In the book Unstoppable Women (Day26), Cynthia Kersey asks us to take a look at causes or issues that are important to us. In her own life, she experienced great emotional healing when she focused outward on the needs of others whose pain was much greater than her own. In 1998 she experienced a significant loss and in her own evaluation she decided that she should build 100 homes in Nepal through the Habitat for Humanity program to outweigh the pain she felt. In three short months she raised enough money (approximately $200,000) to build 100 homes. It is interesting that 100 homes in Nepal are about the same price as one middleclass home in America.
Most of the causes I personally support are aimed at the needs of women and children. In 2007 I discovered the program KIVA which matches lenders with those needing resources. A hidden message in our daughter's adoption documents gave us the feeling that we should pursue a method of giving back after being so blessed to raise this little girl. We learned that our daughters name was given with best wishes in hopes that she would be happy. We wanted to leave this legacy.
When one focuses on learning about the needs of women, as I do, it is easy to discover that women do not fair well in many parts of the world. Although we will never know the specific reasons that our daughter became an orphan at one day old, we know that the decision to relinquish her came at a great cost to her birthmother. Her birthmother will never know the outcome of her decision. We know that our daughter’s birthmother gave her a tremendous lift in life by giving her up. By inspiring our daughter to give to others, we hope that we can somehow create balance in the universe that cost her mother so dearly.
I firmly believe that happiness is a reflection of what we give to others, so as we embarked on the journey of parenthood, we decided we would raise our family on this premise. When we discovered KIVA, we knew that this would be one approach to leaving a "happiness legacy" behind. The money we use to buy a cup of coffee in America is a full weeks wage in other parts of the world. I feel passionate about my role as a resource director, so when we have a few extra dollars, we roll them into a giving experience.
When you plant seeds and tend to those seeds, great things can happen. Yesterday I was reviewing progress made in our micro-lending experience. In a few short years I've discovered what began as one small $25 loan contributed toward one woman's business has now turned into 68 loans in 17 countries through our lending team. We have personally contributed to 38 of these loans and have given two gift certificates. Since time allows one to reinvest in new business once old loans are repaid, the circulation of our money has allowed us to contribute $1,250 to make life better for women and their families. Part of these resources have come from our own savings, but in 2008, my daughter asked her friends to contribute toward this cause instead of bringing gifts to her birthday party; she was four. This amounted in $125 that we were able to roll into our giving. Since that time, we've learned that even our babysitter at age 15 is beginning to value this experience as her own mother gave her a gift certificate to get her started.
Our lending team was started in May 2009. With donations from a gold buying exchange we added another $150 to our lending. We would love to have you join us in this venture and see what a difference we can make as a collective team. It is our goal over the next five years that we will increase our lending ten-fold (to 700 loans, contributing $17,500) to help women in other regions of the world. If you are interested in learning more about KIVA or wish to join our lending team, find us on the Internet at http://www.kiva.org/team/3_degrees_connected.
To learn more about Cynthia Kersey’s Unstoppable Women’s Challenge go to her website at http://www.unstoppablewomen.com/. See what Cynthia is doing for her upcoming birthday.
This article was written by Rhonda W. Geneva, SendOutCards Distributor and President of 3 Degrees Connected Women's Network.
Showing posts with label Causes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Causes. Show all posts
Monday, February 21, 2011
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Books Needed
Do you have books that your kids no longer read? Do you want to do something amazing with those books that will help children who want to have a library in their school?
We have an opportunity to donate our books between now and Thanksgiving.
Pat VanSlooten has brought it to my attention that she is on a mission to start a small library at Rainelle Christian Academy in Rainelle, West Virginia (population 1513). This small community could use our help. We are in need of books for all grades K-12.
If you would like to make a donation, please bring your books to Spring Lake Presbyterian Church at 760 E. Savidge Street, Spring Lake, MI 49456.
All books will be accepted whether new or used, classic novels, biographies, history, educational, or just plain fun.
If you have any questions, feel free to give Pat a call at 616 847-3604 or drop off your books at the church.
If you are coming to the next 3 Degrees Connected Event, November 9, 2010, feel free to bring books with you.
Thank you,
Rhonda Geneva
We have an opportunity to donate our books between now and Thanksgiving.
Pat VanSlooten has brought it to my attention that she is on a mission to start a small library at Rainelle Christian Academy in Rainelle, West Virginia (population 1513). This small community could use our help. We are in need of books for all grades K-12.
