decide who to lend to. Kiva then collects the money and distributes it to a Microfinance Institution (MFI), who in turn, give the loan to the entrepreneur. The entrepreneur then repays the loan, and you get your money back, along with updates of what the entrepreneur was able to do with your loan.
In November, I’ll be going to Guatemala City, as a Kiva fellow, to work with an MFI, FAPE (translated into English, Foundation to Assist the Small Business) . They are a socially oriented MFI give over ninety percent of their loans to women entrepreneurs. I will be partnering with FAPE to help strengthen their relationship with Kiva. Additionally, I will visit the entrepreneurs to get a grassroots experience of microfinance. Throughout my time there, I will be blogging periodically to document my experience both on this blog and on the kiva fellows blog.
Those of you who know me well, know that I am currently applying to medical school. How does being a Kiva Fellow fit into this plan? Firstly, I am doing this because I strongly identify with Kiva’s mission to alleviate poverty while connecting people from all over the world by being completely transparent. Secondly, I will be traveling to Guatemala, learning about a new culture, and meeting incredibly inspiring individuals. Thirdly, I recognize that there is an inextricable relationship between health and economics. In order to treat my future patients effectively, I want to have a wide range of experience in learning and supporting people to build healthy lives. Productivity and health are socially, physically, and emotionally interconnected. Being a Kiva Fellow will allow me to better understand hardships, economic or otherwise, facing my future patients.
I can hardly wait for November to come. But before I can go, I need your help making this dream a reality. As Kiva cannot provide me with any money, it is my responsibility to completely fund the trip. It’s my goal to raise $2,000 which would cover flight, food, vaccines, health insurance, transportation within country, and communication(like uploading photos and posting on blogs). I’ greatly appreciate it if everyone could contribute according to their means, as ANY amount will help. There are three ways YOU can help me in this endeavor: Direct paypal contribution, Kiva Gift Certificate, and by mailing a check.
1) A direct contribution to me via paypal.
2) A Kiva gift certificate. This is really a 2 for 1 option. By giving a me a Kiva gift certificate, you would be helping Kiva, an entrepreneur, and my trip. I would lend the money to an entrepreneur (if you have picked out a particular person you would like to lend to, you can let me know that when you give the gift certificate in the ‘Personal Message’ section) and send you the updates I get about how that entrepreneur is doing. After the loan period, I would ge the money back, which would help offset my costs. My email address is jeremy.lapedis@fellows.kiva.org Click here Kiva gift certificate.
3) You can mail me a good ‘ol check directly at:
3755 Charter Place Ann Arbor, MI, 48105Thanks for visiting and hope to hear from you soon.
To learn more about Kiva and the fellows program click on these links:
Feel free to email me at jeremy.lapedis@fellows.kiva.org or jlapedis@gmail.com with any questions to find out more or just to say hello.