If you would like to make a donation, please bring your books to Spring Lake Presbyterian Church at 760 E. Savidge Street, Spring Lake, MI 49456.
All books will be accepted whether new or used, classic novels, biographies, history, educational, or just plain fun.
If you have any questions, feel free to give Pat a call at 616 847-3604 or drop off your books at the church.
If you are coming to the next 3 Degrees Connected Event, November 9, 2010, feel free to bring books with you.
Thank you,
Rhonda Geneva
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
This is my Why
This Sunday I've been invited to speak to our church family about the mission we've adopted to collect pennies over the summer from our lakeshore community. This is what I plan to share:
Happy Mother's Day,
On March 26, 2004 a tiny baby girl was born in Yangjiang City, Guangdong Province China. On April 10, 2005 a baby who was conceived in my heart, but not in my tummy was placed in my arms which became the happiest day in my life, next to my wedding day to Pete, of course. For nearly three years, my husband Pete and I talked about becoming parents, and on that day we held a 17 pound, 12 month old baby girl who was and still is the most precious child in our whole world.
For nearly a year while we waited to bring Yang Guo Qian home, I had read as much as I could to understand the circumstances that led so many women in this area of the world to relinquish their rights to be mothers. And I’ve cried many tears for them. In the past five years I’ve continued to read about the plight of women and children in other parts of the world, not just in China.
This past year I came across the book 3 Cups of Tea, a story about Greg Mortensen, who learned of a condition in the Middle East where nearly 130 million children had no access to a formal education. Many of us may never truly understand the hearts and minds of people from this area of the world who are desperate for a better life, but in early 1993 Greg learned of 84 children in a small village in Pakistan who wanted an education, who had to share a teacher with a neighboring community. They had no school building, no desk, no chair, no pencil, paper, or school books. These children were writing with sticks in the sand hoping some day to have an education that would lead to a better life.
Now Dr. Greg, as he is called by the children, has built 131 schools in this region of the world where 118 million children are still waiting for a school and a teacher. 78 million of those children are girls. Through a program called “pennies for peace”, school-age children have raised the vast majority of the money that has helped him build these schools.
When I became a mother in 2005, I move away from a 20 year career working for large corporations and another 7 years installing software in nearly 300 automotive based supply companies. In 2007 I started my own company after inventing a product, and last year, I created an organization called 3 Degrees Connected, which is a women’s network aimed at helping business women in West Michigan make connections to help stimulate the growth of their businesses, and to share lessons learned. We want to help women to not feel alone in the learning process.
In a little more than a year, this organization has become a non-profit organization and we have grown to about 300 women interested in making connections. We meet 3 times a year and talk about things like setting goals, time management, networking skills, marketing, dressing for success, and how to run businesses on a shoe-string budget. We would like to become a 501(c)3 organization when we come up with the funds to do so.
We have a local interest in helping women, but as this organization has developed, I’ve tried to help women understand, that our lives with our stresses is so much more appealing than the life given to women and children elsewhere. We have the ability to make a difference. We have taken on the service project to raise awareness, and raise pennies through the program “pennies for peace”. You will see canisters in local stores throughout our community where we will be saving pennies to help purchase school supplies, or build schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan. We will be collecting money from May – August this year, and with the help of young girls through Girls Scouts Troops or Girls on the Run, we hope to count those pennies. We hope that we will teach people the value of a penny creating an opportunity for educating children, where a teachers salary is about a $1 a week.
The reason I’m sharing this with you is, we would like families within our church to collect pennies for the next 3 months. We would also ask that you share this message with other families you know outside this church. Take a recycled water bottle, place it on your kitchen counter and begin to fill it with pennies. Bring it back to church or deposit at one of our local businesses that has a canister, and let’s see what a difference our community can make to improve the lives of others. If anyone has a business where they would like a canister, please look me up, give me a business card, and we will make sure you get a canister.
Within a year, you will see many more signs of this mission showing up in the community through book clubs, tea receptions, and school district involvement. We’ve already made some great connections with two universities and hope to develop more understanding of the plight of women in children in our world.
The reason that I have posted this story on our women's network, is that I want to encourage all women to "know their why". "Why are you running your business, why are you involved in a women's network, why would you give to a good cause." When you know your "why" it makes all the difference in the world. Don't just know it in your head . . . write it down on a piece of paper.
Written by Rhonda W. Geneva, President of Geneva Girls Designs, LLC, wife, and mother
Happy Mother's Day,
On March 26, 2004 a tiny baby girl was born in Yangjiang City, Guangdong Province China. On April 10, 2005 a baby who was conceived in my heart, but not in my tummy was placed in my arms which became the happiest day in my life, next to my wedding day to Pete, of course. For nearly three years, my husband Pete and I talked about becoming parents, and on that day we held a 17 pound, 12 month old baby girl who was and still is the most precious child in our whole world.
For nearly a year while we waited to bring Yang Guo Qian home, I had read as much as I could to understand the circumstances that led so many women in this area of the world to relinquish their rights to be mothers. And I’ve cried many tears for them. In the past five years I’ve continued to read about the plight of women and children in other parts of the world, not just in China.
This past year I came across the book 3 Cups of Tea, a story about Greg Mortensen, who learned of a condition in the Middle East where nearly 130 million children had no access to a formal education. Many of us may never truly understand the hearts and minds of people from this area of the world who are desperate for a better life, but in early 1993 Greg learned of 84 children in a small village in Pakistan who wanted an education, who had to share a teacher with a neighboring community. They had no school building, no desk, no chair, no pencil, paper, or school books. These children were writing with sticks in the sand hoping some day to have an education that would lead to a better life.
Now Dr. Greg, as he is called by the children, has built 131 schools in this region of the world where 118 million children are still waiting for a school and a teacher. 78 million of those children are girls. Through a program called “pennies for peace”, school-age children have raised the vast majority of the money that has helped him build these schools.
When I became a mother in 2005, I move away from a 20 year career working for large corporations and another 7 years installing software in nearly 300 automotive based supply companies. In 2007 I started my own company after inventing a product, and last year, I created an organization called 3 Degrees Connected, which is a women’s network aimed at helping business women in West Michigan make connections to help stimulate the growth of their businesses, and to share lessons learned. We want to help women to not feel alone in the learning process.
In a little more than a year, this organization has become a non-profit organization and we have grown to about 300 women interested in making connections. We meet 3 times a year and talk about things like setting goals, time management, networking skills, marketing, dressing for success, and how to run businesses on a shoe-string budget. We would like to become a 501(c)3 organization when we come up with the funds to do so.
We have a local interest in helping women, but as this organization has developed, I’ve tried to help women understand, that our lives with our stresses is so much more appealing than the life given to women and children elsewhere. We have the ability to make a difference. We have taken on the service project to raise awareness, and raise pennies through the program “pennies for peace”. You will see canisters in local stores throughout our community where we will be saving pennies to help purchase school supplies, or build schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan. We will be collecting money from May – August this year, and with the help of young girls through Girls Scouts Troops or Girls on the Run, we hope to count those pennies. We hope that we will teach people the value of a penny creating an opportunity for educating children, where a teachers salary is about a $1 a week.
The reason I’m sharing this with you is, we would like families within our church to collect pennies for the next 3 months. We would also ask that you share this message with other families you know outside this church. Take a recycled water bottle, place it on your kitchen counter and begin to fill it with pennies. Bring it back to church or deposit at one of our local businesses that has a canister, and let’s see what a difference our community can make to improve the lives of others. If anyone has a business where they would like a canister, please look me up, give me a business card, and we will make sure you get a canister.
Within a year, you will see many more signs of this mission showing up in the community through book clubs, tea receptions, and school district involvement. We’ve already made some great connections with two universities and hope to develop more understanding of the plight of women in children in our world.
The reason that I have posted this story on our women's network, is that I want to encourage all women to "know their why". "Why are you running your business, why are you involved in a women's network, why would you give to a good cause." When you know your "why" it makes all the difference in the world. Don't just know it in your head . . . write it down on a piece of paper.
Written by Rhonda W. Geneva, President of Geneva Girls Designs, LLC, wife, and mother
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Tea Reception
If you've been listening lately you may have discovered a link between "3 Degrees Connected" and "3 Cups of Tea".
If you not heard about our organization, we would like to tell you that we are a group of women in West Michigan who are learning that by making connections, we can encourage women to follow their dreams of owning their own company or being responsible for their own destiny. These connections are a vital part of creating word of mouth referrals for local owned or operated businesses. This is only a small part of what this organization stands for. Although we are focused on West Michigan, we also help women and girls a world a way by becoming more educated on the plight of women throughout the world and assisting where we can.
If you've not heard of "3 Cups of Tea", you've missed a New York Best Seller, and an excellent account of how one man pursued a mission to build a school in Pakistan primarily focused on meeting the educational needs of girls. Since 1996 his dream to build one school has turned into a mission to educate as many children as possible. As of his last writing, in the book "Stones to Schools", Greg Mortensen has built 131 schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
You might think that is a great accomplishment in such a short amount of time and indeed it is. At a recent program at Grand Valley State University where Greg spoke, he indicated that in 2001 there were 800,000 children between the ages of five and fifteen who were enrolled in school. By 2010 this number has increased to 8.5 million children with 2.5 million of those children being girls. While Greg was growing up in Africa, he learned an old proverb that went something like this "Educate a boy and you change an individual, educate a girl and you change a village".
Why do we care? Well, as a non-profit organization, 3 Degrees Connected has set forth a mission that we want to help women. The Pennies for Peace program is a way that we as an organization can involve our community, by collecting pennies. When Greg first started his mission to build one school, his largest donation was made by school children in Wisconsin. They donated 63,000 pennies. Realizing that in our society pennies are viewed as worthless coins, we would like to collect those "worthless" coins and make a difference through purchasing school supplies and/or contributing toward the building of a school. The Central Asian Institute is the organization behind the Pennies for Peace program and they provide a wealth of resourceful information to show how these pennies are changing the world.
We will kickoff our Pennies for Peace campaign by sharing our first cup of tea on Saturday, May 22, 2010 at KP Galley in Spring Lake Michigan. Anyone wishing to help us with our pennies for peace campaign can come by KP Galley at 9 a.m. We will begin planning our community-wide tea reception slated for next spring. We had planned a community-wide tea reception, but circumstances indicated that it was wiser to put all our efforts into our penny collection this year and having a larger kickoff event in the spring of 2011.
We will be collecting pennies along the lakeshore from May through August 2010 and with the aid of several local Girl Scout troops, we will count and roll pennies throughout the summer months. If you would like to help us count, please stay tune for date and location.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Pennies for Peace
3 Degrees Connected Women's Network is gearing up for a fundraising event. Mark your calendars for May 22, 2010 for our kickoff program at Spring Lake Presbyterian Church. We are hosting a tea reception with the message of making a difference through supporting the program "pennies for peace" and focused on the mission of Greg Mortensen to promote peace through education.
Greg Mortensen spoke at GVSU on Tuesday evening, April 6, 2010 to a packed field house. His speech included not only his mission, but he spoke of a fourteen year old boy in Tampa, Florida who was raising funds for his own cause by walking with his "little red wagon". What a great inspiration to school children giving them the message that they can make a difference in our world.
To visit a photo gallery, follow the MLIVE link below:
Greg Mortonsen visits West Michigan
Greg Mortensen spoke at GVSU on Tuesday evening, April 6, 2010 to a packed field house. His speech included not only his mission, but he spoke of a fourteen year old boy in Tampa, Florida who was raising funds for his own cause by walking with his "little red wagon". What a great inspiration to school children giving them the message that they can make a difference in our world.
To visit a photo gallery, follow the MLIVE link below:
Greg Mortonsen visits West Michigan
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide
Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, Winners of the Pulitzer Prize have written a thought provoking book called Half the Sky, Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide.
This book reveals how a little help can transform the lives of women and girls abroad. We as an organization focused on women empowering women look at the needs of local area businesses to create connections and provide support for one another. I feel that we in turn, should understand the needs and support women not only here, but also abroad. In 2005 as my husband and I prepared our home and our hearts to bring our daughter to the United States through an International adoption. I knew very little about the plight of women in other parts of the world. Needing to understand the circumstances which led to our daughter living in a Social Welfare Institute the first 12 months of her life, I began to pour through books about what might have caused her birth-mother, as well as millions of other women in Asia, to relinquish the rights to their daughters. Even though I approached this initially from a personal need so that I could answer the tough questions that may surface in our household someday, what I didn’t expect was the tremendous responsibility that knowledge places on the hearts of those who look for answers. I can no longer look at the world seeing only what surrounds me in my Midwestern home nestled in the middle of a country that encourages and supports women to be the best that they can be, I now look at cultural differences that do not allow women and girls to make choices about their future.
I will warn you, the book “Half the Sky” is not a feel good book. It is one that will bring you to tears, and make you sick to your stomach as you learn about female trafficking, life in brothels, and women who suffer devastating injuries during childbirth. I also learned that when we only throw money at issues, it seldom solves the problem. Learning about grassroots organizations and programs that are changing lives by finding solutions on how to get and keep you girls in schools showed me that it was not about resources, but how those resources were implemented. Something as simple as de-worming children to improve their attention, supplying iodine pills to increase the brains capacity to learn, and teaching young women about how to best handle their monthly cycle play a very important role in changing the lives of future generations.
Chapter eleven starts with a quote from Kofi Annan which reads “It is impossible to realize our goals while discriminating against half the human race. As study after study has taught us, there is no tool for development more effective than the empowerment of women.” It is this chapter which explains why micro-loans created specifically for women-owned businesses are the best investments. I would highly recommend this book to anyone wishing to truly make a difference in our world. 3 Degrees Connected supports micro-lending to women-owned businesses in many parts of the world including Asia, Africa, and South America. One of the criteria I use in assigning money to businesses I wish to support is how the funds will be applied, if the woman is interested in supporting her children’s education, and the likelihood that the woman (or group of women) are to repay their loans. The likelihood of repayment is important to me as I want to reinvest the same resources multiple times increasing the likelihood that small donations will have the great impact.
To find our Kiva lending team, click here. In the upper left hand corner of that screen select the option "Loans" to see where our resources have been applied and learn a little about the ambitions of those needing our help. You will see that we have helped women in eleven countries (Senegal, Uganda, Ecuador, Peru, Tajikistan, Nigeria, Ghana, Bolivia, Tanzania, Phillippines, and Togo).
In addition to the 15 loans listed on our lending page (2009 contributions), our daughter, then age four, held a caused-based birthday party where she treated her friends to a princess tea party. Forfeiting gifts she requested her friends consider donations for Kiva investments. We were able to provide resources to six women's business all of which have repaid their loans allowing us to reinvest.
If you wish to read about some inspiring women who have changed their life through education, there are many examples in the book "Half the Sky". I would challenge us all to see what a difference we can make in our world in 2010.
This book reveals how a little help can transform the lives of women and girls abroad. We as an organization focused on women empowering women look at the needs of local area businesses to create connections and provide support for one another. I feel that we in turn, should understand the needs and support women not only here, but also abroad. In 2005 as my husband and I prepared our home and our hearts to bring our daughter to the United States through an International adoption. I knew very little about the plight of women in other parts of the world. Needing to understand the circumstances which led to our daughter living in a Social Welfare Institute the first 12 months of her life, I began to pour through books about what might have caused her birth-mother, as well as millions of other women in Asia, to relinquish the rights to their daughters. Even though I approached this initially from a personal need so that I could answer the tough questions that may surface in our household someday, what I didn’t expect was the tremendous responsibility that knowledge places on the hearts of those who look for answers. I can no longer look at the world seeing only what surrounds me in my Midwestern home nestled in the middle of a country that encourages and supports women to be the best that they can be, I now look at cultural differences that do not allow women and girls to make choices about their future.
I will warn you, the book “Half the Sky” is not a feel good book. It is one that will bring you to tears, and make you sick to your stomach as you learn about female trafficking, life in brothels, and women who suffer devastating injuries during childbirth. I also learned that when we only throw money at issues, it seldom solves the problem. Learning about grassroots organizations and programs that are changing lives by finding solutions on how to get and keep you girls in schools showed me that it was not about resources, but how those resources were implemented. Something as simple as de-worming children to improve their attention, supplying iodine pills to increase the brains capacity to learn, and teaching young women about how to best handle their monthly cycle play a very important role in changing the lives of future generations.
Chapter eleven starts with a quote from Kofi Annan which reads “It is impossible to realize our goals while discriminating against half the human race. As study after study has taught us, there is no tool for development more effective than the empowerment of women.” It is this chapter which explains why micro-loans created specifically for women-owned businesses are the best investments. I would highly recommend this book to anyone wishing to truly make a difference in our world. 3 Degrees Connected supports micro-lending to women-owned businesses in many parts of the world including Asia, Africa, and South America. One of the criteria I use in assigning money to businesses I wish to support is how the funds will be applied, if the woman is interested in supporting her children’s education, and the likelihood that the woman (or group of women) are to repay their loans. The likelihood of repayment is important to me as I want to reinvest the same resources multiple times increasing the likelihood that small donations will have the great impact.
To find our Kiva lending team, click here. In the upper left hand corner of that screen select the option "Loans" to see where our resources have been applied and learn a little about the ambitions of those needing our help. You will see that we have helped women in eleven countries (Senegal, Uganda, Ecuador, Peru, Tajikistan, Nigeria, Ghana, Bolivia, Tanzania, Phillippines, and Togo).
In addition to the 15 loans listed on our lending page (2009 contributions), our daughter, then age four, held a caused-based birthday party where she treated her friends to a princess tea party. Forfeiting gifts she requested her friends consider donations for Kiva investments. We were able to provide resources to six women's business all of which have repaid their loans allowing us to reinvest.
If you wish to read about some inspiring women who have changed their life through education, there are many examples in the book "Half the Sky". I would challenge us all to see what a difference we can make in our world in 2010.
Friday, November 6, 2009
Making a Difference
As holiday season approaches, we are hearing lots of conversation about the economic conditions here in the U.S. Merchants are frantic about whether this years sales will help them avoid bankruptcy. I know that our purchase dollars can have a significant impact on the outcome for many retailers. If your home is like mine, now more than ever, the phone is ring off the hook asking us to contribute to all sorts of causes. Everyone has needs.
Consider this year instead of passing the $25 to $50 gift card to your relatives in exchange for the same $25 to $50 gift card; do something significant with your purchasing power this holiday season. Not only think of the gift recipient, but whether your spending keeps a business afloat, does your gift serve the needs of your community, does your gift serve the needs of someone who might not otherwise receive a gift.
A recent article about what big box stores plan to do this holiday season showed that we depend on materialism. The plot of the story goes, "we will limit supply to increase the demand". Do we really want to buy into this form of commercialism, or do we want to rethink our holiday strategy.
Consider this year instead of passing the $25 to $50 gift card to your relatives in exchange for the same $25 to $50 gift card; do something significant with your purchasing power this holiday season. Not only think of the gift recipient, but whether your spending keeps a business afloat, does your gift serve the needs of your community, does your gift serve the needs of someone who might not otherwise receive a gift.
A recent article about what big box stores plan to do this holiday season showed that we depend on materialism. The plot of the story goes, "we will limit supply to increase the demand". Do we really want to buy into this form of commercialism, or do we want to rethink our holiday strategy.
- Think about giving the $25.00 gift card toward a cause on behalf of someone else. In an organization such as KIVA, you can purchase a gift certificate for someone to invest in a micro-loan of their choice. This gift is then invested as a micro-loan on behalf of a business in need. When the loan is repaid, the recipient can chose to either re-invest or withdraw the funds for their own use. Is the gift still worth $25.00?
- Consider supporting local businesses with your purchase dollar rather than looking at larger discount chain stores. Let the merchant know that you are doing this because you feel their business is important to the community.
- Consider making personalized gifts with special meaning from your heart, rather than spending your resources unnecessarily.
- Consider the phrase "time is money" and give someone your time as a gift this holiday season. Create your own gift card indicating what you plan to do, go ahead and print a value and redemption date on the certificate.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
What Once Was Good . . . Is Good Again
What once was good is good again. That is the revolving nature of micro-lending through KIVA. As micro-loans are repaid by those who funds were lent, money returns to the account giving the lender three options:
Today it was possible to contribute toward three women's groups or women-owned businesses in the amount of $75.00. You are given the option to contribute an additional percentage to KIVA, the organization to help them continue their mission. Although not required, this morning we contributed 15% to help this organization continue its service to others. So with $86.71 to lend we were left with 46 cents in our account to begin rebuilding our balance for future lending.
Here are the three women's groups/businesses that benefited from our small contribution:
Flor De Naranjo Group
Nyame Ye Odo Group
Sekinatu Solesi
Click on the link to each group or woman above to learn the details of their micro-lending needs, their repayment terms, and a bit about their businesses.
To add to our teams total support visit http://kiva.org/3_degrees_connected/;
Thus far we have contributed to 16 loans, but we can do more. Please join me in this small effort to change the world for women one woman at a time.
Once you educate the boys, they tend to leave the villages and go search for work in the cities, but the girls stay home, become leaders in the community, and pass on what they’ve learned. If you really want to change a culture, to empower women, improve basic hygiene and health care, and fight high rates of infant mortality, the answer is to educate girls.
Greg Mortensen, Three Cups of Tea
Best wishes,
Rhonda Geneva
- Create a new lending opportunity,
- give a Gift Certificate to other lenders (encourages others to participate),
- redraw your funds
Today it was possible to contribute toward three women's groups or women-owned businesses in the amount of $75.00. You are given the option to contribute an additional percentage to KIVA, the organization to help them continue their mission. Although not required, this morning we contributed 15% to help this organization continue its service to others. So with $86.71 to lend we were left with 46 cents in our account to begin rebuilding our balance for future lending.
Here are the three women's groups/businesses that benefited from our small contribution:
Flor De Naranjo Group
Nyame Ye Odo Group
Sekinatu Solesi
Click on the link to each group or woman above to learn the details of their micro-lending needs, their repayment terms, and a bit about their businesses.
To add to our teams total support visit http://kiva.org/3_degrees_connected/;
Thus far we have contributed to 16 loans, but we can do more. Please join me in this small effort to change the world for women one woman at a time.
Once you educate the boys, they tend to leave the villages and go search for work in the cities, but the girls stay home, become leaders in the community, and pass on what they’ve learned. If you really want to change a culture, to empower women, improve basic hygiene and health care, and fight high rates of infant mortality, the answer is to educate girls.
Greg Mortensen, Three Cups of Tea
Best wishes,
Rhonda Geneva
Monday, June 15, 2009
Making A Difference
Thanks to a recent Gold Exchange where the recipient mentioned 3 Degrees - Connected™ network, and the generosity of a local jeweler who made a promise to share his profits with us, we have been able to contribute to another Women's business in Tanzania. This is the fifth women's business that 3 Degrees-Connected™ has been able to support.
This is 39 year old, Grace W. Mfune, is from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. She is married with two children between the ages of 15 and 16. Grace has been running an African traditional cloth business called batik business since 2000. Her business is to make different kinds of batik and sell them. She works at the business between 9 to 12 hours per day, 6 days a week.
Grace currently earns about $200 (USD) from her business. She is requesting a loan of $775 in order to purchase cloth and dye for making batik. Grace has agreed to repayment terms of 14 months. In the future, she plans to increase the quantity and range of her stock. Grace thanks you for your support!
As funds are repaid, the opportunity exists for us to continue supporting women's business in other parts of the world. Please join us in this effort of creating a better life for women and families throughout the world. To see a map view or a listing the women we have helped, click here.
To join us in this effort, please join our group, and lend as little as $25.00.
Best Wishes, Hoping You Happy!
This is 39 year old, Grace W. Mfune, is from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. She is married with two children between the ages of 15 and 16. Grace has been running an African traditional cloth business called batik business since 2000. Her business is to make different kinds of batik and sell them. She works at the business between 9 to 12 hours per day, 6 days a week.
Grace currently earns about $200 (USD) from her business. She is requesting a loan of $775 in order to purchase cloth and dye for making batik. Grace has agreed to repayment terms of 14 months. In the future, she plans to increase the quantity and range of her stock. Grace thanks you for your support!
As funds are repaid, the opportunity exists for us to continue supporting women's business in other parts of the world. Please join us in this effort of creating a better life for women and families throughout the world. To see a map view or a listing the women we have helped, click here.
To join us in this effort, please join our group, and lend as little as $25.00.
Best Wishes, Hoping You Happy!
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Fundraising Event Helps Women in Four Countries
One of the blessings of raising funds for micro-lending opportunities is actually being able to distribute those funds into the accounts of women businesses through KIVA and know that it will make a life changing impact on them, their children, and their communities. Today was a day of blessings as the 3 Degrees - Connected™ team contributed to four loans to help women in under-developed nations. I have included a brief note and picture about each of these businesses below.
Bujwaha Netgeta Rosemary Group located in Hoima, Uganda is raising money for used clothing sales. They have been in business for 3 years. The total loan requested was $450.00 with repayment terms of 11 months.
Meriga located in Adidogome, Togo earns income from selling charcoal and sweet potatoes (tubers). She has been in business 35 years and has asked for a loan to replenish her inventory. The total loan requested was $1,075.00 with repayment terms of 14 months.
As these loans are repaid, the money is returned in the form of credits into the 3 Degrees - Connected ™ lending team account for further distribution. Periodically you will see posts about the women we are helping.
If you want to see how good it feels to lend money to help women, please click on the link taking you into our lending team account. Set up your own loans through the team and see what impact we can make together. You will then have the right to select who you want to lend to as well as how to use the funds as they return to you.
http://www.kiva.org/community/viewTeam?team_id=6818
For as little as $25.00 you can support a business through collective lending efforts. Today we chose to support 4 businesses rather than put all our money into one loan.
**We did not fully-fund these loans, but only a very small portion. It is our goal that we may be able to fully-fund a loan in the future.
Thank you for supporting our fundraising activities and happy lending!
Bujwaha Netgeta Rosemary Group located in Hoima, Uganda is raising money for used clothing sales. They have been in business for 3 years. The total loan requested was $450.00 with repayment terms of 11 months.
Yaa Yeboah located in Dorma Ahenkro, Ghana is raising money to buy more raw materials for her food vending business. She has been in business for 5 years. The total loan requested was $425.00 with repayment terms of 7 months.
Josephine Brown located in Malaubang, Ozamiz City, Philippines makes a living operating a business in the retail sector. She has been engaged in business for 3 years. The total loan requested was $125.00 with repayment terms of 8 months.
Meriga located in Adidogome, Togo earns income from selling charcoal and sweet potatoes (tubers). She has been in business 35 years and has asked for a loan to replenish her inventory. The total loan requested was $1,075.00 with repayment terms of 14 months.
As these loans are repaid, the money is returned in the form of credits into the 3 Degrees - Connected ™ lending team account for further distribution. Periodically you will see posts about the women we are helping.
If you want to see how good it feels to lend money to help women, please click on the link taking you into our lending team account. Set up your own loans through the team and see what impact we can make together. You will then have the right to select who you want to lend to as well as how to use the funds as they return to you.
http://www.kiva.org/community/viewTeam?team_id=6818
For as little as $25.00 you can support a business through collective lending efforts. Today we chose to support 4 businesses rather than put all our money into one loan.
**We did not fully-fund these loans, but only a very small portion. It is our goal that we may be able to fully-fund a loan in the future.
Thank you for supporting our fundraising activities and happy lending!
Friday, May 22, 2009
GOLD Buyer - Supports Women's Cause
#1 Buyers - Coin and Gold, J. Morgan, LTD has graciously offered to help the women of West Michigan through 3 Degrees - Connected™ support the cause of women empowering women a world away.
J. Morgan LTD at 20 Washington Avenue, Downtown Grand Haven buys Gold, Platinum and Silver in any condition.
Thanks to his generosity, we will be changing the economic conditions of women and families across the globe who are less fortunate than we are.
J. Morgan LTD at 20 Washington Avenue, Downtown Grand Haven buys Gold, Platinum and Silver in any condition.
- jewelry
- coins
- old currency
- bullion ingots and rounds
- industrial scrap
- sterlingware
- dental gold
- vintage watches
- medals and tokens
- diamonds
Thanks to his generosity, we will be changing the economic conditions of women and families across the globe who are less fortunate than we are.
A Lending Page Has Been Created (KIVA)
A lending page has been created to support Women's Businesses a World Away . . .
Hi,
I want to recruit you to my lending team, 3 Degrees - Connected™, on KIVA, a non-profit website that allows you to lend as little as $25 to a specific low-income entrepreneur across the globe. You choose who to lend to and as they repay the loan, you get your money back.
If you join my lending team, we can work together to alleviate poverty. Once you're a part of the team, you can choose to have a future loan on Kiva "count" towards our team's impact. The loan is still yours and repayments still come to you, but you can also choose to have the loan show up in our team's collective portfolio, so our team's overall impact will grow.
3 Degrees - Connect™ is a women's organization which supports women's innovative interests in West Michigan. Read the post "Who Are We" to learn more about us. It is our interest to further the cause of women and children both here in West Michigan and abroad. Although you may select who you will lend to, we hope you will join us in supporting women-based businesses that desperately need your help.
http://www.kiva.org/team/3_degrees_connected
If you are interested in learning more about what we are doing, please send an email to best-wishes@charter.net or read future posts tagged "KIVA" about the women we are helping worlds away.
Hi,
I want to recruit you to my lending team, 3 Degrees - Connected™, on KIVA, a non-profit website that allows you to lend as little as $25 to a specific low-income entrepreneur across the globe. You choose who to lend to and as they repay the loan, you get your money back.
If you join my lending team, we can work together to alleviate poverty. Once you're a part of the team, you can choose to have a future loan on Kiva "count" towards our team's impact. The loan is still yours and repayments still come to you, but you can also choose to have the loan show up in our team's collective portfolio, so our team's overall impact will grow.
3 Degrees - Connect™ is a women's organization which supports women's innovative interests in West Michigan. Read the post "Who Are We" to learn more about us. It is our interest to further the cause of women and children both here in West Michigan and abroad. Although you may select who you will lend to, we hope you will join us in supporting women-based businesses that desperately need your help.
http://www.kiva.org/team/3_degrees_connected
If you are interested in learning more about what we are doing, please send an email to best-wishes@charter.net or read future posts tagged "KIVA" about the women we are helping worlds away.
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